ORDER NO. 20849
ACCEPTANCE OF RULES AND REGULATIONS OF
ON-SITE SEWERAGE FACILITIES AND
ISSUIPdG OF PUBLIC NOTICE
On this the 23rd day of March 1992, came on to be considered by the
Court the proposed Rules and Regulations of On-site Sewerage Facilities
of Kerr County. Motion was made by Judge Stacy to have 2.08 concerning
Ex Parte taken out of rules, the Court VOTED BY A MAJORITY VOTE. OF
3-2-0, to take 2.08 out of the rules, a separate motion was made by
Judge Stacy to replace bathrooms for bedrooms in section 6.02 #4, this
motion died for a lack of second. ~ ~; 'i~''~' ~8.,.~!

C
COMMUNITY ACTION GROUP INC.
G Box 124, Kerrville, Tx. 78029
April 13, 1992
~ ----~
~ ~ ~ %r'
C A G Inc. Helping Conserve Hill Country Living.
Judge William G, Stacy
Kerr County Commissioners' Court
Kerr County Court House
Kerrville, TX 78028 Re~ Pu.blic Hearing on 055E
Rules for Kerr County
Uear Judge Stacy:
CAG Inc. thanks you and the Court for the opportunity to submit
the consumers' views on new Rules for Kerr County On-Site Sewer-
age Facilities.
The draft Rules before the Court today are ( 1 ) inadequate to
meet the technical requirements of conditions in Kerr County and
(2) the draft does not provide for objective enforcement through
due process.
CAG Inc, believes the draft Rules for Kerr County On-site Sewer-
acae Facilities (o55F) are deficient in three specific areas. We
urge the adoption of the four substitute/additional paragraphs
and Chapter attached.
TO PROVIDE FOR DUE PROCESS IN ALL APPEALS RAISED BY THE PUBLIC=
1. Add paragraph 2.G8 No Ex Porte Communications.
This paragraph is a necessary provision to allow full
participation of any agg7-ieved party thru due process
procedure and to remove the conflict of interest and
bias inherent in the present draft where the Kerr
County Court wears both legislative and judicial
hats.
2. Substitute the attached paragraph 3.02 APPEALS
for the same paragraph in the draft. Its purpose is
the same as 1, above. The t~,~a changes will provide
the regulatory basis for impartial and objective
consideration of any problem experienced by any one
engaged in making use of the Rules.
TO PROVIDED FOR AN ADEGtUATE MAINTENANCE PROGRAM FOR 15-20 YEAR
OLD SEPTIC TANK SYSTEM.
3. Add a chapter on maintenance that complies with House
Bill 1875. The present draft is virtually silent on a
the subject of maintenance. We find nothing that deals
with a meaningful and systematic program that addresses
the problems experienced in Kerr County Subdivisions
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A volunteer Civic organization working for the betterment of the Kerrville South Area
documented elsewhere. There is convincing and author
itative s~ublic data available to show that conventional
septic systems are failing t.o retain domestic waste
water an-site. And that some of this contaminated
waste is reaching Kerr County drainage areas, creeks
and streams.
TO PUT THE COUNTY ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH DIRECTOR CLEARLY IN CHARGE
OF DETERMINING THE TYPE AND LOCATION OF ALL NEW OSSF SYSTEMS AND
TO CLARIFY AND STREAMLINE THE PROCEDURES AN Af~PLICANT MUST FOLLOW
TO OBTAIN A PERMIT=
4. The attached Chapter 4 DUTIES AND POWERS is substituted
for Chapter 4 in the present draft. This new Chapter 4
includes some of the same provisions as the draft but
emphasizes and prescribes the specific procedures to be
followed so as to obtain at an early stage, before the
designer/installer becomes involved, the licensing
authority's specification as to the location and
types ) of system(s) approved by him for the soil
conditions at the specific location of the system.
l.Jith this official specification established at the
permit stage the County is assured of complete control
over the installation. Further the applicant/homeowner
is assured of getting an adequate System at a competi-
tive price. Gle have had enough of the X1.00 a gallon
systems installed in Kerr County subdivisions or else-
where.
We, as homeowner/residents of Kerr County and consumers of the
end product of County and State laws and regulations, respectful-
ly request that, these recommendations and this letter be made a
part of the record to be sent to the Texas Water Commission and
that representatives of CAG Inc. be given the opportunity to
present its case before the appropriate decision making body in
Austin.
For,~fthl~% Board of R ectors,
""~L~x (~ C ha i r ma n
William D. Pearson
_s
Cti. - Attachment 1 ,
2.08. NO EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS. .
After an application has been made by a person and the application fee has been paid,
no person nor any employee, agent, or representative of the applicant, shall communicate
with a member of the Commissioners' Court concerning the application or any matter
pertaining thereto, until such time as a permit to operate has been issued or in a public
meeting of the Court wherein an appeal concerning the application is being considered
as provided for in Chapter 3 of these Rules.
C-~.G - Attachment 2
CHAPTER 3
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
~e€~~-t-Qt~.
Ca) person desiri
these Rules sha
designatla.~i repr
(1 ) The nat~u.~re
(2) The reason
exception;
(3) Any inform
ative reas
(b) Within Thi
said reque
review the
writing ei
I f the req
the reply.
3.02. APPEAL.
ng an exception to any requirement of
11 file a written request with the
esentative stating:
of the exception requested;
~~iat justifies the granting of the
and ~.~
ation th~,the designated represent-
~~
onably request.
rty (30) days a\ft the receipt of
st, the designated re esentative shall
request and reply to th applicant in
ther granting or denying the quest.
uest is denied, the designated re e-
shall include the reasons~`~ur--dam '
(a) Any person aggrieved by an action or decision of the
designated representative made hereunder may, within
thirty (30) days of the date of the document giving
notice of the action or decision, or within thirty
(30) days of the action, if no document is given, ap-
peal to the Special Hearing Examiner appointed by the
governing body.
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(b) The appeal shall be initiated by filing a written ob-
jection with the Special Hearing Examiner. The writ-
ten objection shall state what the complainant believes
the action or decision of the designated representative
should have been and the reasons thereof. A copy of
the document containing the notice of the complain-
ed of action or decision, or a written statement of the
complained of action or decision, if no document was
given, shall be attached to said written objection.
(c) Upon receipt of said written objection and attachment,
the Special Hearing Examiner shall set the same down
for a hearing to be held within the next thirty (30)
days and advise all parties of the date, time, and
place of the hearing.
(d) At hearings before the Special Hearing Examiner, all
witnesses shall be sworn. The Special Hearing Examin-
er shall hear the testimony of the designated repre-
sentative and any witnesses the designated represent-
ative may call. The Special Hearing Examiner shall
hear the testimony of the complainant and any witnes-
ses the complainant may call. The Special Examiner
shall review all documents and exhibits submitted to
him by the parties. The Special Hearing Examiner
shall not be bound by formal rules of evidence and
shall control the evidence, reserving to himself the
power to exclude testimony or exhibits he does not
consider relevant.
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(e) The Special Hearing Examiner shall maintain an accurate
record of the evidence adduced at the hearing.
(f) Within ten (10) days of the close of the hearing, the
Special Hearing Examiner shall reduce to writing a re-
port, which shall consist of a finding of facts and his
decision, and shall notify the designated representa-
tive and the complainant of the decision. The Special
Hearing Examiner shall file the original of the report
with the clerk of governing body shall keep one copy
send one copy to the complainant, and shall send one
copy to the designated representative.
<g) If the designated representative or the complainant is
dissatisfied with the Special Hearing Examiner's de-
cision, he may, within thirty (30) days from the date
the Special Hearing Examiner filed his report, file a
written objection with the clerk of the governing body.
When such an objection is filed, the clerk shall notify
the presiding official who shall place the matter on
the agenda of the governing body for review at its
next meeting of ( ) that is at least ten
(10) days after the date of the filing of the object-
ion. The clerk of the governing body shall notify the
designated representative and the complainant that the
matter is on the agenda.
(h) When the matter comes before the governing body, it
shall review the matter, considering such information
as is the Special Hearing Examiner's file and report
along with such other evidence as deemed relevant and
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as may be offered by the designated representative or
the complainant. The governing body shall either af-
firm, reverse, or modify the decision of the Special
Hearing Examiner.
Ci) These provisions for appeal are not exclusive, but are
cumulative of any other remedies at law or in equity.
AiflT-F f*C-----~-~ era#-i-~+a Ii26l~i r ~-1 +n }-,n ai iron n~ir ct,nnt~
to these Rules shall be considered given by depositing
the sa in the U. S. Mail, postage prepaid, and add-
ressed in a ordance with the information given by an
applicant or co~lainant.
3.04. FEES. To defray the~~reasonable cost of administ-
ering these Rules, the design ted representative shall
require fees to be paid in accorda ce with the schedule
established from time to time by the g verning body.
Such fees shall be paid with the filing of`~n applic-
ation for a permit, license or relicense, or aiit,hori
zation; a written request for an inspection or exe~
t~ p ~~ n r a n a p n a a - ~____-
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CHAPTER MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS
Licenses to Operate issued under the authority of
these Rules shall be for a term of three (3) years. At
the end of three (3) years the on-site sewerage
facility shall be re-licnesed.
(1) Relicensing shall be accomplished by the
property owner presenting to the designated
representative a copy of a receipted invoice
from a registered pumper, showing that the system
had the sludge pumped out within the three
year period since last licensed; together with a
statement from the land owner that~he had made a
visual and odor inspection and did not find any
sign of malfunction. Upon payment of a
the applicable fee the designated representative
shall issue the owner a new 3 year license.
<2) IP the property is sold during a three year
licensing period the license may be transferred,
and used provided the on-sit-sewerage passes the
inspection required by CHAPTER 10 SALE OF RESIDEN-
TIAL PROPERTY. The subject facility shall be
relicensed upon finding that t;t) that the inspec~
tion found the facility in satisfactory operating
condition, and (ii) the sludge in the system
had/has been pumped out the license shall be
transferable to a succeeding owner. Such trans-
fer shall be upon the request of the new owner,
provided the on-site sewerage facility has not
been modified. _
CAG _ Attachment 4
CHAPTER 4
DUTIES AND POWERS
4.01. DUTIES AND POWERS. The Director of Kerr County
Environmental Health Department is designated by the governing
body to be the designated representative for these Rules within
its jurisdiction and thus have the duty, and necessary powers, to
administer and enforce these Rules. The Director, as the
designated representative shall have the following duties and
necessary concomitant powers:
(1) To administer these Rules in accordance with good
Public Administration. Assure that the Health Depart
ment,s policy of due process procedure is followed.
When the enforcement of these Rules becomes necessary,
make appropriate recommendations to proper Kerr offi-
cials when instances of noncompliance with these Rules
have been determined.
(3) To plan, organize and establish procedures for the
Department operation. Maintain all records and files.
(4) To receive and act upon valid applications for a permit
to construct On-Site-Sewage Facilities.
(5) To inspect, test and make written evaluation of site
soil conditions at the applicants property. Such test
and inspection and evaluations shall include but not
be limited to digging a soil profile hole, collect soil
samples, and assess topography, drainage and ground
water.
(6) To determine the type of soil in accordance with Guide
Lines found in Appendix 2 including a specific soil
classification. To then determine the type
of sewage facility required and the location(s) thereof
Such determination shall be made in writing and shall
be mailed within ten (10) working days of the accept-
ance of a valid application in (2) above.
(7) Approve specific site construction drawings submitted
by applicant or applicants representative of record.
(8) To make inspections of any existing on-site sewerage
facilities, when requested or required, and all new
on-site sewerage facilities.
(9) Maintains a permanent record file of all records, or
records in process, of all applications, tests, soil
analysis, soil classifications, type of system re
quired, percolation tests, construction drawings, plot
plans showing location, of all pertinent features, site
inspection report, findings, permits to construct, and
license to operate. Such records shall be made avail-
able upon request by any Kerr County property owner of
record.
(10> To collect all fees set by the governing body as nec-
essary to recover the reasonable costs incurred in
meeting the requirements of these Rules.
(11) To make semi-annual reports to the governing body on
all actions, including legal actions, taken concerning
these Rules.
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(12) To perform other duties necessary to meet the re-
requirements of these Rules.
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