Defenses.

Austin City Code tit. 15, ch. 15-10, art. 12, div. 5

in effect

Austin City Code § 15-10-301 AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE TO PROHIBITED DISCHARGE OF A POLLUTANT.

§ 15-10-301 - AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE TO PROHIBITED DISCHARGE OF A POLLUTANT. It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for a violation of the general prohibitions under Subsections 15-10-21(2) and (3) (General Prohibitions Against Discharge) and the specific prohibitions under Subsections 15-10-22(4), (7), (10), (14), (15), and (16) (Specifically Prohibited Pollutants) that the person did not know, or have reason to know, that the person's discharge, alone or in conjunction with discharges from other sources, would cause pass through or interference, and: (1) immediately before and during the pass through or interference, the person was in compliance with a local limit for the discharged pollutant causing the pass through or interference; or (2) no local limit exists for the pollutant that caused the pass through or interference, and the discharge: (a) did not change substantially in nature or constituents from an earlier discharge during which the POTW was in compliance with the NPDES or TPDES permits, and (b) in the case of interference, the POTW was in compliance with applicable sludge use or disposal requirements. Source: 1992 Code Section 18-2-301; Ord. 031204-14; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 15-10-302 AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE FOR VIOLATION OF BYPASS PROHIBITION.

§ 15-10-302 - AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE FOR VIOLATION OF BYPASS PROHIBITION. (A) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution for violation of the prohibitions against bypass under Section 15-10-27 (Bypass), that: (1) the bypass was unavoidable to prevent loss of life, personal injury, or severe property damage, and the person causing or allowing the bypass complied with the notice requirements in Section 15-10-27 (Bypass); or (2) no feasible alternatives to the bypass existed, including the use of an auxiliary treatment facility, retention of untreated waste, or preventative maintenance during a normal period of equipment downtime. (B) A person may not assert an affirmative defense to prosecution for a bypass occurring during a normal period of equipment downtime or preventative maintenance, if the person should have, in the exercise of reasonable engineering judgment, installed adequate backup equipment to prevent a bypass. Source: 1992 Code Section 18-2-302; Ord. 031204-14; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 15-10-303 RESERVED.

Austin City Code § 15-10-304 ACT OF GOD.

§ 15-10-304 - ACT OF GOD. It is an affirmative defense to prosecution in an action brought in state or municipal court for a violation of this chapter that the violation was caused solely by an act of God, war, strike, riot, or other catastrophe. Source: 1992 Code Section 18-2-304; Ord. 031204-14; Ord. 031211-11.

Source: City of Austin, City Code and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/tx/austin/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT15UTRE_CH15-10WARE_ART12ENPEAP_DIV5DEFetched: 10/27/2026