Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HCR177 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R28741 BPG-D
2	2	By: Howard of Travis H.C.R. No. 177
3	3	Substitute the following for H.C.R. No. 177:
4	4	By: Farrar C.S.H.C.R. No. 177
5	5
6	6
7	7	HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
8	8	WHEREAS, The arrival of the 2009 ozone season brings critical
9	9	challenges for Central and South Central Texas, where rapid
10	10	population growth threatens to compromise air quality by raising
11	11	ozone-forming emissions; and
12	12	WHEREAS, High levels of ground-level ozone can be a health
13	13	hazard, especially for children, seniors, and people who suffer
14	14	from lung disease or are active outdoors; studies link excessive
15	15	ozone exposure to lung irritation and inflammation, breathing
16	16	difficulties, headaches, nausea, aggravated asthma, reduced lung
17	17	capacity, and increased susceptibility to such respiratory
18	18	illnesses as pneumonia and bronchitis; chronic high-level exposure
19	19	can cause permanent lung damage; and
20	20	WHEREAS, To protect the health and well-being of the public,
21	21	the Environmental Protection Agency strengthened its National
22	22	Ambient Air Quality Standard for ground-level ozone in 2008;
23	23	monitored ozone levels in the Capital Region, which includes
24	24	Travis, Bastrop, Caldwell, Hays, and Williamson Counties, and in
25	25	the Alamo Region, which includes Bexar, Comal, Guadalupe, and
26	26	Wilson Counties, slightly exceeded the new standards in 2006-2008,
27	27	putting the area at risk of receiving a "nonattainment" designation
28	28	when the EPA makes its final determinations in March 2010; this
29	29	designation would trigger federal requirements for transportation
30	30	and industry that could in turn increase costs for businesses and
31	31	delay regionally significant transportation projects; and
32	32	WHEREAS, The Capital and Alamo Regions can avert the
33	33	nonattainment designation if they decrease ozone levels to 77 parts
34	34	per billion or less and 78 parts per billion or less, respectively;
35	35	an unprecedented level of regional cooperation is needed to meet
36	36	this goal; consequently, the Central Texas Clean Air Coalition, the
37	37	Air Improvement Resources Committee, local governments in the two
38	38	regions, the Capital Area Council of Governments, the Alamo Area
39	39	Council of Governments, and the CLEAN AIR Force of Central Texas
40	40	have created an initiative called the Big Push to build on voluntary
41	41	efforts already in place; and
42	42	WHEREAS, In support of the Big Push, the Central and South
43	43	Central Texas regions are implementing an outreach campaign to
44	44	encourage everyone to be an Ozone Action Hero and to pledge to do
45	45	what they can to voluntarily reduce ozone-forming emissions from
46	46	April through October 2009; and
47	47	WHEREAS, Because many small actions can combine to produce a
48	48	significant result, the coalition is asking all area governments,
49	49	agencies, businesses, and citizens for their assistance;
50	50	individuals can help through such measures as driving less, idling
51	51	their vehicles less, and waiting until evening to fuel vehicles or
52	52	use gas and diesel yard equipment; many area employers have
53	53	committed to join this effort by establishing policies to reduce
54	54	their vehicle and operational emissions and by implementing such
55	55	measures as ozone watch/warning programs and assisting employees in
56	56	reducing the impact of their commutes through teleworking,
57	57	carpooling, using mass transit, bicycling, or scheduling a
58	58	compressed workweek; and
59	59	WHEREAS, The largest employer in the Central Texas region is
60	60	the State of Texas; state agencies can play a vital role in the Big
61	61	Push by conducting evaluations of fleet usage, providing secure
62	62	bike racks and preferential parking for ride sharing and
63	63	low-emissions vehicles, choosing to teleconference, limiting use
64	64	of gas and diesel equipment early in the day and on ozone
65	65	watch/warning days, and enacting other policies to reduce harmful
66	66	emissions; and
67	67	WHEREAS, By joining the Big Push to reduce ozone-forming
68	68	emissions in Central and South Central Texas, the state can protect
69	69	the health of residents and help avoid a nonattainment designation
70	70	from the EPA, thus preventing enforcement of burdensome regulatory
71	71	requirements that would add to the cost of doing business in Central
72	72	and South Central Texas; now, therefore, be it
73	73	RESOLVED, That the 81st Legislature of the State of Texas
74	74	hereby direct all state agencies to immediately initiate voluntary
75	75	emission reduction policies and programs if possible in order to
76	76	help Central and South Central Texas meet the 2008 National Ambient
77	77	Air Quality Standard for ground-level ozone; and, be it further
78	78	RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official
79	79	copy of this resolution to the executive director of each state
80	80	agency.