(a) Each municipality and county is encouraged to promote rainwater harvesting at residential, commercial, and industrial facilities through incentives such as the provision at a discount of rain barrels or rebates for water storage facilities.
(b) The Texas Water Development Board shall ensure that training on rainwater harvesting is available for the members of the permitting staffs of municipalities and counties at least quarterly. Each member of the permitting staff of each county and municipality located wholly or partly in an area designated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality as a priority groundwater management area under Section 35.008 , Water Code, whose work relates directly to permits involving rainwater harvesting and each member of the permitting staff of each county and municipality with a population of more than 10,000 whose work relates directly to permits involving rainwater harvesting must receive appropriate training regarding rainwater harvesting standards and their relation to permitting at least once every five years. Members of the permitting staffs of counties and municipalities not located wholly or partly in an area designated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality as a priority groundwater management area under Section 35.008 , Water Code, whose work relates directly to permits involving rainwater harvesting and members of the permitting staffs of counties and municipalities with a population of 10,000 or less whose work relates directly to permits involving rainwater harvesting are encouraged to receive the training. The Texas Water Development Board may provide appropriate training by seminars or by videotape or functionally similar and widely available media without cost.
(c) A municipality or county may not deny a building permit solely because the facility will implement rainwater harvesting. However, a municipality or county may require that a rainwater harvesting system comply with the minimum state standards established for such a system.
(d) Each school district is encouraged to implement rainwater harvesting at facilities of the district.
Added by Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1311 (H.B. 3391 ), Sec. 4, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 695 (H.B. 2781 ), Sec. 5, eff. September 1, 2013.
