Tapping the till

Written by Mark England

Thursday, 07 June 2007

Lawmakers divvy up Fund 9 monies Hunters and anglers who tracked to Austin to support various legislation at least found the outcome familiar — hit and miss. Texas Parks and Wildlife got permission to tap its so-called Fund 9, a dedicated wildlife account previously doled out to a cash-strapped TPW despite a surplus that topped $60 million; legislators authorized $12.3 million to start building a new freshwater fish hatchery; blind hunters got permission to use laser sights to aid spotters; and the Trans-Texas Corridor, a private toll road that would cut a 1/4-mile-wide swath through the state — and which some outdoor enthusiasts fear would fragment wildlife — isn't going anywhere the next two years as a moratorium was slapped on private toll contracts. Not everyone got their wish granted, however, as the 80th session of the Texas Legislature ended at midnight May 28. A bill pushed by some bow hunters to open the archery season to crossbows died in the Senate after sailing through the House. Also, the freshwater fish hatchery still will be partly funded through bonds despite the Legislature's appropriation. The latter action stung Tim Cook, conservation director for Texas BASS Federation Nation. He wanted legislators to fund the hatchery completely through the sale of the $5 Freshwater Fisheries Stamp, as anglers say they were promised. "I don't think they feel there are any repercussions for not allocating the money the way it was intended," Cook said. This legislative session was the first for Texas Outdoors Partners, which Cook co-chairs. The loose-knit organization also includes such groups as Ducks Unlimited, CCA Texas and the Texas Wildlife Association. Kirby Brown, TWA's executive vice president, called TOP a "communications system." It can trigger a warning on an issue, resulting in legislators being targeted by interested members, he said. Brown credited TOP for helping open up Fund 9. "It provides strength in numbers," he said. "Texas Parks and Wildlife will now be able to spend down the surplus over three or four years and maintain the vital services provided Texans." TPW officials warned they might have to cut employees or reduce game surveys if not allowed more access to the Fund 9 surplus. "We had some good friends in the Legislature who came through for us," said Phil Durocher, director of TPW's Inland Fisheries Division. Durocher said TPW ran into problems with the proposed hatchery because of design changes and rising construction costs. "We had $15 million in the bank through the sale of bonds," he said. "Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to build it. We thought we'd have to phase it in. With the Legislature appropriating the $12.3 million, which is the balance in our stamp account, what we have now will get us really close." Although the bill to let blind hunters use laser sights roused the nation's humorists — one Washington Post pundit wrote "Not even Cheney could miss!" — Rep. Edmund Kuempel, R-Seguin, applauded fellow legislators for staying focused on the merits of his bill. "It creates a tremendous opportunity to get these people back into the field and to enable them to make a clean harvest," Kuempel told reporters. The fate of the Trans-Texas Corridor, seemingly a done deal last year, is now unclear. The TTC would roughly mirror I-35. Besides automobiles, the mammoth corridor would provide access for utility lines, trucks and trains carrying freight as well as commuter trains. "We believe this is a speed bump for private toll roads and the beginning of the end for the Trans-Texas Corridor," said David Stall, of corridorwatch.org. Brown said the Legislature "slowed" the push for the corridor. "It leaves it where everyone can at least sit down and talk about it," he said. "We're not against improved transportation. We're just against unnecessarily leaving a huge imprint on the countryside." Before legislators left town, they also gave a thumb's-up to as many as 21 new reservoirs in Texas, including the controversial Fastrill Reservoir in East Texas. Many opponents want the proposed Neches River Wildlife Refuge built there instead. However, Janice Bezanson, executive director of the Texas Conservation Alliance, doesn't think Fastrill got a mandate from the Legislature. She noted that if money isn't allocated to start construction of Fastrill by 2015, the reservoir site will be terminated — although, technically, another Legislature could extend the deadline. "In a way it helps to promote the reservoir, but it also puts restrictions on it," Bezanson said. "It's kind of a wash in a way."

Last Updated ( Sunday, 10 June 2007 )

 

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