ADOPTED RULES An agency may take final action on a section 30 days after a proposal has been published in the Texas Register. The section becomes effective 20 days after the agency files the correct document with the Texas Register, unless a later date is specified or unless a federal statute or regulation requires implementation of the action on shorter notice. If an agency adopts the section without any changes to the proposed text, only the preamble of the notice and statement of legal authority will be published. If an agency adopts the section with changes to the proposed text, the proposal will be republished with the changes. TITLE 1. ADMINISTRATION Part V. General Services Commission Chapter 125. Travel and Transportation Division Travel Management Services 1 TAC sec.sec.125.3, 125.11, 125.19, 125.21 The General Services Commission adopts amendments to sec. sec.125.3, 125.11, 125.19, and 125.21, concerning the State Travel Management Program, without changes to the proposed text as published in the February 3, 1995, issue of the Texas Register (20 TexReg 611). The amendments are adopted to add a definition of a traveler, clarify when negotiated rate services are used, incorporate that an exception condition must be included on a payment voucher if a travel services contract is not used, describe the action the comptroller will take on payment vouchers which do not comply with the commission's rules, and remove the 90-day limitation for a state agency to request an exemption from the commission. The amendments also reorder subsections in sec.125.19 to provide for a more logical order and change the reporting requirement for state agencies from use of the commission's travel agent contracts to use of the commission's charge card contract. The amendments will provide clarity and definition. The amendments will also eliminate the administrative work of collecting and reporting travel statistics for many state agencies. No comments were received regarding adoption of the amendments. The amendments are adopted under Texas Civil Statutes, Article 601b, sec.14. 01, which provide the General Services Commission with authority to promulgate rules to accomplish the purpose of Article 14. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9504026 Judith Monaco Porras General Counsel General Services Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: February 3, 1995 For further information, please call: (512) 463-3960 TITLE 19. EDUCATION Part II. Texas Education Agency Chapter 33. Statement of Investment Objectives, Policies, and Guidelines 19 TAC sec.33.5 (Editor's Note: In the March 24, 1995, issue of the Texas Register (20 TexReg 2203), an error as submitted appears in the preamble to adopted new 19 TAC Chapter 33. The preamble states incorrectly that sec.33.5 is adopted without changes to the proposed text as published in the January 31, 1995, issue of the Texas Register (20 TexReg 533). The preamble should have stated that the section was adopted with changes. In subsection (f)(4), the word "or" was added after the semicolon to correct an editorial error. The text to sec.33. 5 is being published in this issue of the Texas Register. sec.33.5. Code of Ethics. (a) Fiduciary responsibility. The members of the State Board of Education (SBOE) serve as fiduciaries of the Texas Permanent School Fund (PSF) and are responsible for prudently investing its assets. The SBOE members or anyone acting on their behalf shall comply with the provisions of this section, the Texas Constitution, Texas statutes, and all other applicable provisions governing the responsibilities of a fiduciary. (b) Compliance with constitution and code of ethics. The SBOE members are public officials governed by the provisions of the Texas Government Ethics Act, as stated in the Texas Government Code, Chapter 572, and the standards of conduct and conflict of interest procedures of the Texas Education Agency (TEA) . (c) Persons affected by this section. A reference to an SBOE member includes the SBOE member and each member of his or her immediate family (spouse or children), members of a firm with which they are associated, or individuals with whom they have a financial association. (d) Assets affected by this section. The provisions of this section apply to all PSF assets, both publicly and nonpublicly traded investments. (e) Disclosure. An SBOE member shall not participate in a discussion or vote on a matter in which the member has direct or indirect financial interest. In addition, an SBOE member shall fully disclose any substantial interest, as defined in the Texas Government Code, Chapter 572, in any publicly or nonpublicly traded PSF investment. (f) Prohibitions against direct placement. For purposes of this chapter, the term "direct placement" (with respect to investments that are not publicly traded) is defined as a direct sale of securities, generally to institutional investors, without the use of underwriters. No SBOE member shall: (1) have a financial interest in a direct placement investment of the PSF; (2) serve as an officer, director, or employee of an entity in which a direct placement investment is made by the PSF; (3) serve as a consultant to, or receive any fee, commission or payment from, an entity in which a direct placement investment is made by the PSF; (4) act as a representative or agent of a third party in dealing with a PSF manager or consultant; or (5) be employed for two years after the end of his or her term on the SBOE with an organization in which the PSF invested, unless the organization's stock or other evidence of ownership is traded on the public stock or bond exchanges. (g) In addition to the prohibitions specified in subsections (a)- (f) of this section, no SBOE member shall solicit support on behalf of another political candidate from a PSF manager, consultant, or staff member. The manager, consultant, or staff member shall report any such incident in writing to the commissioner of education for distribution to all SBOE members. (h) Responsibilities of investment managers and consultants. Each investment manager retained by the PSF shall be notified in writing of the code of ethics contained in this section and the related conflict of interest laws of Texas. Any future investment shall strictly conform to this code of ethics. The manager or consultant shall report in writing any suggestion or offer by an SBOE member to deviate from the provisions of this section to the commissioner of education for distribution to all SBOE members. An investment manager, consultant, or other person retained in a fiduciary capacity must comply with the provisions of this section. (i) Hiring external professionals. The SBOE may contract with private professional investment managers to help make PSF investments. The SBOE has the authority and responsibility to hire other external professionals, including custodians or consultants. The SBOE shall comply with the provisions of the Texas Government Act, as stated in the Texas Government Code, Chapter 572, and the standards of conduct and conflict of interest procedures of the TEA when hiring an external professional. The SBOE shall select each professional based solely on merit and subject to the provisions of sec.33.55 of this title (relating to Standards for Selecting Consultants, Investment Managers, Custodians, and Other Professionals To Provide Outside Expertise for the Texas Permanent School Fund). TITLE 30. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY Part I. Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Chapter 305. Consolidated Permits Subchapter F. Permit Characteristics and Conditions 30 TAC sec.305.126 The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (Commission) adopts an amendment to sec.305.126, without changes to the proposed text as published in the December 16, 1994, issue of the Texas Register (19 TexReg 9955). The amendment would delete subsections (b) and (c) of the section which require certain permittees to submit a wastewater reuse study within one year of issuance of any new, amended or renewed permit. The purpose of the proposed change is to eliminate the unnecessary submission of information by a permittee which is not considered by the commission in making a regulatory decision. The commission supports the reuse of wastewater and other water conservation measures as a means to reduce the amount of discharged wastewater, optimize existing water supplies, and avoid the unnecessary outlay of capital for new and expanded treatment facilities, where such measures are cost beneficial and do not create adverse impacts to instream needs. However, reuse and other water conservation measures should be evaluated by the applicant prior to the submission of the application, rather than subsequent to its submission. Such consideration is already provided, in part, by subsection (a), requiring the development and submission of engineering and financial plans in order to determine whether the expansion and/or upgrading of existing collection and treatment facilities are warranted. The commission received one comment from the Fort Worth Water Department. The Department supports the proposed changes. The Department also recommends that the commission not require wastewater reuse studies to be submitted in cases where a permit has been renewed containing a reuse study submittal requirement and the submittal date is after the adoption of the proposed rules. The commission agrees with this recommendation and shall not enforce such permit conditions. The amendment is adopted under the Texas Water Code, sec.5.103 and sec.5.105, which provide the TNRCC with the authority to adopt any regulations necessary to carry out its powers and duties under the Texas Water Code and other laws of the State of Texas. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9503998 Lydia Gonzalez Gromatzky Acting Director, Legal Division Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: December 16, 1994 For further information, please call: (512) 239-4640 Chapter 323. Waste Disposal Approvals The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (Commission) adopts the repeal of sec.sec.323.1-323.6 and sec.sec.323.31-323.33, without changes to the proposed text as published in the December 13, 1994, issue of the Texas Register (19 TexReg 9835). The repeal of sec.sec.323.1-323.6 is to provide for a performance based review of such systems based upon the technical reports submitted with the application pursuant to sec.305.45(a)(8) and sec.305.48(b) of this title, rather than prescribe the engineering details necessary to meet performance standards. This approach is not available, however, applications relating to public sewage disposal systems. Requirements contained in Texas Water Code, sec.26.034 and state financial assistance conditions provided by Texas Water Code, sec.15. 104(b) specifically required the review and approval of plans and specifications for these systems. The repeal of sec.sec.323.31-323.33 are duplicative and/or inconsistent with more recent provisions contained in Chapter 279, Water Quality Certification, relating to the notice of an application for state water quality certification pursuant to sec.401 of the federal Clean Water Act. No comments were received regarding the adoption of these repeals. Review and Approval of Plans and Specifications for Disposal Systems 30 TAC sec.sec.323.1-323.6 The repeals are adopted under the Texas Water Code, sec.5.103 and sec.5.105, which provide the TNRCC with the authority to adopt any regulations necessary to carry out its powers and duties under the Texas Water Code and other laws of the State of Texas. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9503997 Lydia Gonzalez Gromatzky Acting Director, Legal Division Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: December 13, 1994 For further information, please call: (512) 239-4640 Certification Notice for NPDES Permits 30 TAC sec.sec.323.31-323.33 The repeals are adopted under the Texas Water Code, sec.5.103 and sec.5.105, which provide the TNRCC with the authority to adopt any regulations necessary to carry out its powers and duties under the Texas Water Code and other laws of the State of Texas. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9503996 Lydia Gonzalez Gromatzky Acting Director, Legal Division Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: December 13, 1994 For further information, please call: (512) 239-4640 Chapter 335. Industrial Solid Waste and Municipal Hazardous Waste The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission (TNRCC) adopts amendments to sec.335.6 and sec.335.10, concerning industrial solid waste and municipal hazardous waste management in general; sec.335.323, concerning hazardous waste generation, facility and disposal fees system; and sec.335.503, concerning notification, manifesting, and waste classification requirements for industrial generators of less than 100 kilograms of hazardous waste and 100 kilograms of nonhazardous waste per calendar month and hazardous waste generation fees, if any, for these generators, without changes to the proposed text as published in the December 13, 1994, issue of the Texas Register (19 TexReg 9836). Currently, the TNRCC rules require industrial Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQGs) of hazardous waste to notify, manifest, and pay hazardous waste generation fees, while municipal CESQGs are not required to do so. Federal rules do not require either industrial or municipal CESQG notification. The Environmental Protection Agency has contended that CESQGs do not generate a large enough quantity of hazardous waste to be significant, and the TNRCC agrees with this contention. The rule amendments, as adopted, will establish more equity between certain small quantity generators of industrial and municipal solid waste. The adopted rule amendments will do this by eliminating the notification and manifesting requirements for industrial generators that generate less than 100 kilograms per month of hazardous waste, less than 1 kilogram per month of acute hazardous waste and/or 100 kilograms of nonhazardous waste. Comments were received in support of adoption of the proposed amendments from Lone Star Gas Company, a Division of Enserch Corporation; the Non-Utility Division of Enserch Corporation; Southwestern Public Service Company; Exxon Company, U.S.A.; El Paso Natural Gas Company; and Browning-Ferris Industries. No comments were received opposing adoption. Natural Gas Pipeline Company of America commented that some additional clarity was need regarding applicability of these amendments to industrial generators that generate less than 100 kilograms per month of hazardous waste. In each case where this company felt this additional clarification was necessary, the amendment, as proposed, was applicable to both industrial and municipal conditionally exempt small quantity generators (CESQGs). Section 335. 78(a) states: "A generator is a conditionally exempt small quantity generator in a calendar month if he generates no more than 100 kilograms of hazardous waste in that month." Therefore, no additional clarification is needed at this time. Although Browning-Ferris Industries supported adoption of the amendments as proposed, they commented on an issue outside the scope of the proposal, repeated shortages of preprinted manifest forms. Typically, the TNRCC staff has imposed a limit on the number of manifest forms that one company may order at one time to approximately 250. This limit is imposed because manifests are stored in a separate location from where they are distributed. Most large quantity users of manifests take advantage of the voluntary "print your own manifest program". If not, large quantity users of manifests must plan ahead on manifest ordering to assure that they always keep an "on-hand" stock of manifests at their sites. The TNRCC also keeps its regional offices around the state stocked with manifests for emergency needs. Enserch Corporation's Non-Utility Division and their Lone Star Gas Company Division also urged the TNRCC to modify the proposed amendments to achieve an even greater equity between industrial CESQGs and municipal CESQGs by eliminating notification, manifesting, and generation fee requirements for any quantity of industrial non-hazardous waste. The TNRCC feels that it is inappropriate to allow unlimited quantities of Class I industrial non-hazardous waste to be managed or shipped without the present notification and manifesting requirements, when by definition in sec.335.1 such waste "may pose a substantial present or potential danger to human health or the environment when improperly processed, stored, transported, or disposed of or otherwise managed" and health- based concentration limits have been established in Chapter 335, Subchapter R, for such classification of these wastes. The rule as adopted provides for regulatory relief for industrial CESQGs and industrial generators of less than 100 kilograms per month of industrial non-hazardous waste. The TNRCC continues to believe that larger amounts of industrial non-hazardous waste can present a significantly higher risk of endangerment to the public health and environment than municipal non-hazardous waste if it is improperly managed and controlled. Consequently, the present notification, manifesting, and fee requirements for industrial generators of greater than 100 kilograms per month are retained. Enserch Corporation's Non-Utility Division commented that sec.335.9(3) and (4) should also have been amended to relieve the same generators relieved from notification under this proposal from annual waste summary requirements. The TNRCC concurs with this comment and plans to propose appropriate amendments to sec.335.9 in a future rule amendment proposal. The staff plans to propose this amendment soon, so that the annual waste summary requirements amendment will be effective before the next annual summary submittal date. Subchapter A. Industrial Solid Waste and Municipal Hazardous Waste in General 30 TAC sec.335.6, sec.335.10 The amendments are adopted under the Texas Water Code, sec.sec.5.103, 5.105 and 26.011, which provides the commission with authority to adopt any rules necessary to carry out its powers, duties, and policies and to protect water quality in the state. The sections are also adopted under the Texas Health and Safety Code, Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act, sec.361.017 and sec.361.024, which provides the commission the authority to regulate industrial solid wastes and hazardous municipal wastes and to adopt and promulgate rules consistent with the general intent and purposes of the Act. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9503995 Lydia Gonzalez Gromatzky Acting Director, Legal Division Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: December 13, 1994 For further information, please call: (512) 239-4640 Subchapter J. Hazardous Waste Generation, Facility and Disposal Fee System 30 TAC sec.335.323 The amendment is adopted under the Texas Water Code, sec. sec.5.103, 5.105 and 26.011, which provides the commission with authority to adopt any rules necessary to carry out its powers, duties, and policies and to protect water quality in the state. The section is also adopted under the Texas Health and Safety Code, Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act, sec.361.017 and sec.361.024, which provides the commission the authority to regulate industrial solid wastes and hazardous municipal wastes and to adopt and promulgate rules consistent with the general intent and purposes of the Act. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9503994 Lydia Gonzalez Gromatzky Acting Director, Legal Division Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: December 13, 1994 For further information, please call: (512) 239-4640 Subchapter R. Waste Classification 30 TAC sec.335.503 The amendment is adopted under the Texas Water Code, sec. sec.5.103, 5.105, and 26.011, which provides the commission with authority to adopt any rules necessary to carry out its powers, duties, and policies and to protect water quality in the state. The section is also adopted under the Texas Health and Safety Code, Texas Solid Waste Disposal Act, sec.361.017 and sec.361.024, which provides the commission the authority to regulate industrial solid wastes and hazardous municipal wastes and to adopt and promulgate rules consistent with the general intent and purposes of the Act. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 3, 1995. TRD-9503993 Lydia Gonzalez Gromatzky Acting Director, Legal Division Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission Effective date: April 24, 1995 Proposal publication date: December 13, 1994 For further information, please call: (512) 239-4640 TITLE 40. SOCIAL SERVICES AND ASSISTANCE Part X. Texas Employment Commission Chapter 301. Unemployment Insurance 40 TAC sec.301.7 The Texas Employment Commission adopts an amendment to sec.301.7, concerning the filing by employers of quarterly wage reports on magnetic or electronic media using a format prescribed by the agency, without changes to the proposed text as published in the March 3, 1995, issue of the Texas Register (20 TexReg 1519). The amendment will provide more flexibility for the filing of employers' quarterly tax reports to facilitate the use of new technologies in accepting the employers' reports. Employers will be able to transmit quarterly wage reports through magnetic or electronic media thereby reducing the steps necessary to process these reports both at their site and at the Texas Employment Commission. Formats for use will be prepared and transmitted to all employers that will utilize these technological advances. No comments were received regarding adoption of the amendment. The amendment is adopted under the Texas Labor Code, Title 4, Subtitle A (formerly Texas Civil Statutes, Article 5221b), which provides the Texas Employment Commission with the authority to adopt rules necessary to promote the purpose of the Act. No other statute, article or code will be affected by this amendment. This agency hereby certifies that the rule as adopted has been reviewed by legal counsel and found to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority. Issued in Austin, Texas, on April 4, 1995. TRD-9504082 J. Ferris Duhon Legal Counsel Texas Employment Commission Effective date: April 25, 1995 Proposal publication date: March 3, 1995 For further information, please call: (512) 463-2291