Focus Report, Volume 87, Number 5, January 10, 2022 Page: PAGE29
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* Establishing voluntary Texas Pollinator-
Smart program for solar energy sites
SB 1772 by Zaffirini (Zwiener)Digest
SB 1772 would have required the Texas A&M
AgriLife Extension, in consultation with the Texas
Department of Agriculture (TDA) and the Texas Parks
and Wildlife Department (TPWD), to establish and
implement the Texas Pollinator-Smart program to
encourage the voluntary establishment and conservation of
habitats for bees, birds, and other pollinators in and near
solar energy sites.
The bill also would have required the AgriLife
Extension, in consultation with TDA and TPWD, to
develop educational materials for the voluntary pollinator
program and award the Texas Pollinator-Smart certificate
* to solar energy sites with pollinator habitats that had met
or achieved a certain standard.
Governor's reason for veto
"Senate Bill 1772 offered a program that was totally
voluntary. Voluntary laws are not needed to drive public
behavior."
Response
Sen. Judith Zaffirini, the bill's author said: "Senate
Bill (SB) 1722 would have established the Texas
Pollinator-Smart program to encourage the establishment
and conservation of habitats for bees, birds, and other
pollinators at and near solar energy sites. Pollinator
populations continue to decline globally, due in part to
loss of habitat, parasites, diseases, and pesticide exposure,
a reduction that has critical implications for human food
security and life in general. By promoting pollinator-
friendly habitats at solar sites, the bill would have provided
* an opportunity for the state to simultaneously help
Texas agriculture and the energy industry. The numerous
benefits include increasing crop yields and groundwater
recharge, reducing soil erosion, and providing long-termcost savings for the operations and maintenance of solar
installations. By creating a cooler microclimate, perennial
vegetation also would increase solar panels' efficiency,
thereby improving their energy output.
"The bill would have made the program voluntary,
as the governor noted, because mandating it for all solar
facilities simply does not make sense. Given the diverse
terrain and environments across the state, not all solar
facility sites have arable soils suitable for cultivating native
plants.
"Numerous Texas laws incentivize positive actions,
including in the environmental arena in which mandates
are unpopular. If voluntary programs truly are not needed
to drive behavior, why does the state continue to maintain
and promote economic development programs such as
the Event Trust Fund, environmental programs such as
the Texas Voluntary Cleanup Program for contaminated
sites, or quality rating and improvement systems such
as the Texas Rising Star Program for child-care facilities?
Perhaps because effective - and even cost-effective -
public policy includes both influencing 'good behavior'
on a voluntary basis and enforcing or penalizing 'bad
behavior."'
Rep. Erin Zwiener, the House sponsor, had no
comment on the veto.
Notes
SB 1772 passed on the Local, Consent, and
Resolutions Calendar and was not analyzed in a Daily
Floor Report.House Research Organization
Page 29
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Texas. Legislature. House of Representatives. Research Organization. Focus Report, Volume 87, Number 5, January 10, 2022, periodical, January 10, 2022; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1543870/m1/29/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.