SB1746

When the rule applies: a navigation district, exercising its Chapter 60, Subchapter E powers, eminent-domain power or police power, requires relocation or removal from a federally authorized dredged-material disposal site owned, operated, managed or established by another district. This is not a rule covering every private dredging operation or every disposal site. The requiring district must comply with all U.S. Army Corps of Engineers requirements relating to the site. Its payment option uses “sole expense,” defined as actual cost or an in-kind contribution after deducting net salvage value from the material; alternatively, it may perform the relocation or removal. Final law, section 1(a)–(b).

Protecting disposal capacity: if the move reduces another district’s rights to capacity at the site, the district requiring it must replace that lost capacity and provide rights to it at an alternative federally authorized placement area. It must also pay any increased transportation costs for material associated with that lost capacity. Merely removing the material does not eliminate these additional duties when capacity rights are reduced. Final law, section 1(c).

Changes before passage: the introduced bill had a broader relocation/payment rule without the final requirement that the site be federally authorized and connected to another district. The Senate substitute added those limits, express Army Corps compliance, in-kind contributions in the expense definition, and protection for lost capacity and added transport costs. The Senate-passed text corrected “Army Corp” to “Army Corps”; the House committee and final versions retained that wording. The amendment index lists no floor amendments. Introduced; Senate substitute; Senate-passed; House committee; Version index; Amendment index; Final law.

Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.

Districts whose disposal sites or capacity rights are affected gain statutory protections against having another district shift the specified relocation and replacement burdens onto them. A district requiring a move may incur relocation, substitute-capacity and additional hauling costs. The law does not order a particular dredging project, guarantee cheaper disposal or replace federal approval requirements. Final law.

The March 20 introduced and April 10 substitute fiscal notes anticipate no state fiscal impact. Both identify possible costs for navigation districts required to pay for relocation or removal, without a dollar estimate. The final law also expressly addresses capacity replacement and increased transportation costs; the notes’ brief descriptions are not a cap on those obligations. No appropriation is made. Introduced fiscal note; Substitute fiscal note; Final law.