HF3120 Summary

• Modifies wetland banking account fees, changing language from "may" to "must" establish fees based on agency costs for single-user or dedicated accounts.

• Requires external peer review for all new or revised numeric water quality standards with specific procedures for public notice, comment periods, and documentation in rulemaking statements.

• Exempts water conveyance activities from national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permits when no intervening industrial, municipal, or commercial use occurs, unless pollutants are introduced by the activity itself.

• Establishes 16-year compliance timeline for municipalities and industrial permit holders to meet new or modified effluent limitations adopted after treatment facility construction begins.

• Directs Board of Water and Soil Resources to complete planning frameworks for in-lieu fee wetland mitigation programs in the Red River Basin and areas with greater than 80 percent coverage, using watershed-based prioritization strategies.