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SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, Seaport activities generate more than $4 trillion in |
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economic activity each year, representing more than a quarter of |
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United States gross domestic product and yielding more than $41 |
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billion in federal, state, and local tax revenue; and |
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WHEREAS, To support this critical component of international |
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trade, the United States Congress established the Harbor |
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Maintenance Tax (HMT) on shippers in 1986 as a means of funding the |
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maintenance and improvement of vital harbor infrastructure; and |
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WHEREAS, HMT revenues deposited into the Harbor Maintenance |
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Trust Fund now total about $1.6 billion annually, but in recent |
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years, Congress has appropriated less than half of those funds for |
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the intended purpose, leading to a decline in dredging and |
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maintenance by the United States Army Corps of Engineers; the |
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consequence is an accumulation of sediment that leaves navigation |
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channels narrower and shallower, and when silted channels constrain |
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vessels from carrying full loads or force them to wait for high |
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tide, the costs of imports and exports rise, as does the risk of |
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vessel grounding and associated oil spills; the Corps of Engineers |
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has estimated that the full depth and width of our coastal ports is |
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available less than 35 percent of the time, costing the economy |
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billions of dollars annually; and |
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WHEREAS, Each year, the HMT provides an amount sufficient to |
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meet all of the nation's authorized harbor maintenance needs, but |
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as a result of lagging appropriations, the Harbor Maintenance Trust |
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Fund had a balance of more than $9 billion at the start of 2016; in |
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Texas alone, less than 25 percent of the HMT revenue collected in |
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the state has been appropriated for harbor maintenance; and |
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WHEREAS, Our nation's ports are vital to our economic |
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prosperity and global competitiveness, and these funds, which were |
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collected for the express purpose of the maintenance and |
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improvement of the ports, should be put to work; now, therefore, be |
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it |
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RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully urge the United States Congress to increase |
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appropriations from the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund to ensure |
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that the nation's ship channels are appropriately maintained and |
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safe; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of |
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Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the |
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members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that |
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this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a |
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memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |
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______________________________ |
______________________________ |
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President of the Senate |
Speaker of the House |
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I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 37 was adopted by the Senate |
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on May 4, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0. |
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______________________________ |
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Secretary of the Senate |
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I hereby certify that S.C.R. No. 37 was adopted by the House |
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on May 24, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, two |
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present not voting. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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Approved: |
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______________________________ |
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Date |
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______________________________ |
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Governor |