Committee advances bill to let counties put water-fluoride opt-out to voters

Senator Penzo introduced a bill (SB 282 as identified in committee remarks) to allow constituents to vote on whether to remove fluoridation from a public water supply in their county or water district.

Penzo said the measure would let a quorum court place the question on the ballot by majority vote, or allow a petition of at least 5% of total votes cast in the county to trigger a ballot question for residents served by the system. "All this bill does is it gives people the ability by two methods," he said.

Sponsor remarks framed the proposal as a local-control measure while noting contested scientific and regulatory debate. Penzo said he had concerns about fluoride and noted recent developments: "FDA classifies it as a drug," he said in committee remarks, and he referenced a federal judge order directing the Environmental Protection Agency to reevaluate whether fluoride is a neurotoxin.

The bill sets procedures for counties or multi-county systems to conduct an opt-out vote: if a common water district spans multiple counties, the transcript indicates the measure requires a majority vote in the affected counties and a majority of participating counties in order to remove fluoridation for the system.

Committee members moved for immediate consideration; the motion to pass was made and seconded and the chair announced passage by voice vote. The transcript records the action but includes no roll-call tally. No public speakers were recorded objecting during the committee session.