HOUSE BILL 3883 UPDATE

hillcountryweekly.com

Milan J. Michalec - Director Precinct 2, President, Cow Creek Groundwater Conservation District.

A joint workshop between Kendall County Commissioners and Cow Creek Directors was called to order at 4:30 p.m. by Cow Creek GCD President Milan J. Michalec.

In addition to a discussion of County Development Rules and Cow Creek GCD Rules, the agenda also included an update on the 2021, 87th Legislature.

The bill’s champion for Kendall County Commissioners Court, Pct. 2 Commissioner Richard Elkins, briefed the audience on House Bill (HB) 3883. This bill was authored by Rep. Kyle Biedermann, who when he first took office in 2016, has worked closely with both Cow Creek GCD and Kendall County Commissioners Court to find a way to preserve the Hill Country and ensure water issues in Texas met with legislative action that is informed and science-based.

Despite broad local support to include Cow Creek GCD, the Commissioners Court, the Mayor of Boerne and a total of 141 citizens who submitted written public comments on HB 3883 through the House website and all were “FOR” the bill, the bill could not advance out of the Committee on Land and Resource Management.

This was because of efforts by the Texas Association of Builders (TAB), whose representative was the only one who testified against this bill. By this lobbying effort, TAB killed the bill.

The workshop attendees discussed ways to bring this bill back in 2023 during the 88th Legislature. County Commissioners in attendance— Richard Elkins, Don Durden and Richard Chapman, along with Cow Creek GCD Directors Ben Eldredge, Bob Webster, Curt Campbell and Milan Michalec all agreed to conduct more workshops like this in the future to find a way ahead. The meeting was adjourned at 5:25 p.m.

At 6:01 p.m. Michalec called to order the regular meeting of the Cow Creek GCD. The high point of the agenda was an application to drill a well for a Public Water Supply at 529 SH46E in Kendall County. The applicant requested 3.36 acre-feet for Boerne Personal Storage.

In Public Comments, three individuals spoke against the permit because they had been told this well was linked to a permit to supply water to a concrete batch facility to be operated by Vulcan Materials Company. In reality, this permit had no relation to the concrete batch plant.

Discussion with the design engineers representing Boerne Personal Storage revealed the facility would incorporate rainwater harvesting into the design of the building complex for fire protection and landscape would have minimal demand with xeriscape.

Subsequently Cow Creek GCD Directors voted unanimously voted to approve an operating permit for 2.55 acre-feet a year.

In other action, after hearing an update from District staff on the status of monitors wells, Guadalupe River flows and local rainfall, Directors agreed to stay on stage 2 drought restrictions.