SUBCOMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, RURAL AFFAIRS AND COASTAL RESOURCES
Friday, June 9, 2006
9:00 a.m.
City Council Chambers, Corpus Christi, TX
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Pursuant to a notice posted in accordance with Senate Rule
11.18, a public hearing of the Subcommittee on Agriculture,
Rural Affairs and Coastal Resources was held on Friday, June 9,
2006, in the City Council Chambers, Corpus Christi, TX
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MEMBERS PRESENT: MEMBERS ABSENT:
Senator Craig Estes None
Senator Juan Hinojosa
Senator Mike Jackson
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The chair called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. There being
a quorum present, the following business was transacted:
Chairman Estes thanked Senator Hinojosa and his staff for
coordinating the hearing in Corpus Christi and welcomed the
public who were in attendance.
Chairman Estes asked that the minutes from the May 1, 2006,
hearing be approved. Senator Jackson so moved, and there was no
objection.
Chairman Estes called on Corpus Christi Mayor, Henry Garrett, to
say a few words. Chairman Estes then recognized Representative
Vilma Luna, Corpus Christi, who was in attendance.
Representative Luna addressed the Senate Subcommittee concerning
the importance of cooperation between local and state entities
in making the most of CEPRA funding.
Chairman Estes recognized Senator Kyle Janek of Houston as a
special guest at the hearing. Senator Janek discussed his
background and experience with the Coastal Erosion Planning and
Response Program (CEPRA) and how vital continuation and funding
for the program was for his district. He pointed out CEPRA
should be funded from a combination of several funding sources,
and should be more effectively used to draw down federal funds.
Chairman Estes asked how much federal money was left after each
funding cycle and Senator Janek responded that Texas only uses
1% of the federal money available. He then pointed out that
money raised by state parks should stay in the state parks.
Chairman Estes then began with the invited testimony portion of
the hearing addressing Interim Charge 2: Study the
effectiveness of the Coastal Erosion Planning and Response
Program (CEPRA) and make recommendations to improve the program,
identify funding sources, and determine the roles of federal and
local governments in erosion response.
Mayor Henry Garrett was recalled to testify on behalf of the
City of Corpus Christi. Mayor Garrett explained the history of
the Packery Channel dredging project and its impact on Corpus
Christi and North Padre Island. He highlighted the total
benefit of CEPRA to Corpus Christi and explained CEPRA funding
was used for the Packery Channel project. In addition to Mayor
Garrett's remarks, Tom Utter, also with the City of Corpus
Christi, spoke and presented a slide presentation about the
Packery Channel project and the importance of CEPRA funding in
getting the project completed. Senator Janek and Senator
Hinojosa discussed the cost of upkeep on the Packery Channel.
Chairman Estes then called the Honorable Chuck Cazales, County
Commissioner of Nueces County to testify. Commissioner Cazales
represents the north eastern part of Nueces County, including
parts of Port Aransas and North Padre Island. He spoke of some
of the opposition to the proposed closure of the beach to
vehicle traffic. He also drew attention to the importance of
seaweed in mitigating erosion. Commissioner Cazales then
addressed the safety of the island residents and pointed out
that we have just entered hurricane season.
The next witnesses were Michael Kovacs, City Manager of Port
Aransas, and the Honorable Claude Brown, newly elected Mayor of
Port Aransas. Michael Kovacs testified that the beaches in Port
Aransas were accreting and that the City of Port Aransas was
against any sort of Hotel/Motel tax. Senator Hinojosa discussed
the idea of using a mixture of funds for CEPRA including a
property tax. Mayor Brown reiterated the City's opposition to a
Hotel/Motel tax and stated funding should come from General
Revenue.
Chairman Estes then called Ms. Kelly Hamby, City Secretary for
the Village of Surfside and member of Brazoria County Shoreline
Restoration Task Force. Ms. Hamby provided testimony on the
problems facing a small town on the Gulf and how CEPRA and other
grants were critical to responding to erosion and clean up after
tropical storms. She started by claiming the Freeport Channel
was a major source of erosion in her area. She then stated
CEPRA should be used to address property loss due to flooding
and protection from loss of life during hurricanes first. She
asked for an independent review of CEPRA funding, stated that
the CEPRA program needs work, and pointed out that there might
be a conflict of interest as the GLO is serves as the grant
administrator and fulfills a regulatory role at the same time.
The next witnesses were Michael Perez and Nelda Olivo, both with
the Port of Corpus Christi. Michael Perez agreed CEPRA can
benefit from additional funding, but opposed any CEPRA tax on
ports. He stated erosion is not due to maritime commerce and
that any additional fee will push shippers to ports outside of
Texas. He concluded by pointing out that ports receive no
funding from the state. Senator Jackson and Mr. Perez discussed
an oil spill in the port. Mr. Perez pointed out that it was not
a spill, but an overflow. Nelda Olivo discussed the dockage fee
that was brought up during the 79th Regular Session. She
pointed out that thousands of ships use the port of Corpus
Christi. They were the last invited speakers.
Ms. Diane Falcioni with the Port of Galveston testified about
the different ideas for CEPRA funding that would depend on the
ports. She then discussed the budget of the Port of Galveston.
Senator Jackson asked about Homeland Security grants the port
has received and then asked about the budget.
Haskell Simon from Bay City testified about the importance of
CEPRA funding to rural coastal counties without the resources of
metropolitan counties. He spoke specifically about Matagorda
County.
Pat Suter Chairwoman of the Coastal Bend Sierra Club testified
about the unintended consequences of methods such as jetties to
keep channels open. She also addressed the erosion caused by
cleaning beaches and the building of seawalls.
Johnny French, retired fish and wildlife biologist, discussed
his concerns for the Piping Plover and its protected habitat on
North Padre Island. He expressed concern for the designated
critical habitat, TX-7, and the GLO's recently filed suit
concerning TX-7. He felt that closing the beach south of
Packery Chanel to vehicles would adversely affect TX-7 and the
Piping Plover.
Sally Davenport, Coastal Planner, from Austin testified. She
helped draft the original CEPRA legislation and believes CEPRA
needs more funding in order to fund long-term projects. She
also pointed out the importance of finding reliable sand sources
in the state.
Ray Allen with the Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program
testified about the importance of a healthy wetland system to
sustain the eco-system along the coast of Texas. He stated that
it is often a challenge for local entities to provide the local
match required by CEPRA. He addressed the problem of reservoirs
capturing sediment that should be entering the state's bays and
estuaries and claimed that in some places along the coast, bird
populations are down by 90%.
After the conclusion of all the testimony, Senator Jackson moved
that the Subcommittee stand at recess, subject to the call of
the Chairman. It was so ordered and the hearing ended at 11:30
a.m.
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Senator Craig Estes, Chair
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Kingsbery Otto, Clerk