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Posted

My first thread on CR is directed at State Representative Carrie Isaac. She is the poster child for putting business over people and needs to hear from the people she was elected to represent, and from the people that are most affected by her "leadership."

Capitol Address:  Room E1.306, P.O. Box 2910, Austin, TX 78768

District Address:  137 Fredericksburg Rd., New Braunfels, TX 78130, (830) 730-6248

Contact linkTexas Rep - Carrie Isaac

My personal view on this is grounded in the simple fact that Central Texas does not have adequate water resources, and those finite resources need to be addressed now.  I drilled a new 400+ ft water well in May 2022 (to replace a natural spring that went dry), and within a year, the well went dry and the pump was lowered 40 ' to reestablish the water supply. Every time I go to the ranch, I drive by the Water Park recently built west of Bandera, that is probably the primary reason my new well went dry.

This well draws from the Trinity Aquifer, the primary supply of water for the I-35 corridor from Oklahoma to South Texas, including Austin and Central Texas.

Carrie disagrees that water resources are finite, and is in favor of unlimited pumping of groundwater.

She introduced House Bill 2812 that seeks to exclude public water supply wells from the regulatory oversight of the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District. Public wells would not be subject to the district’s monitoring, permitting processes or metering requirements.

This Bill is a direct response to the over pumping of groundwater, well in excess of the permitted amount, in Hays County that resulted in Jacob's Well, in addition to many private wells, going dry.

Envision Barton Springs, and Hamilton Pool and every spring fed water resource and swimming hole in Central Texas going dry.

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Two water bills could have far-reaching impacts

Teresa Kendrick Managing Editor   - 03/26/2025 08:00 AM

Two Texas bills, Senate Bill 2660 and House Bill 2812, filed within the last two months, could have far-reaching impacts on the future of water in Hays County and the Wimberley Valley. Introduced last month by Republican Representative Carrie Isaac, is House Bill 2812 that seeks to exclude public water supply wells from the regulatory oversight of the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District. Public wells would not be subject to the district’s monitoring, permitting processes or metering requirements.

The new provision would specifically exclude public water supply wells from the District’s regulatory oversight. Currently, wells producing less than 25,000 gallons per day and used for domestic purposes by single private residential households and wells used for conventional farming and ranching activities, are not subject to District’s monitoring. The bill, if passed, is set to take effect on September 1. It is currently before the Natural Resources Committee.

“This would be a disaster for the springs that feed Jacob’s Well and other regional water sources,” said Executive Director David Baker of the Watershed Association. “It takes all the controls off of managing groundwater resources. It is pro Aqua Texas and anti-groundwater conservation. We hope she withdraws this bill.”

Representative Carrie Isaac in a response to the Wimberley View said, “I have been fighting against overreach from the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District (HTGCD) since 2019. Their ongoing efforts to regulate beyond reason— including denying permits to water providers, proposing new fees, metering private wells, and even seeking to pay their director with public funds—represent an unacceptable threat to property rights and water access in Hays County.” To read the rest of her response, see below.

When asked what the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District thought about H.B. 2812, Charlie Flatten, General Manager, said, “We have no comment.”

Introduced this month in the Senate by Republican Charles Perry, the Chair of the Senate Water and Rural Affairs Committee, is Senate Bill 2660, that also relates to the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.

In this bill, it authorizes the Conservation District to place all public water supply wells and commercial wells in Hays County under the same groundwater production fee structure authorized by the legislature in the 2023 session for the Barton Springs district in the eastern half of Hays County.

When asked about SB 2660, Flatten said, “SB 2660 provides the tools needed to protect private and permitted water wells from predatory drillers without harming the rights of existing well owners. The District thanks Senator Perry and the Hays County community for its widespread support for SB 2660.”

According to Flatten, Senator Perry authored and filed SB 2660 to provide western Hays County’s water well owners the same standard protections enjoyed by landowners in groundwater conservation districts across the rest of the state.

Groundwater conservation districts have been created in many parts of Texas to allow local citizens to manage and protect their groundwater. In 2001, local citizens created the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District.

Like every other groundwater conservation district in Texas, it is charged with preserving, conserving and protecting the public and private water wells that the community relies on. It is also charged with enforcing the Texas Water Code and protecting natural treasures that rely on healthy aquifers.

The District’s creation was successful but, according to Flatten, “was limited by powerful special interests that successfully inserted language to protect their interests over local private property rights. The result has been a District that does not have the tools or funding as every other District in the state. It also has contributed to the low flows that our springs and rivers are experiencing.”

Full statement from Rep. Carrie Isaac 

"I have been fighting against overreach from the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation District (HTGCD) since 2019. Their ongoing efforts to regulate beyond reason— including denying permits to water providers, proposing new fees, metering private wells, and even seeking to pay their director with public funds—represent an unacceptable threat to property rights and water access in Hays County.

That’s why I filed House Bill 2812, which removes HTGCD’s authority over water providers already regulated by the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC). These providers are fully accountable to the PUC, which ensures responsible service, guards against price gouging, and protects consumers. Denying them permits doesn’t just create bureaucratic chaos— it risks cutting off water to thousands of families and businesses. That is not a solution. I support legislation to strengthen infrastructure, including desalination and brackish water development—critical steps toward long-term water security.

In contrast, the HTGCD through Senate Bill 2660 would expand their power to levy new groundwater production fees—up to 38 cents per 1,000 gallons—on private well owners. It also repeals critical safeguards in state law that currently protect domestic and agricultural wells from metering, permit requirements, and property inspections without consent. These are unnecessary and invasive measures that I strongly oppose.

As a founding member of the Texas House Water Caucus I remain focused on real water solutions and have filed numerous pieces of legislation addressing our water issues. Access to water is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. I will continue to defend our water supply, protect property rights, and oppose unnecessary government overreach. Hays County families deserve solutions—not threats to their water."

— Rep. Carrie Isaac

Two water bills could have far-reaching impacts MARCH 13, 2025 DATA FROM DROUGHT. GOV SHOWS THAT HAYS COUNTY, SHOWN BY THE “DROPPED PIN” INDICATOR, IS EXPERIENCING EXTREME DROUGHT. SUBMITTED GRAPHIC
 
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Posted (edited)

It is ridiculous to the point of being surreal how everybody who matters seems to be asleep at the wheel with this water business. Clearly this is a ticking time bomb that will be disastrous for the State, yet nobody seems to be taking it seriously. A functioning government would consider this a crisis, or at least a serious situation that needs to be addressed somehow before it becomes a crisis.

Certainly any attempt to address this issue should involve letting the politicians know we consider the situation something that needs attention.

Kind of weirded out how none of the big stake holders seem to be driving this point home. I guess they just figure they can abandon Texas and go elsewhere when this problem becomes disaster.

Edited by Valmy77
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Posted

My dad told me 40 years ago that (clean) water was the biggest fight coming.  He knew it would take decades but he was right.   And we're all screwed.  

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Posted
6 minutes ago, Macanudo said:

My dad told me 40 years ago that (clean) water was the biggest fight coming.  He knew it would take decades but he was right.   And we're all screwed.  

Only one person can save us....

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Posted

To be fair, Carrie Isaac could indeed be terrible and she’d still be miles better than her predecessor and Donna Campbell.  

Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, Valmy77 said:

It is ridiculous to the point of being surreal how everybody who matters seems to be asleep at the wheel with this water business. Clearly this is a ticking time bomb that will be disastrous for the State, yet nobody seems to be taking it seriously. A functioning government would consider this a crisis, or at least a serious situation that needs to be addressed somehow before it becomes a crisis.

Certainly any attempt to address this issue should involve letting the politicians know we consider the situation something that needs attention.

Kind of weirded out how none of the big stake holders seem to be driving this point home. I guess they just figure they can abandon Texas and go elsewhere when this problem becomes disaster.

Most of them aren't native Texans, so that's pretty likely. They came here to grift, so once they milk the place dry they'll be off to the next conservative promised land. 

Edited by Pescado_Rojo
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Posted
11 minutes ago, immamac said:

Why can't we just make it rain more and solve the drought?

Because you aren't praying hard enough

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Posted
12 minutes ago, immamac said:

Why can't we just make it rain more and solve the drought?

Careful now, US House Members literally believe we control the weather "It's called cloud-seeding, do your own research!"

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Posted
1 hour ago, Valmy77 said:

It is ridiculous to the point of being surreal how everybody who matters seems to be asleep at the wheel with this water business. Clearly this is a ticking time bomb that will be disastrous for the State, yet nobody seems to be taking it seriously. A functioning government would consider this a crisis, or at least a serious situation that needs to be addressed somehow before it becomes a crisis.

Certainly any attempt to address this issue should involve letting the politicians know we consider the situation something that needs attention.

Kind of weirded out how none of the big stake holders seem to be driving this point home. I guess they just figure they can abandon Texas and go elsewhere when this problem becomes disaster.

The problem is many of those people all genuinely believe we're very near the end of days and that we don't need to worry about preserving anything for the future. 

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Posted
50 minutes ago, Macanudo said:

My dad told me 40 years ago that (clean) water was the biggest fight coming.  He knew it would take decades but he was right.   And we're all screwed.  

Yep. BIL, rest his soul, was a geologist, well specialist, and worked for the Edward’s Aquifer Conservation District, and he often used to make the same prediction. Only he used the word “war.”


I’m surprised to learn the Trinity impacts Barton Springs. That must be a recently established fact.

 

The legislation being considered to allow oil companies to dump fracking water into our rivers ought be mentioned in a conservation about Texas’ groundwater. Goodbye fish.

 

8 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

The problem is many of those people all genuinely believe we're very near the end of days and that we don't need to worry about preserving anything for the future. 

This. 100% 

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Posted

Well, fortunate for you HB 2812 has no chance of passing since it was never even given a hearing, and the deadline for getting one has long passed. I'd recommend you stay on top of this issue, though, and schedule a meeting with her during the interim (between June of this year to December of next year). And keep your eyes out to see if she files the bill again in the '27 session. If she does, get involved in the legislative process from the outset. You'd be surprised the impact even one motivated constituent can have on the legislative process if you're committed to being engaged in it.

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Posted
44 minutes ago, LCHorn said:

To be fair, Carrie Isaac could indeed be terrible and she’d still be miles better than her predecessor and Donna Campbell.  

Let’s not engage in the relative vileness of feculence.

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Posted
10 minutes ago, UrbanAchiever said:

Well, fortunate for you HB 2812 has no chance of passing since it was never even given a hearing, and the deadline for getting one has long passed. I'd recommend you stay on top of this issue, though, and schedule a meeting with her during the interim (between June of this year to December of next year). And keep your eyes out to see if she files the bill again in the '27 session. If she does, get involved in the legislative process from the outset. You'd be surprised the impact even one motivated constituent can have on the legislative process if you're committed to being engaged in it.

username, etc...

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Posted
28 minutes ago, wildcat09 said:

The problem is many of those people all genuinely believe we're very near the end of days and that we don't need to worry about preserving anything for the future. 

uh oh. that's the Rex Kramer bat signal

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Posted (edited)
43 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Careful now, US House Members literally believe we control the weather "It's called cloud-seeding, do your own research!"

I work with a guy that thinks he's a big shot in Colorado's republican party. He was trying to sell me on this former military member he wants to run for Congress. "He's going to work with people in Texas running desalination plants to pipeline water into southern Colorado to promote more agriculture." I just stared at him.

Edited by Schulz2.0
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Posted
7 minutes ago, Schulz2.0 said:

I work with a guy that thinks he's a big shot in Colorado's republican party. He was trying to sell me on this former military member he wants to run for Congress. "He's going to work with people in Texas running desalination plants to pipeline water into southern Colorado to promote more agriculture." I just stared at him.

Shit, do you know how fucking over the moon I'd be if someone, anyone, would just invest in desalinization plants in general, to make the technology get to affordable? And if it happened here in Texas, the first fucking thing I'd do isn't send it to Colorado, it's send it to fucking Texas which has no fucking water. Or central lakes. 

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Posted
16 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Shit, do you know how fucking over the moon I'd be if someone, anyone, would just invest in desalinization plants in general, to make the technology get to affordable? And if it happened here in Texas, the first fucking thing I'd do isn't send it to Colorado, it's send it to fucking Texas which has no fucking water. Or central lakes. 

And what, pray tell, is your genius plan on what to do with all that salt after Brazoria County is full up?

Posted
3 minutes ago, SimonBolivar said:

And what, pray tell, is your genius plan on what to do with all that salt after Brazoria County is full up?

Are you telling me we shouldn't straight up salt the earth of Oklahoma, and several other places on general principle? Sure the Great Salt Lakes have room. 

If you want a serious answer, I'm no expert, but lots of that waste can be turned into useful chemicals, and minerals removed and used. Improving that is part of the process of investing in more plants, so it becomes more efficient and science learns to utilize these things better. 

Another cynical answer is you just toss it back into the sea and it will naturally counteract all the freshwater we're losing thanks to melted ice caps. 

Posted
2 hours ago, Macanudo said:

My dad told me 40 years ago that (clean) water was the biggest fight coming.  He knew it would take decades but he was right.   And we're all screwed.  

I can remember my grandfather, who lived through the depression in the Panhandle, telling me as a kid about T. Boone Pickens buying up water rights in that part of the state and how we was prescient about predicting the value of a scarce resource.

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Posted
28 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Another cynical answer is you just toss it back into the sea and it will naturally counteract all the freshwater we're losing thanks to melted ice caps. 

Dump it in the North Atlantic to keep the AMOC from slowing too much, which would keep Europe from falling into a new Ice Age.

Posted
1 minute ago, bolverk said:

Dump it in the North Atlantic to keep the AMOC from slowing too much, which would keep Europe from falling into a new Ice Age.

Counterpoint, think of Texas’ property values were that to happen. /s

Posted

1) Jacobs Well is never coming back. It needs to be bigger news but no one gives a fuck. Im livid about that whole situation

 

2) Before 2030, most of central/south central Texas will be outta water. Some estimates ive read over the past year will have canyon lake, lake travis, and a few others at almost 100% dry by then

 

3) Unless we get a fuck ton of rain before then, look for a lotta infighting and pulling up of ladders



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