Tex. Water Code § 36.002 · Subchapter A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
OWNERSHIP OF GROUNDWATER.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) The legislature recognizes that a landowner owns the groundwater below the surface of the landowner's land as real property.
(b) The groundwater ownership and rights described by this section entitle the landowner, including a landowner's lessees, heirs, or assigns, to:
(1) drill for and produce the groundwater below the surface of real property, subject to Subsection (d), without causing waste or malicious drainage of other property or negligently causing subsidence; and
(2) have any other right recognized under common law.
(b-1) The groundwater ownership and rights described by this section do not:
(1) entitle a landowner, including a landowner's lessees, heirs, or assigns, to the right to capture a specific amount of groundwater below the surface of that landowner's land; or
(2) affect the existence of common law defenses or other defenses to liability under the rule of capture.
(c) Nothing in this code shall be construed as granting the authority to deprive or divest a landowner, including a landowner's lessees, heirs, or assigns, of the groundwater ownership and rights described by this section.
(d) This section does not:
(1) prohibit a district from limiting or prohibiting the drilling of a well by a landowner for failure or inability to comply with minimum well spacing or tract size requirements adopted by the district;
(2) affect the ability of a district to regulate groundwater production as authorized under Section 36.113, 36.116, or 36.122 or otherwise under this chapter or a special law governing a district; or
(3) require that a rule adopted by a district allocate to each landowner a proportionate share of available groundwater for production from the aquifer based on the number of acres owned by the landowner.
(e) This section does not affect the ability to regulate groundwater in any manner authorized under:
(1) Chapter 626, Acts of the 73rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1993, for the Edwards Aquifer Authority;
(2) Chapter 8801, Special District Local Laws Code, for the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District; and
(3) Chapter 8834, Special District Local Laws Code, for the Fort Bend Subsidence District.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 933, Sec. 2, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 966, Sec. 2.31, eff. Sept. 1, 2001.
Amended by:
Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 1116 (H.B. 2423), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2005.
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1207 (S.B. 332), Sec. 1, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch. 590 (H.B. 4112), Sec. 1, eff. June 16, 2015.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/WA/htm/WA.36.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 bdaca000f84c4942c3439b9d8a7596b045483ce9b55c7f5bad67099c8a702782
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
This section cites
Provisions in this library that the text above cites, as it prints each citation. A range cited as “ss. 61.13-61.16” links its first and last provisions.
Special District Local Laws Code
Water Code
- Tex. Water Code § 36.113PERMITS FOR WELLS; PERMIT AMENDMENTS.Printed as Section 36.113, 36.116, or 36.122
- Tex. Water Code § 36.116REGULATION OF SPACING AND PRODUCTION.Printed as Section 36.113, 36.116, or 36.122
- Tex. Water Code § 36.122TRANSFER OF GROUNDWATER OUT OF DISTRICT.Printed as Section 36.113, 36.116, or 36.122
Cited by 3 provisions
Provisions in this library whose text cites Tex. Water Code § 36.002. Each shows the citation as that text prints it.
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.