The Seller's Disclosure About Groundwater and Surface Water Rights (TREC No. 61-0) is dated 05-04-2026 on the form and is a promulgated (mandatory-form-category) disclosure, unlike some of TREC's other water-related notices. It opens with its own scope limit: "THIS NOTICE IS A DISCLOSURE OF SELLER'S KNOWLEDGE ABOUT GROUNDWATER AND SURFACE WATER RIGHTS ON THE PROPERTY AS OF THE DATE SIGNED BY SELLER... IT IS NOT A WARRANTY OF ANY KIND BY SELLER OR SELLER'S AGENTS."
The form's own definitions matter
Paragraph 1 defines four terms with built-in notes worth knowing before reading the rest of the form:
- Groundwater — water percolating below the surface, usually in aquifers, accessed by Water Wells. The form's own note: unless severed from the surface estate, Groundwater is owned by the surface landowner, who may access it by drilling a well in compliance with the applicable Groundwater District, if any.
- Groundwater District — a local or regional Groundwater Conservation District, Underground Water Conservation District, Subsidence District, or similar authority regulating wells. The form notes not all Texas land sits in one.
- Surface Water — water in lakes, rivers, creeks, streams, bays, estuaries, and arms of the Gulf of Mexico.
- Surface Water Rights — a TCEQ-administered permit, certified filing, or certificate of adjudication authorizing diversion, impoundment, or use of Surface Water. The form notes not all surface water use requires one.
Groundwater and well questions the seller has to answer
Paragraph 2 asks whether any portion of the property sits in a Groundwater District (yes/no/unknown, with the district's name and website if known), and whether the seller is aware of one or more water wells on the property. If wells exist, the seller discloses the total count, how many are currently in use, how many are capped/covered/plugged/abandoned, and any known registration or permit numbers from a Groundwater District. It also asks whether each well is owned/operated solely by the seller for the property's own benefit, or shared — naming the owner/operator, beneficiary, and any governing agreement if not.
Three more yes/no questions round out the groundwater section: whether the property receives water from a well located on another property (excluding city, MUD, water supply corporation, or private water company service); whether a well on the property relies on groundwater rights owned or leased from land outside the property; and whether any groundwater rights have been severed, sold, or leased — in whole or in part, with or without well-drilling rights.
Surface water questions
Paragraph 3 asks whether the seller owns any Surface Water Right associated with the property (with the permit/filing/adjudication number and any co-ownership breakdown if yes), and whether there's a pond, lake, or water tank on the property — whether or not it currently holds water.