TCEQ outlines legislative workload, new hires and $964 million budget in briefing to commissioners

Steven Char, deputy executive director at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, told the commission during a work session that agency staff “tracked 1,053 bills during the legislative session. A 156 of those bills passed.” He said agency analysts reviewed more than 700 bills while continuing regular duties and that staff currently estimate about 26 bills will require rulemaking during the interim.

The presentation laid out the fiscal picture for the agency from the recent legislative session and a supplemental bill (HB 500). “It totals 964,000,000,” Char said, describing the combined budget figure shown in the slides and noting most agency funding comes from fee revenue held in the GRD account.

Why it matters: The funding and requests the agency presented touch permitting capacity, staff retention and information technology. Commissioners pressed staff on how the new resources will be allocated, how many positions will be filled, and what follow-up reporting the commission will receive as the agency implements new duties moved to TCEQ by statute.

Key items and staffing commitments

Char and Elizabeth Cifuentes Koch, chief budget and efficiency officer for the agency, summarized seven “exceptional items” the agency requested and said the legislature granted nearly 90% of the requested amounts. Char said the agency plans to add a large number of…