Well registration, permits and driller licensing near Conroe

Who covers which ground

Montgomery County: Lone Star GCD

The district was created in 2001 to protect groundwater in Montgomery County. Its rules sort wells into exempt and non-exempt. An exempt well is not metered and needs no operating permit, but under the district's FAQ all wells in the county are expected to be registered, and the rule text lists a few small-casing exceptions. When in doubt, register: unregistered wells are left out when the district reviews the effect of new wells on old ones.

For wells completed on or after January 1, 2026, the exemption covers a well with casing five inches or smaller, making no more than 25,000 gallons a day, used only for a household or livestock, on a tract of 1.5 acres or larger. Lots recorded or on the county tax rolls before December 1, 1986 are excused from the acreage test. Separately, a tract over ten acres can qualify for domestic and livestock use. The registration form for a lot under 1.5 acres includes a promise to contact the Montgomery County Health Department.

Exempt status is lost if the well starts serving anything other than household or livestock use, if a replacement well has more capacity than the one it replaces, or if the water supplies a platted subdivision. Commercial, irrigation, industrial and public-supply wells are non-exempt and need a permit and a meter.

The steps for a new exempt well

If you buy a property with a well, the district's FAQ says to apply for a transfer if the well is registered, or a new registration if it is not. A pump swap on an existing well is an alteration under the rules; see the pump replacement cost guide.

• Register with the district first, using the exempt well form, with a GPS location and the planned pumping capacity.
• Wait for a Notice to Proceed. The district checks spacing before it issues one.
• Drill within 120 days of the notice and within 30 feet of the location you registered.
• Keep the well at least 50 feet from the nearest property line. Rule 3.2 applies this to every new well, exempt or not.
• The driller files a well report with the district within 60 days of completion. The district may inspect before and after drilling and watch a pump flow test.
• Replacing a well? File the replacement form before work starts. The new well must sit within 50 feet of the old one, tap the same aquifer, not pump faster, and the old well is plugged within 90 days.

What a homeowner can ask the driller to show

The state licenses water well drillers and pump installers. TDLR's enforcement page lists the failures it penalizes, and it reads like a list of things you can check. Unlicensed drilling carries a first-offense penalty of 500 to 3,000 dollars.

• A license on request. Failing to present a license or apprentice registration when asked is a listed violation.
• A rig or vehicle marked with a license number.
• TDLR contact information on every invoice and proposal.
• A well report within 60 days. The state form goes to the owner as well as TDLR, and the owner may ask that its contents be kept confidential.
• A call within 24 hours if the driller finds undesirable water.
• A written note about your duty to cap or plug an abandoned well, which falls on the landowner within 180 days of notice.

Checking a license and making a complaint

TDLR's program page links to a license search and a complaint form. An individual license lasts two years, and the license types and endorsements are listed on its application page. Search by name, check that the license is current, and match the number to the one on the truck.

Some duties fall on the owner, not the driller. The district's rules ban open, uncovered or deteriorated wells, and TDLR lists a landowner who fails to cap or plug an abandoned well within 180 days of notice as a violation.

Subsidence districts and nearby counties

The Texas Water Development Board says water level declines of as much as 350 feet in Harris, Galveston, Fort Bend, Jasper and Wharton counties have led to land subsidence. The Harris-Galveston Subsidence District covers only those two counties, so Montgomery County properties are not in it, but Tomball and other Harris County edges are.

Under that district's rules, a new well must be registered before drilling and staff answer within five business days. A well with casing under five inches that serves only one single-family home is excluded from permits, but a new well on a platted subdivision lot with an alternative water supply available is not. Waller County sits in Bluebonnet GCD, which asks for an exempt well registration before work starts. See the Waller and Tomball pages for what that means locally.

Common questions