SLS 20RS-907 ORIGINAL
2020 Regular Session
SENATE CONCURRENT RESOL UTION NO. 51
BY SENATOR HEWITT
LEGIS POWERS/FUNCTIONS. To extend the termination date for the Lower Pearl River
Basin task force until April 1, 2022.
1 A CONCURRENT RESOL UTION
2 To re-establish the Lower Pearl River Basin task force to study the conditions, needs, issues,
3 and funding relative to the flood protection and preservation of the Lower Pearl
4 River Basin and to recommend any action or legislation that the commission deems
5 necessary or appropriate.
6 WHEREAS, the state of Louisiana has been endowed with natural beauty that draws
7 countless sportsmen and tourists every year and should expend the necessary resources to
8 preserve its most important sanctuaries; and
9 WHEREAS, the Lower Pearl River Basin is located in east-central and southwest
10 Mississippi and in the southeastern part of Louisiana, and drains an area of eight thousand
11 seven hundred sixty square miles; and
12 WHEREAS, the basin contains one of the least-altered and pristine swamps in the
13 United States of America, covering an area of over seventy thousand acres, and supports
14 nearly one hundred forty types of fish and forty species of freshwater mussels, making it one
15 of the most species-rich river systems in the world; and
16 WHEREAS, in an effort to preserve this valued and treasured ecosystem, a
17 comprehensive plan should be created and instituted that will provide the financial, political,
18 and scientific resources necessary to keep the Lower Pearl River Basin ecosystem in its
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1 pristine and natural state and should be based on the latest scientific, biological,
2 hydrological, and geological data; and
3 WHEREAS, areas adjacent to the Pearl River and its tributaries have experienced a
4 higher frequency of flooding in recent years; and
5 WHEREAS, activities in the state of Mississippi with regard to the portion of the
6 Pearl River within its borders may affect the flow and level of the river in Louisiana; and
7 WHEREAS, the flood protection and efficient use of this important resource will
8 depend on a comprehensive plan; and
9 WHEREAS, since its creation, the task force accomplished several important steps
10 in protecting the future of the basin, including facilitating the removal of the log jam on the
11 Pearl River near Bogalusa, advocating for the Watershed Initiative and the need for
12 watershed modeling for the Pearl River and other watersheds statewide, coordinating
13 Louisiana's technical response on the draft environmental impact statement for the One Lake
14 project in Jackson, Mississippi, as it impacts the Lower Pearl River, and working with
15 Louisiana's delegation to the United States Congress to amend federal legislation to address
16 Louisiana's documented concerns with the One Lake project.
17 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana does hereby
18 re-establish the Lower Pearl River Basin task force to study and make recommendations to
19 the legislature and federal agencies on the development of a long-term comprehensive
20 master plan to address flood control and drainage issues, while preserving the Lower Pearl
21 River Basin ecosystem.
22 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force created shall consist of the
23 following nine members:
24 (1) One member of the Senate appointed by the president, whom shall serve as
25 chairperson.
26 (2) One member of the House of Representatives appointed by the speaker.
27 (3) The secretary of the Department of Natural Resources or his designee.
28 (4) The secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries or his designee.
29 (5) The secretary of the Department of Environmental Quality or his designee.
30 (6) The secretary of the Department of Transportation and Development or his
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1 designee.
2 (7) The executive director of the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority or his
3 designee.
4 (8) The parish president of Washington Parish or his designee.
5 (9) The parish president of St. Tammany Parish or his designee.
6 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that such study should focus on the area of
7 protection, riverine flooding, drainage, the potential creation of an authority to manage the
8 area, financing for such an authority, long-term projects for the preservation and
9 maintenance of the area, and any future needs of the area.
10 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of the task force shall serve
11 without compensation, except per diem or expense reimbursement to which they may be
12 individually entitled as members of their respective constituent organization.
13 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force may conduct such meetings at
14 such times as it may deem necessary or convenient to enable it to exercise fully and
15 effectively its powers, perform its duties, and accomplish the objectives and purposes of this
16 Resolution.
17 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall consider the feasibility of
18 creating a multi-state compact with the state of Mississippi, a development district, or
19 management authority within the state of Louisiana.
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the task force shall make a report of its findings
21 and recommendations, with suggestions for proposed legislation, if any, to the House
22 Committee on Transportation, Highways and Public Works, Senate Committee on
23 Transportation, Highways and Public Works, House Committee on Natural Resources and
24 Environment, and Senate Committee on Natural Resources by February 1, 2021.
25 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that if the task force deems it necessary to continue
26 its study, it may do so until the task force terminates on April 1, 2022.
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The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Tyler S. McCloud.
DIGEST
SCR 51 Original 2020 Regular Session Hewitt
Re-establishes the Lower Pearl River Basin task force to study the conditions, needs, issues,
and funding relative to the flood protection and preservation of the Lower Pearl River Basin
and to recommend any action or legislation that the commission deems necessary or
appropriate.
Requires that the task force submit a report and recommendations with suggestions for
proposed legislation to the Senate and House committees on transportation, highways and
public works, the Senate Committee on Natural Resources, and the House Committee on
Natural Resources and Environment by February 1, 2021.
Provides that the task force terminates on April 1, 2022.
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