| 1 | 1 | | 81R5988 TRH-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Hegar S.B. No. 1135 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the authority of the General Land Office to undertake |
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| 8 | 8 | | coastal erosion studies and projects in conjunction with qualified |
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| 9 | 9 | | project partners. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Sections 33.603(b), (d), (f), and (h), Natural |
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| 12 | 12 | | Resources Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (b) The studies and projects shall address: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (1) assessment of the feasibility, cost, and financing |
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| 15 | 15 | | of different methods of avoiding, slowing, or remedying coastal |
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| 16 | 16 | | erosion; |
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| 17 | 17 | | (2) beneficial placement of dredged material where |
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| 18 | 18 | | appropriate to replenish eroded public beach, bay shore, marsh, and |
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| 19 | 19 | | dune areas; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (3) public beach, bay shore, and marsh nourishment or |
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| 21 | 21 | | restoration projects using sediments other than material from |
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| 22 | 22 | | navigational or other dredging projects; |
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| 23 | 23 | | (4) guidelines on grain size and toxicity level; |
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| 24 | 24 | | (5) the economic, natural resource, and other benefits |
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| 25 | 25 | | of coastal erosion projects; |
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| 26 | 26 | | (6) the protection, revegetation, and restoration of |
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| 27 | 27 | | dunes; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (7) the planting of vegetation as a means of |
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| 29 | 29 | | inhibiting bay shore erosion and projects developing and |
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| 30 | 30 | | cultivating disease-resistant vegetation adapted to local |
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| 31 | 31 | | conditions; |
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| 32 | 32 | | (8) the construction or retrofitting of dams, jetties, |
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| 33 | 33 | | groins, and other impoundment structures, provided that the |
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| 34 | 34 | | structures include sediment bypassing systems; |
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| 35 | 35 | | (9) estimating the quantity and quality of sediment |
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| 36 | 36 | | trapped by reservoirs, navigation channels, and placement areas and |
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| 37 | 37 | | identification of other sediment sources; |
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| 38 | 38 | | (10) the use of hard or soft structures on bay |
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| 39 | 39 | | shorelines as a method of avoiding, slowing, or remedying erosion; |
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| 40 | 40 | | (11) storm damage mitigation, post-storm damage |
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| 41 | 41 | | assessment, and debris removal; |
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| 42 | 42 | | (12) [, and] removal and relocation of structures from |
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| 43 | 43 | | public beaches, including the purchase of property located on a |
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| 44 | 44 | | public beach; |
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| 45 | 45 | | (13) the acquisition by eminent domain of property |
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| 46 | 46 | | necessary for the construction, reconstruction, maintenance, |
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| 47 | 47 | | widening, or extension of an erosion response project under this |
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| 48 | 48 | | subchapter; |
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| 49 | 49 | | (14) [(12)] structural shoreline protection projects |
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| 50 | 50 | | that use innovative technologies designed or engineered to minimize |
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| 51 | 51 | | beach scour; and |
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| 52 | 52 | | (15) [(13)] other studies or projects the |
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| 53 | 53 | | commissioner considers necessary or appropriate to implement this |
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| 54 | 54 | | subchapter. |
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| 55 | 55 | | (d) Except as provided by Subsections (b)(8) and (14) |
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| 56 | 56 | | [(12)], this chapter does not authorize the construction or funding |
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| 57 | 57 | | of a hard structure on or landward of a public beach. |
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| 58 | 58 | | (f) Notwithstanding Subsections (c) and (e), each biennium |
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| 59 | 59 | | the commissioner may undertake at least one erosion response |
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| 60 | 60 | | [large-scale beach nourishment] project [on a public beach] without |
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| 61 | 61 | | requiring a qualified project partner to pay a portion of the shared |
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| 62 | 62 | | project cost if the total cost of the projects that do not have a |
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| 63 | 63 | | cost share requirement [project] does not exceed one-half |
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| 64 | 64 | | [one-third] of the total amount appropriated to the land office for |
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| 65 | 65 | | coastal erosion planning and response. |
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| 66 | 66 | | (h) Notwithstanding Subsection (e), the commissioner may |
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| 67 | 67 | | determine the percentage of the shared project cost a qualified |
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| 68 | 68 | | project partner must pay for a project undertaken pursuant to |
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| 69 | 69 | | Subsection (b)(11), (12), or (13) [for removal of debris or |
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| 70 | 70 | | structures, or relocation of structures from the public beach; |
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| 71 | 71 | | provided, however, that no money in the account may be used for a |
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| 72 | 72 | | project undertaken pursuant to Subsection (b)(11) to purchase real |
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| 73 | 73 | | property or reimburse a property owner for the purchase of real |
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| 74 | 74 | | property]. |
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| 75 | 75 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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