89R14601 ANG-F     By: Harris, et al. H.B. No. 5560       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to penalties in certain suits involving a groundwater   conservation district; increasing a penalty.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Section 36.102, Water Code, is amended by   amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (f) to read as   follows:          (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (f), the [The] board by   rule may set reasonable civil penalties that the district may   recover from [against] any person for breach of any rule of the   district in an amount not to exceed $25,000 [$10,000] per day per   violation, and each day of a continuing violation constitutes a   separate violation.          (f)  In an enforcement action brought by a district against a   person, the court may assess a penalty greater than the maximum   penalty authorized under Subsection (b) if the court determines   that the person gained an economic benefit as a result of the   violation that was greater than the maximum penalty under   Subsection (b).  A penalty assessed under this subsection must be in   an amount determined by the court to be necessary and appropriate to   outweigh the economic benefit gained by the person as a result of   the violation and discourage future violations.          SECTION 2.  Section 36.102, Water Code, as amended by this   Act, applies only to a suit involving a groundwater conservation   district that is filed on or after the effective date of this Act.  A   suit filed before the effective date of this Act is subject to the   law in effect on the date the suit is filed, and that law is   continued in effect for that purpose.          SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.