Senate water committee adopts rules, hears agency briefings on $1 billion fund, SWIFT demand and flood needs

The Senate Water, Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee on Monday adopted its committee rules and heard invited testimony from seven state agencies on water supply, flood planning, infrastructure funding and related regulatory work.

Senator Perry, chairman of the panel, opened the organizational hearing, which included presentations from the Texas Water Development Board (TWDB); the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ); the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board; the Public Utility Commission (PUC); the Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC); the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA); and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD).

L’Oreal Stepney, chairwoman of the Texas Water Development Board, told senators the agency manages science, planning and finance for state water work and has grown sharply as a lender and grantor. “We are a small agency with big responsibilities,” Stepney said, noting SWIFT (the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas) has funded about $11.5 billion in projects to date and that the board recently received roughly $5.1 billion in abridged applications in the latest SWIFT solicitation. She said the state’s Clean Water and Drinking Water revolving funds together show roughly $8 billion in current need ($4.2 billion drinking water, $4.1 billion clean water) and that the 2018…