Lloyd Gosselink News
Preview of the Regular Session of 87th Texas Legislature: The Legislature During a Pandemic
by Ty Embrey The Texas Legislature commenced its 87th Regular Session Tuesday, January 12, 2021, and promises to be unlike any we have seen in some time. Every Regular Session of the Texas Legislature is unique, but the 2021 Regular… Read More
New “Physical Capabilities” Test for 7 U.S.C. 1926(b) Debtors Applied to Dismiss CCN Decertification Complaint
by David Klein and Maris Chambers As we have reported in a number of recent editions of The Lone Star Current, the legal and regulatory landscape governing the protection afforded under 7 U.S.C. § 1926(b) to holders of water and… Read More
Municipal Corner
The common-law reserved powers doctrine could limit whether a home-rule municipality may enter a contract that would prohibit decertification of a special utility district’s certificate of convenience and necessity in the future. Tex. Att’y Gen. Op. KP-0340 (2020). The Honorable… Read More
“Ask Sheila” Column
Dear Sheila, We have received an internal complaint at our company where a Black employee accused another Black employee of using racial slurs against her. The accused employee defended herself by saying that she felt these are acceptable words to… Read More
In the Courts
Water Cases Tex. v. New Mexico, 65, ORIG., 2020 WL 7327826 (U.S. Dec. 14, 2020). This water dispute between Texas and New Mexico concerns the evaporative losses associated with water stored in New Mexico upon the request of Texas’s Pecos… Read More
Agency Highlights
United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) EPA finalizes changes to the Lead and Copper Rule. On December 22, 2020, EPA released the pre-publication version of the Lead and Copper Rule under the Safe Drinking Water Act. The final rule deviates… Read More
The Lone Star Current – October 2020 Edition
Don’t forget – if there is ever a topic that you would like for us to cover, please reach out to our Managing Editor, Chris Brewster, at 512.322.5831 or cbrewster@lglawfirm.com. Otherwise, enjoy our latest issue! If you would like… Read More
Updated COVID-19 Hot Topics for Employers
by Sheila Gladstone, Sarah Glaser, and Emily Linn Perhaps the most significant event this year (in a year full of significant events) is the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. With the rapid spread of the virus in the United States, the… Read More
TCEQ’s New Recycling Rules Now in Effect
by Sam Ballard The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (“TCEQ”) new Governmental Entity Recycling Rule Package went into effect on July 2, 2020. The new rules require non-exempt governmental entities to do the following: Establish a program for the separation… Read More
The U.S. Court of Appeals – Fifth Circuit’s Sea Change Opinion Regarding the Scope of Federal Protection of CCNs from Decertification Under 7 U.S.C. § 1926(b)
by David J. Klein and Danielle N. Lam For many years, we have been reporting and updating our readers on the ever-changing landscape of the regulation of water and sewer certificates of convenience and necessity (“CCN”) in Texas. Typically, these… Read More