Water supply has become a forgotten issue here in Texas, as the population grows, and sources of fresh water diminish. There have been plans to bolster the state's supply in the past that never came to fruition. Tons of pipeline plans were made in the 1960s, aimed at bringing in water to Texas from places like Louisiana. They never saw the light of day. Now in 2025, the state is looking at a similar idea: get more water for Texans.
So, in response to the growing problem, State Senator Charles Perry of Lubbock recently filed legislation that would focus on creating new water supply sources here in the Lone Star State. Senate Bill 7 was unanimously passed last week, which opens new possibilities for addressing the looming issue.
Sen. Perry says water planning for the last few decades has been wasteful and completely fractured. This bill is a sweeping water package, that ultimately returns more organization and power to the state.
"Now, you will have a state and planning oversight role, which looks at three regions, and might be able to do things more efficiently like centrally locating a well, or there might be a river that can be moved to that area that is cheaper," he says. "It gives the state a master planning option...so everyone is on the same page."
The bill helps focus on using funds on strategies like desalination, projects for water treatment plants, and reservoir projects. As of right now, Sen. Perry believes the state is about 25 years behind on water supply. A 2022 study in fact showed the state expecting water availability to drop by 18 percent in coming years.
This new coordinated approach too has potential to bring Texans more than enough water to meet the demand of a growing state.
"This is intended to produce six million acre-feet of new water supply, new inputs, and brand-new water sources," says Sen. Perry. "Specifically, marine, brackish water, oil and gas, and surface water that is currently not permitted inside Texas boundaries."
As with any major undertaking, this project will have about $1 billion allocated toward it, to ensure the state can meet the growing demand for water.
But the legislature has been slow moving this session, especially in the House, where barely any bills have been passed halfway through the session. They are still hashing out the state budget as well, which is the next critical step to this bill coming to life. There is also a similar bill in the House they can melt together with SB7.
"What we will do is have the House Joint Resolution come to the Senate, we will work out the differences, and what that is will be the constitutional dedication of one billion dollars a year," Sen. Perry says.
The House is now set to take up SB 7. Perry’s Senate Resolution has been referred to a Senate committee on finance but has not been heard yet.