HBA-EDN S.B. 356 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 356 By: Lucio Environmental Regulation 3/19/2001 Engrossed BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) has developed several innovative programs to reform the state's approach to environmental regulation, such as technical assistance on pollution prevention, environmental self-audits, or Supplemental Environmental Projects, which allow entities that violate pollution regulations to invest the fines, fees, and penalties the violating entity would otherwise have to pay in environmental improvement projects. TNRCC has developed performance measures to measure its innovative programs, but there are concerns that the present measures do not adequately measure the results of most of TNRCC's innovative programs. Senate Bill 356 requires TNRCC to work with the Legislative Budget Board to create performance measures that assess the improvements in environmental quality achieved by innovative regulatory programs implemented by TNRCC. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS Senate Bill 356 amends the Water Code to require the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) to work with the Legislative Budget Board to create performance measures that assess the improvements in environmental quality achieved by innovative regulatory programs implemented by TNRCC. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.