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TCEQ creates North Fork Municipal Utility District, grants road powers after contested testimony
Summary
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality voted to create the North Fork Municipal Utility District of Williamson County and grant road powers after reviewing ALJ findings, testimony from nearby landowner Edward C. Griffith Jr., and recommendations from the executive director and OPIC.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality voted April 1 to create the North Fork Municipal Utility District of Williamson County and grant the district road powers, adopting the administrative law judge’s proposed order with limited edits circulated at the dais.
Petitioners’ counsel Bill McLean told commissioners the ALJ found the creation petition met statutory criteria and recommended approval. Nearby landowner and protestant Edward C. Griffith Jr. urged the commission to deny the petition, arguing the proposed development would alter hydrology and water quality. Griffith told the commission the applicant “proposes to discharge an average of 660,000 gallons of wastewater per day into the North Fork of Mustang Creek,” described differences between the creek’s spring‑fed and intermittent reaches on his property, and urged the applicant to pursue regionalization with the city of Taylor.
Executive‑director staff (represented by Kayla Murray and Justin Tack) responded that the ALJ correctly found petitioners met the statutory requirements and emphasized that creation of a MUD does not, by itself, issue discharge permits; water‑quality and discharge conditions would be handled in future TPDES or other permitting proceedings. The Office of Public Interest Counsel (Sheldon Wayne) also recommended creation, finding the preponderance of evidence showed feasibility and compliance with Texas Water Code section 54.014.
Chairwoman Brooke Paupe circulated a short set of edits and limited substantive revisions to the proposed order, including renumbering, deleting a finding the chair considered irrelevant to the groundwater inquiry, and clarifying temporary director qualifications. After a brief recess to allow parties to review the edits, the commission adopted the ALJ’s proposed order as revised, granted road powers, and authorized the appointment of the applicant‑recommended temporary directors. The motion passed on a unanimous recorded voice vote of the commissioners present.
The action establishes the district and allows future permitting and discharge matters to proceed through the normal executive‑director and permit review processes; the commission and staff noted that TPDES and other authorizations remain separate proceedings.
