TRANSPORTATION CODE
TITLE 4. NAVIGATION
SUBTITLE A. WATERWAYS AND PORTS
CHAPTER 51. TEXAS COASTAL WATERWAY ACT
§ 51.001. SHORT TITLE. This chapter may be cited as the
Texas Coastal Waterway Act.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
§ 51.002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Coastal marshes" means those soft, low-lying
watery or wet lands and drainage areas in the coastal areas of the
state that are of ecological significance to the environment and to
the maintenance, preservation, and enhancement of wildlife and
fisheries.
(2) "Coastal public land" means:
(A) the state-owned submerged land and the water
overlying that land; and
(B) state-owned islands or portions of islands
that may be affected by the ebb and flow of the tide.
(3) "Commission" means the Texas Transportation
Commission.
(4) "Gulf Intracoastal Waterway" means the main
channel, not including tributaries or branches, of the shallow
draft navigation channel running from the Sabine River southward to
the Brownsville Ship Channel near Port Isabel that is known as the
Gulf Intracoastal Canal.
(5) "Department" means the Texas Department of
Transportation.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended
by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, § 30.06(a), eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 51.003. PURPOSE. In recognition of the economic
benefit to the state of the Gulf Coast Intracoastal Waterway, this
state shall act as the nonfederal sponsor of the main channel of the
Gulf Coast Intracoastal Waterway from the Sabine River to the
Brownsville Ship Channel in order to:
(1) support the marine commerce and economy of this
state by providing for the shallow draft navigation of the state's
coastal waters in an environmentally sound manner;
(2) prevent waste of publicly and privately owned
natural resources;
(3) prevent or minimize adverse impacts on the
environment; and
(4) maintain, preserve, and enhance wildlife and
fisheries.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended
by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 191, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 51.004. COOPERATION WITH OTHER ENTITIES. (a) The
commission shall cooperate with the Department of the Army, other
federal and state agencies, navigation districts, port
authorities, counties, and other appropriate persons to determine
the state's federal local sponsorship requirements relating to the
Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, shall fulfill those requirements, and
shall satisfy the responsibilities of the nonfederal sponsor as
determined by federal law.
(b) The commission shall coordinate actions taken under
this chapter that may have a significant environmental impact or
effect on coastal public land, coastal marshes, wildlife, and
fisheries with appropriate federal and state agencies that have
environmental, wildlife, and fisheries responsibilities.
(c) Within its authority and available resources, an agency
or political subdivision of the state shall assist the commission
in performing its duties under this chapter.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
§ 51.005. LAND ACQUISITION. (a) The commission may
acquire by gift, purchase, or condemnation property or an interest
in property that the commission considers necessary to enable it to
meet its responsibilities under this chapter, including, except as
provided by Subsection (b)(3), easements and rights-of-way for
dredge material disposal sites or channel alteration.
(b) The commission may not:
(1) acquire oil, gas, sulphur, or other minerals that
may be recovered without using the surface of land acquired by the
commission for exploration, drilling, or mining purposes;
(2) condemn any submerged public land under the
jurisdiction of the School Land Board; or
(3) condemn private property along Reach 1, Reach 2,
Reach 4, Reach 5, and Reach 6 of the Gulf Coast Intracoastal
Waterway as defined by the Draft Laguna Madre GIWW Dredged Material
Management Plan prepared by the Army Corps of Engineers and the
Interagency Coordination Team dated October 11, 2002, for use as a
disposal site for dredged material from the Laguna Madre unless the
commission determines that:
(A) there is no state or federal land available
that can be used for that purpose; and
(B) the state's failure to acquire the property
will result in the closure of any segment of the Gulf Coast
Intracoastal Waterway located in this state.
(c) An agency or political subdivision of the state may
convey, without advertisement, title or rights and easements owned
by the agency or political subdivision to any property the
commission needs to meet its responsibilities under this chapter.
(d) Repealed by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 191, § 4, eff.
Sept. 1, 2003.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Amended
by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1457, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2001; Acts
2003, 78th Leg., ch. 191, § 2, 4 eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 51.006. HEARING REQUIRED BEFORE ACQUISITION OF
PROPERTY. (a) Before the commission approves or implements a
plan or project to acquire property or an interest in property under
Section 51.005 for a dredge material disposal site or for an
alteration of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway that requires the
acquisition of additional property or an interest in property to
meet its responsibilities under this chapter, the commission shall
hold a public hearing to receive evidence and testimony concerning
the desirability of the proposed dredge material disposal site or
channel alteration.
(b) The commission shall publish notice of a plan or project
and the date, time, and place of a hearing at least once a week for
three successive weeks before the hearing in a newspaper of general
circulation that is published in the county seat of each county in
which any part of a proposed dredge material disposal site or
channel alteration is located.
(c) The commission may approve the plan or project and
implement it and acquire additional property if the commission
determines, after the public hearing, that the proposed plan or
project can be accomplished without an unjustifiable waste of
publicly or privately owned natural resources or a permanent and
substantial adverse impact on the environment, wildlife, or
fisheries.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
§ 51.007. EVALUATION AND REPORT. (a) In cooperation
with appropriate persons, the commission shall continually
evaluate the impact of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway on the state.
The evaluation shall include:
(1) an assessment of the importance of the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway that includes identification of its direct
and indirect beneficiaries;
(2) identification of principal problems and possible
solutions to those problems that includes estimated costs, economic
benefits, and environmental effects;
(3) an evaluation of the need for significant
modifications to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway; and
(4) specific recommendations for legislative action
that the commission believes are in the best interest of the state
in carrying out the state's duties under this chapter.
(b) The commission shall publish a report of its evaluation
and present the report to each regular session of the legislature.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
§ 51.008. SCHOOL LAND BOARD POWER. This chapter does
not diminish the duty or power of the School Land Board to manage
the coastal public land of the state.
Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 165, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995.
§ 51.009. BENEFICIAL USE OF DREDGE MATERIAL. (a) The
commission, through the department, may enter into an agreement
with the Department of the Army to participate in the cost of a
project to beneficially use material dredged from the Gulf
Intracoastal Waterway.
(b) The commission by rule shall establish eligibility
criteria for a project to beneficially use the dredge material.
(c) In this section and Sections 51.010 and 51.011,
beneficial use of dredge material means any productive and positive
use of dredge material and includes broad use categories such as
fish and wildlife habitat development, human recreation, and
industrial and commercial uses.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, § 30.06(b), eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 51.010. PROPERTY ACQUISITION. The commission,
through the department, may acquire an interest in property
required for a project to beneficially use dredge material in the
manner provided by Section 51.005.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, § 30.06(b), eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 51.011. HEARING REQUIRED BEFORE PARTICIPATION IN
PROJECT. (a) Before the department agrees to participate in the
cost of a project to beneficially use dredge material that requires
the acquisition of an interest in property, the commission shall
hold a public hearing on the desirability of the project.
(b) The commission shall publish notice of the date, time,
and place of the hearing at least once a week for three successive
weeks before the hearing in a newspaper of general circulation
published in the county seat of each county in which the project is
located.
(c) The department may agree to participate in the cost of
the project if the commission determines, after the public hearing,
that the project can be accomplished without unjustifiable waste of
publicly or privately owned natural resources or a permanent and
substantial adverse effect on the environment, wildlife, or
fisheries.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, § 30.06(b), eff. Sept. 1,
1997.
§ 51.012. CONTRACTS WITH LANDOWNERS. The commission
may contract with a landowner for the use of land as a disposal site
for dredged material.
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 191, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 51.013. DREDGED MATERIAL DISPOSAL. The department
shall condemn land for disposal of dredged material for the Laguna
Madre section of the Gulf Coast Intracoastal Waterway only in
accordance with the Draft Laguna Madre GIWW Dredged Material
Management Plan prepared by the Army Corps of Engineers and the
Interagency Coordination Team dated October 11, 2002.
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 191, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 51.014. SUBSTANTIVE CHANGES TO DREDGED MATERIAL
DISPOSAL PLAN. The department shall seek approval of the
legislature for any substantive changes to dredged material
disposal management made in the final Laguna Madre GIWW Dredged
Material Management Plan once the plan is published.
Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 191, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
