Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission
Public Hearing
Aug. 29, 2002
Commission Hearing RoomTexas Parks & Wildlife Department Headquarters Complex
4200 Smith School Road
Austin, TX 78744
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6 BE IT REMEMBERED, that heretofore on the 29th
7 day of August, 2002, there came to be heard matters under
8 the regulatory authority of the Parks and Wildlife
9 Commission of Texas, in the Commission Hearing Room of the
10 Texas Parks and Wildlife Headquarters Complex, Austin,
11 Texas, beginning at 9:00 a.m., to wit:
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13 APPEARANCES:
14 THE PARKS AND WILDLIFE COMMISSION:
15 CHAIR: Katharine Armstrong, Austin, Texas
Donato D. Ramos, Laredo, Texas
16 Philip Montgomery, III, Dallas, Texas
Ernest Angelo, Jr., Midland, Texas
17 John Avila, Jr., Fort Worth, Texas
Alvin L. Henry, Houston, Texas
18 Mark E. Watson, Jr., San Antonio, Texas
Joseph Fitzsimons, San Antonio, Texas
19 Kelly M. Rising, M.D., Beaumont, Texas
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21
22 THE TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT:
Robert L. Cook, Executive Director, and other personnel of
23 the Parks and Wildlife Department
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1 OTHER APPEARANCES:
2 Mr. Greg Westmoreland, Matagorda County
1700 7th Street, Room 301
3 Bay City, Texas 77414
Matter of Interest: No. 6-Regional Park Grant Funding
4
Ms. Donna Brasher
5 LCRA
Austin, Texas 78620
6 Matter of Interest: No. 6-Regional Park Grant Funding
7 Mr. Jonathan Schulz, City of Karnes City
218 East Calvert
8 Karnes City, Texas 78118
Matter of Interest: No. 4-Local Park Grant Fund Outdoor
9 Recreation Grants
10 Mr. Randy Truesdell, City of Lubbock Parks and Recreation
Department
11 P.O. Box 2000
Lubbock, Texas 79424
12 Matter of Interest: No. 4-Local Park Grant Fund Outdoor
Recreation Grants
13
Mr. Hollis Rutledge, City of Pharr
14 Pharr, Texas
Matter of Interest: No. 4-Local Park Grant Fund Outdoor
15 Recreation Grants
16 Mr. Leo "Polo" Palacios, Mayor, City of Pharr
205 West Park
17 Pharr Texas, 78577
Matter of Interest: No. 4-Local Park Grant Fund Outdoor
18 Recreation Grants
19 Mr. Tony McGee, City of Wimberely
P.O. Box 2027
20 Wimberley, Texas 78676
Matter of Interest: No. 4-Local Park Grant Fund Outdoor
21 Recreation Grants
22 Mr. Hector Palacios, Hildago County
301 Estate
23 Pharr, Texas 78589
Matter of Interest: No. 4-Local Park Grant Fund Outdoor
24 Recreation Grants
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1 OTHER APPEARANCES (Continued):
2 Mr. Curtis Schrader, City of Marfa
Box 787
3 Marfa, Texas 79843
Matter of Interest: No. 5-Small Community Grants
4
Ms. Wanda Herd, City of Wheeler
5 Box 98
Wheeler, Texas 79096
6 Matter of Interest: No. 5-Small Community Grants
7 Mr. Dock Jackson, City of Elgin
Box 591
8 310 North Main
Elgin, Texas 78621
9 Matter of Interest: No. 5-Small Community Grants
10 Ms. Sheila Childs, City of Woodway
924 Estates Drive
11 Woodway, Texas 76712
Matter of Interest: No. 5-Small Community Grants
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Ms. Jeanne Patterson, Texas Bicycle Coalition
13 8301 Bobwhite
Frisco, Texas 75034
14 Matter of Interest: No. 7-Recreational Trails Grants
15 Mr. Kirby Brown, Texas Wildlife Association
402 Isom Road, Suite 237
16 San Antonio, Texas 78216
Matter of Interest: No. 9-FY03 Operating and Capital
17 Budget and Texas Parks and Wildlife Investment Policy,
Budget Policy
18 No. 12-Scientific Breeder Regulations-Disease Testing and
Monitoring Measures
19 No. 13-Migratory Game Bird Proclamation-Late Season
No. 14-Nongame Commercial Permit Regulations
20 No. 15-Land and Water Resources Conservation and
Recreation Plan Resolution
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1 OTHER APPEARANCES (Continued):
2 Mr. Ellis Gilleland, Texas Animals
P.O. Box 9001
3 Austin, Texas 78766
Matter of Interest: No. 12-Scientific Breeder
4 Regulations-Disease Testing and Monitoring Measures
No. 14-Nongame Commercial Permit Regulations
5 No. 15-Land and Water Resources Conservation and
Recreation Plan Resolution
6 No. 16-Nomination for Oil and Gas Lease-Harris County
No. 17-Land Sale: Tarrant County; Harris County; Austin
7 County
8 Mr. Karl Kinsel, TDA
5413 Bandera, Suite 408
9 San Antonio, Texas 78209
Matter of Interest: No. 12-Scientific Breeder
10 Regulations-Disease Testing and Monitoring Measures
11 Mr. J.W. Vanderpool, Vanderpool Exotics, Inc.
75048-15 Road
12 Meade, Kansas 67864
Matter of Interest: No. 14-Nongame Commercial Permit
13 Regulations
14 Mr. Perry Hounshell
6701 S. FM 1788
15 Midland, Texas 79706
Matter of Interest: No. 14-Nongame Commercial Permit
16 Regulations
17 Mr. David Langford, Texas Wildlife Association
Matter of Interest: No. 15-Land and Water Resources
18 Conservation and Recreation Plan Resolution
19 Mr. Brian Sybert, Sierra Club
P.O. Box 1931
20 Austin, Texas 78767
Matter of Interest: No. 15-Land and Water Resources
21 Conservation and Recreation Plan Resolution
22 Ms. Mary Lehmann, Keep the Land
116 East 37th, Suite 210
23 Austin, Texas
Matter of Interest: No. 15-Land and Water Resources
24 Conservation and Recreation Plan Resolution
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1 OTHER APPEARANCES (Continued):
2 Mr. Wesley C. Stripling, IV, William Lloyd Walsh and
Richard Walsh
3 6100 Camp Bowie Boulevard, Suite 77
Fort Worth, Texas 76116
4 Matter of Interest: No. 17-Land Sale: Tarrant County,
Harris County, Austin County
5
Mr. Jon Ed Robbins, Tarrant County
6 401 Roberts
Saginaw, Texas 76179
7 Matter of Interest: No. 17-Land Sale: Tarrant County,
Harris County, Austin County
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Mr. Les Breeding, Representative Lon Burnam
9 P.O. Box 2910
Austin, Texas 78767
10 Matter of Interest: No. 17-Land Sale: Tarrant County,
Harris County, Austin County
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1 (9:00 a.m.)
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Good morning,
3 everyone. Welcome. The meeting is called to order.
4 Before proceeding with any business, I believe Mr. Cook
5 has a statement to make.
6 MR. COOK: Madame Chairman, thank you. A
7 public notice of this meeting containing all items on the
8 proposed agenda has been filed with the Office of
9 Secretary of State as required by Chapter 551 of the
10 Government Code referred to as the Open Meetings Law. I
11 would like for this action to be noted in the official
12 record of this meeting.
13 So that everyone will have a chance to address
14 the Commission in an orderly fashion, the following
15 grounds rules will be followed today. The Chairman is in
16 charge of this meeting and by law it is her duty to
17 preserve order, direct the order of this hearing and
18 recognize persons to be heard. I will be assisting the
19 Chairman today as Sergeant at Arms. We have sign-up cards
20 out front here for everyone wishing to speak and the
21 Chairman will call names from those cards one at a time.
22 Each person will be allowed to speak from the
23 podium here at the front one at a time. When your name is
24 called, please come to the podium, state your name, who
25 you represent, if anyone other than yourself. Then state
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1 your purpose on the agenda item under consideration and
2 ask for any facts that will help the Commission understand
3 your concern. Please limit your remarks to the specific
4 agenda item under consideration. The person who wants to
5 address the Commission will have three minutes to speak.
6 I will keep track of the time on this handy dandy little
7 thing. It goes through a series of green when you've got
8 about a minute left, yellow when you've got about 30
9 seconds left and red when your time is up. So I hope you
10 will help me stay on time. Your time may be extended if
11 one of the Commissioners has a question for you or if the
12 Commission gets into a discussion about the -- about the
13 item that you're bringing up. And that time will not be
14 counted against you.
15 Statements which are merely argumentative or
16 critical of others will not be tolerated. There is a
17 microphone at the podium, so it is not necessary to raise
18 your voice. I also ask that you show proper respect for
19 our Commission as well as other members of the audience.
20 You will not be recognized out of turn by raising your
21 hand or interrupting others. Disruptive or offensive
22 behavior will be grounds for immediate ejection from the
23 meeting. If you would like to submit written materials to
24 the Commission, please give them to Ms. Lori Estrada, who
25 is seated to my right here. Ms. Estrada will pass the
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1 written materials out to the Commission.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you, Mr. Cook.
3 Next is the approval of the minutes which have already
4 been distributed. Is there a motion for approval?
5 COMMISSIONER RISING: So moved.
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: We have a second.
7 COMMISSIONER WATSON: Second.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Second from
9 Commissioner Watson. All in favor?
10 ("Aye.")
11 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
12 carries. Next is the acceptance of gifts which have also
13 been distributed. Is there a motion for approval?
14
TPWD DONATIONS OF $500 OR MORE
15 NOT PREVIOUSLY APPROVED BY THE COMMISSION
16 (1) HEB; CASH; Coastal Expo-Kidfish
(2) Wal-Mart; CASH; Fisheries Management-Signs
17 (3) Estate of Beatrice Payne; CASH; Texas Freshwater
Fisheries Center
18 (4) Texas State Bank; CASH; Coastal Expo-Kidfish
(5) Carl Zeiss Optical; CASH; Great Texas Birding Classic
19 (6) Carl Zeiss Optical; Binoculars, Scop; Great Texas
Birding Classic
20 (7) Swarovski Optik North America; CASH; Great Texas
Birding Classic
21 (8) Swarovski Optik North America; Binoculars; Great
Texas Birding Classic
22 (9) Leica Camera; Inc.; CASH; Great Texas Birding Classic
(10) Leica Camera; Inc.; Scopes; Great Texas Birding
23 Classic
(11) Sheltered Wings/Eagle Optics; CASH; Great Texas
24 Birding Classic
(12) Sheltered Wings/Eagle Optics; Binoculars; Great
25 Texas Birding Classic
(13) Travis Audubon Society; CASH; Great Texas Birding
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1 Classic
(14) The Brunton Co; CASH; Great Texas Birding Classic
2 (15) Greater Mission Chamber of Commerce; CASH; Great
Texas Birding Classic
3 (16) Corpus Christi Convention & Visitors Bureau; CASH;
Great Texas Birding Classic
4 (17) Scott and Joan Holt; CASH; Great Texas Birding
Classic
5 (18) Port Aransas Chamber of Commerce; CASH; Great Texas
Birding Classic
6 (19) Theodore G. Cleveland; CASH; Great Texas Birding
Classic
7 (20) Reliant Energy; CASH; Great Texas Birding Classic
(21) Fancy Publications; CASH; Great Texas Birding
8 Classic
(22) Coastal Conservation Association; CASH; Crab Trap
9 Removal Program
(23) Dallas Safari Club; CASH; Duck Blind-Hunter Safety
10 Trail
(24) Quail Unlimited Texas Council; CASH; Montezuma Quail
11 Research at Elephant Mountain WMA
(25) Sportmen's Club of Fort Worth; CASH; Montezuma Quail
12 Research at Elephant Mountain WMA
(26) Cross Timbers Chapter of Quail Unlimited; CASH;
13 Montezuma Quail Research at Elephant Mountain WMA
(27) Austin Chapter of Quail Unlimited; CASH; Montezuma
14 Quail Research at Elephant Mountain WMA
(28) The CH Foundation; CASH; High Plains Wildlife Trail
15 (29) David Kline; CASH; Becoming an Outdoor Woman
(30) Silencio/Safety Direct, Inc.; Hearing/ Eye
16 Protection; Hunter Education
(31) Henry Repeating Arms Company; .22 Rifles; Hunter
17 Education
(32) Highland Industric, Inc.,; Hunter Orange Vests;
18 Hunter Education
(33) MDI Productions; Hunting/Fishing Videos; Hunter and
19 Angler Education
(34) Walls Industries, Inc.; Hunter Orange Vests; Hunter
20 Education
(35) Rattlesnake Racing, Inc.; Canoe and Equipment;
21 Recreational Opportunities
(36) Friends of Fairfield Lake State Park; 2-way Radios;
22 Communication-Park Police
(37) U.S. Army Electronic Proving Ground; Low-light
23 Imaging Device; Law Enforcement-Counter Drug
(38) Coastal Conservation Association; Night Vision
24 Monocular; Coastal Law Enforcement
(39) Victor Emanuel Nature Tours; CASH; Great Texas
25 Birding Classic
(40) Tyler Audubon Society; CASH; Prairies & Pineywoods
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1 Wildlife Trail
(41) Mullen Insurance Agency; Office Furnishings; Lake
2 Tawakoni State Park
(42) Wildlife Research Center; Inc.; Educational Packets;
3 Hunter Education
(43) Winchester Ammunition; Ammunition and Literature;
4 Hunter Education
(44) Mrs. Pat Spain; Interpretive Collections; State Parks
5 (45) Haruko Sakai & Michiko Sakai Smart; Interpretive
Collections; State Parks
6 (46) Howard Patton; Interpretive Collections; State Parks
(47) Elizabeth Van Dorn, Sarah Smith, Frances Zehmer;
7 Interpretive Collections; State Parks
(48) Michael & Elizabeth Lynott; Interpretive
8 Collections; State Parks
(49) George J. Ciancio; Interpretive Collections; State
9 Parks
10 TOTAL $306,748
11 COMMISSIONER WATSON: So moved.
12 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Second.
13 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Motion by Commissioner
14 Watson, second by Commissioner Ramos. All in favor?
15 ("Aye.")
16 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
17 carries.
18 Next, we're going to make a special presentation
19 before we get into the retirement and service awards.
20 Mr. Cook, would you meet me or join me down here?
21 I have a -- I have a very special treat,
22 personal treat that I get to do today. We're here to
23 honor a great friend of Texas Parks and Wildlife
24 Department, a great friend to the State of Texas, a great
25 friend to conservation. We're here to honor George C.
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1 Hixon, known as Tim Hixon to all of us.
2 Tim was a Commissioner of the Texas Parks and
3 Wildlife Commission and so many of you here know Tim. I'm
4 going to go over some information on Tim to maybe many of
5 you all already know, but I think is worth going over
6 again today. Tim is married to Karen Carter Johnson, who
7 is also a great friend to conservation and a great friend
8 to Texas. He is the father of two sons, Bryan Simpson
9 Hixon and Bryan -- George Simpson Hixon and Bryan Simpson
10 Hixon. He attended Hotchkiss school in Lakeville,
11 Connecticut, Washington & Lee University in Lexington,
12 Virginia, and Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.
13 He has received many awards.
14 The San Antonio Anglers' Club named him
15 conservationist of the year in 1984. He's been made
16 conservationist of the year by the Game Conservation
17 International. He received the Good Scout Award for the
18 Alamo Boy Scouts. He's received the Harvey Weil
19 Sportsman/Conservationist Award, the Chevron Conservation
20 award, the Boone and Crockett Club Sagamore Hill award and
21 the Hotchkiss School Alumni award. He has been a member
22 of many conservation organizations and I'll mention just a
23 few, the Parks and Wildlife Foundation of Texas as
24 chairman and member, the Texas Parks and Wildlife
25 Commission from 1989 until 1995, past president of the
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1 Boone and Crockett Club, past director of Game
2 Conservation International, Trustee Emeritus of the
3 Dallas -- of the San Antonio Zoological Society. He is
4 currently on the advisory board of the Caesar-Kleberg
5 Wildlife Research Institute. He's a past director of the
6 Nature Conservancy and the Nature Conservancy of Texas.
7 Tim, in describing his tenure as Commissioner of
8 the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department says it's the best
9 job he ever had. Now that I've been on the Commission for
10 three years, I understand exactly what he's talking about.
11 I feel precisely the same way. As Commissioner, he helped
12 to establish Texas Wildlife Expo, he approved the
13 construction of Sea Center in Texas and the Texas
14 Freshwater Fisheries Center. He convinced the Commission
15 at a time when Texas Parks and Wildlife was hesitant to
16 acquire new land that there was some land just outside of
17 San Antonio that beared acquiring, and it was the
18 beginning of what has become Government Canyon. And as
19 you will hear probably today in our presentation on the
20 Land and Water Conservation Plan, Government Canyon which
21 has been such a -- a great accomplishment for both Tim and
22 Karen is going to be used as a model for our future parks.
23 When we decide whether we need to acquire in a certain
24 area and for what purposes, we will be looking to
25 Government Canyon to achieve those goals that we believe
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1 the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is charged with
2 fulfilling. So the example you've set with Government
3 Canyon will not only affect the San Antonio area but many
4 of our urban areas for many, many years to come. Thank
5 you, Tim.
6 As chairman of the Parks and Wildlife Foundation
7 of Texas, he has increased the assets to $7.5 million. In
8 the last seven years, Parks and Wildlife Foundation has
9 received over $30 million in donations. He began the Lone
10 Star Legacy campaign and with Karen committed to help fund
11 endowments for every Texas Parks and Wildlife site. Since
12 their 1996 gift of $200,000, the number of site endowments
13 has grown from three to 183.
14 I could go on and on, but there just isn't
15 enough time. So I'm going to read you a letter that we
16 received just yesterday that kind of sums it all up and
17 expressions for me at least and I'm sure for others our
18 feelings for George C. Hixon.
19 "Dear Tim, Congratulations as you retire as
20 chairman of the Parks and Wildlife Foundation of Texas.
21 Throughout your career, your hard work and determined
22 efforts have promoted the conservation of natural
23 resources in the State of Texas. In establishing the
24 Texas Wildlife Expo, promoting public and corporate
25 partnerships, supporting conservation, helping fund site
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1 endowments and helping manage effectively the natural
2 resources of Texas, you have provided a model of
3 outstanding leadership. Your devotion to protecting and
4 preserving the natural beauty of Texas is an inspiration
5 to so many. We know how proud your family, friends and
6 colleagues are of your record of accomplishments. Thank
7 you for your many years of dedicated public service. We
8 send our best wishes for an enjoyable retirement.
9 Sincerely, President George W. Bush."
10 (Applause.)
11 MR. HIXON: Thanks everybody.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Tim, we would love to
13 have you say a few words.
14 MR. HIXON: I will say three or four words.
15 I'm not very good as a speaker. But as Katharine said,
16 this is the best job I've ever had. I've been involved in
17 conservation for 36 years now, basically all my adult
18 life, mainly wildlife conservation. It's given me such
19 pleasure. There's almost never been a bad moment, a few
20 tense moments, yeah. Bad ones, I can't think of one.
21 I've been involved here with the Department in one fashion
22 or another for I think it's 13 years now, and I miss it
23 and I miss a lot of the friends I've made here.
24 Now, as I told the group last night, traveling
25 around the world I hear the comments time after time after
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1 time, "I wish our department was like the Texas
2 Department." Everybody says this. I've never heard
3 anything else but this, and it's -- it's a special place
4 and a special bunch of people, and I'm thrilled to have
5 been part of it. And everybody knows where to find me if
6 I can ever help. Thanks.
7 (Applause.)
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thanks, again, Tim,
9 for everything. I think it's appropriate now for me to
10 just quickly introduce the soon-to-be Chairman of the
11 Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation who has also come
12 today, Patrick Oles, an old friend of mine and an old
13 friend of the Department's. I don't have his bio in front
14 of me, so I'm going wing it a little bit.
15 I've known Patrick since he was -- we were both
16 very callow youngsters. He worked for my father in
17 Governor Clement's appointments office, and even at that
18 age, it was clear that Pat was one of those old souls that
19 had a sort of prenatural amount of wisdom at a very early
20 age. He went on to become the Chairman of the Lower
21 Colorado River Authority. He's been involved in various
22 conservation groups. I trust Patrick. He is a person
23 that we all rely on for guidance. I know that he cares
24 deeply about these issues, and I think he will be a
25 wonderful chairman and hopefully Patrick, you will live up
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1 to the example that went before you.
2 Would you please stand.
3 (Applause)
4 MR. OLES: Following in Mr. Hixon's
5 footsteps and leadership, I'm going to keep -- I have two
6 words. Thank you for the opportunity. I look forward to
7 working with my great friend Tim, who has left a huge
8 hurdle and a big footprint for all of us to follow. I did
9 have the opportunity to serve on the original -- the
10 original board of the Foundation, and I can tell you
11 it's -- it's tremendous progress and a great deal of pride
12 to see how far you brought the foundation over the last 11
13 years, I believe now.
14 So I'm anxious to work with Tim and the other
15 trustees as well as the Commission. I have a lot of
16 friends here, just like Tim, lots of good memories from
17 our years at the LCRA working with Parks and Wildlife. So
18 I look forward to -- to getting to work, and thanks very
19 much for the opportunity.
20 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
21 (Applause.)
22 MR. COOK: Mr. Hixon, it would be -- I
23 would be remiss in not expressing something that I have
24 heard to you and Karen from all of the employees at Texas
25 Parks and Wildlife Department and all of our constituents.
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1 Thank you very much. We appreciate you. You're a great
2 man and have helped us so much, and we appreciate it.
3 With that, let's get down to our service --
4 retirement certificate service awards. First of all, I
5 believe we have Mr. Terry Cody. Terry is a Manager II
6 Coastal Fisheries, Rockport, Texas. Terry's retired with
7 over 32 years of service. He has worked all these years
8 for the Coastal Division at Rockport Marine Lab, with only
9 a brief stint in Brownsville to study pink shrimp.
10 Starting as a seasonal Fish and Wildlife Technician I in
11 1969, he quickly rose through the ranks. As he gained a
12 wealth of knowledge and experience of shrimp and fish
13 management and research in the Gulf of Mexico. In May, he
14 retired as a Manager II, Ecosystem Leader for the Corpus
15 Christi Bay system. For many years, Terry served on the
16 several committees for the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries
17 Management Council and the Gulf State Marine Fisheries
18 Commission. During his tenure, he worked in almost all of
19 the bay systems on the Texas Coast. He was the lead
20 author of the 1989 Shrimp Fisheries Management Plan by
21 which TPWD received regulatory authority from the
22 legislature for shrimp management. This document, as well
23 as sound scientific data that Mr. Cody has been
24 responsible for collecting during his entire career, was a
25 backbone for our recent shrimp management recollections.
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1 It is the dedication and integrity of biologists like
2 Terry Cody that make the Coastal Fisheries Division and
3 this agency respected in the field of fisheries
4 management. Terry Cody.
5 (Applause.)
6 MR. COOK: The next gentleman is receiving
7 both his Retirement Certificate and Service Award. David
8 McDonald came to TPWD after having worked five years as a
9 research translator for the Texas Antiquities Committee on
10 the 1554 Spanish shipwreck project team that was
11 instrumental in locating and microfilming documents
12 pertaining to the wrecks in the Spanish and Mexican
13 archives. He subsequent served as chief translator for
14 the project and published translations of selected
15 documents pertaining the wrecks.
16 David began his employment with TPWD in 1978 as
17 a manager in park historian for Casa Navarro State
18 Historical Park in San Antonio, Texas.
19 During his tenure with the Department, he has
20 made many presentations to college classes and at
21 historical conferences in addition to translating,
22 annotating, and publishing the Historical Writings of Jose
23 Navarro, the first Tejano to write about the history of
24 Texas.
25 Most recently he has been a consultant on Fight
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1 for Texas, a forthcoming PBS American Experience
2 documentary that will focus on Tejanos and the Texas
3 Revolution featuring Jose Antonio Navarro and his
4 important role in Texas history.
5 David McDonald Program Administrator II with the
6 State Parks Division, 25 years of service and his
7 retirement certificate.
8 (Applause.)
9 MR. COOK: Next, we have Nancy Ziegler in
10 Coastal Fisheries Division, Administrative Tech IV,
11 Rockport, Texas, with 21 years of service. She is
12 retiring at this time. She has served at the Coastal
13 Fisheries Division Rockport Marine Lab since starting with
14 the agency as a secretary in 1981. She has advanced up
15 the career ladder rapidly during her tenure. She has been
16 nominated for employee performance recognition and awards.
17 She is responsible for assisting the regional director and
18 regional staff with a diverse range of administrative
19 challenges, ranging from routine monthly employee time
20 sheets to the more complex purchasing regulations and
21 insurance issues. She is well known for her friendly
22 telephone voice, positive attitude and outstanding
23 helpfulness. Nancy Ziegler retiring with 22 years of
24 service.
25 (Applause.)
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1 MR. COOK: Thank you very much.
2 MS. ZIEGLER: Thank you. Thank you.
3 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Congratulations.
4 MR. COOK: Now receiving service awards,
5 first we have Norman Anthony, Game Warden V in the Law
6 Enforcement Division, Falfurrias, Texas, with 35 years of
7 Texas. Norman began his employment with TPWD in July,
8 1967 as a cadet in Zapata. After completion of the 21st
9 Game Warden Academy, he was assigned to Jim Hogg County
10 and lived in Hebbronville until June of 1974 when he was
11 transferred to Brooks County and has lived in Falfurrias
12 for the last 28 years, giving us a great service and a
13 great amount of work and effort and we appreciate it.
14 Norman Anthony, 20 -- 30 -- 35 years of service.
15 (Applause.)
16 MR. COOK: Next person many of you will
17 recognize. We've all encountered Sam Center, I think, at
18 one time or the other in our careers, and it's always been
19 with a pleasure. Sam Center, Captain in our Law
20 Enforcement Division, headquartered now out of Llano,
21 Texas, with 35 years of service. Sam began his employment
22 with TPWD in June, 1967. He graduated from the Game
23 Warden Academy in February, 1968 and was Game Warden at
24 Eagle Lake until November, 1980 when he was promoted to
25 District Supervisor in Region 9, District 2. He stayed in
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1 Eagle Lake until he transferred to Llano in January of
2 1994 as District Supervisor in Region 7. With 35 years of
3 service, Sam Center.
4 (Applause.)
5 MR. COOK: Another employee with 35 years
6 of service, Robert Colura, Coastal Fisheries Division,
7 Manager III at Palacios. Robert Colura began his career
8 with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as an Area
9 Biologist stationed in Palacios, Texas, where he was
10 responsible for sample collections in Matagorda Bay. In
11 1972, he accepted a position in the Department's Perry R.
12 Bass Marine Fisheries Research Station where he began
13 research on pond culture of red drum and spotted seatrout.
14 In 1974, he became project leader for these studies. This
15 work led to the development of the Department's stocking
16 program for these species.
17 In addition to culture research, he has also
18 been involved in studies of red drum and spotted seatrout
19 age, growth, and reproductive biology. Life history
20 studies were expanded in 1988 to include southern
21 flounder, snook, tarpon, black drum and Atlantic croaker.
22 In 1993, Bob became the Director of the Science Program at
23 the Perry R. Bass laboratory responsible for the life
24 history and genetics programs at the facility. He is
25 currently serving as Acting Science Director for Coastal
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1 Fisheries Division. Robert Colura, Manager III, Palacios,
2 Texas, 35 years.
3 (Applause.)
4 MR. COOK: Thanks, Robert.
5 Lawrence Barrientes with the State Parks
6 Division, Park Ranger V in Stonewall, Texas, with 30 years
7 of service. He began his career at the LBJ State Park in
8 March of 1972 as a seasonal technician. One of his
9 initial duties was transplanting approximately 500 sapling
10 trees, the bulk of which are now mature and doing well.
11 Lawrence has been a very important contributor to the
12 development and success of the LBJ State Park. He has
13 been employed at the park almost since it's beginning in
14 1970. He wears many hats and is a multitalented
15 individual. In his capacity as a Lead Ranger, he has
16 effectively supervised other employees. His loyalty, work
17 ethic, and dedication have consistently been above
18 reproach and he has been a tremendous asset not only to
19 the park but to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as
20 well. Congratulations and appreciation goes to Park
21 Ranger V, Lawrence Barrientos, Sr., for 30 years of
22 dedicated service as a public servant at the LBJ State
23 Park. Lawrence Barrientes.
24 (Applause.)
25 MR. COOK: This next employee is one that
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1 we all know and love, Shirley Hoes in Land Conservation
2 Division, Administration Tech II here in Austin with 30
3 years of service. Shirley began her employment with TPWD
4 in August of 1970 as a secretary in the Parks Division,
5 working for Bill Collins, George Adams and John Prater.
6 She transferred, within the Parks Divisions to Special
7 Studies working for Mark Gosdin and Mike Herring, before
8 spending 16 years as Parks Division secretary, retiring in
9 1993. Couldn't stay away, though. She returned to work
10 part-time/seasonal in the Executive Office in June of '94;
11 then in January, 1996, she began working with the Land
12 Conservation group and has been there since. Shirley
13 Hoes, Administrative Tech II in our Land Conservation
14 group with 30 years of service. Shirley.
15 (Applause.)
16 MR. COOK: Mary-Love Bigony, managing
17 editor on the Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine has
18 enjoyed a 25-year career at the magazine. She handles
19 coordination of the production schedule with the magazine
20 staff and vendors, as well as the layouts. She writes and
21 edits manuscripts, oversees fact-checking, caption writing
22 and proofreading, and supervises the magazine interns.
23 She has won numerous writing awards from the Association
24 of Conservation Information, Regional Magazine
25 Associations, International Regional Publishers
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1 Association and the National Weather Association. With
2 her many years with the agency, Mary-Love brings to the
3 magazine extensive knowledge of the mission and scope of
4 the agency and numerous personal contacts in other
5 divisions and field offices. Mary-Love Bigony,
6 Communications Division, 25 years of service.
7 (Applause.)
8 MR. COOK: Well, this next person, the
9 Commissioners know well and I have -- I have learned to
10 appreciate very much, Michelle Klaus, Executive Assistant
11 with the Executive Office with -- you're probably not
12 going to believe this, 25 years of service. She told me
13 she began her tenure here when she was, like, seven or
14 eight years old. But it says right here Michelle began
15 her employment in June of 1997 [sic] in the Inland
16 Fisheries Division as a Secretary III. In 1980, she
17 transferred to the personnel office as a personal clerk --
18 personnel clerk and worked for the director of personnel
19 for ten years.
20 In 1990, she landed her "dream job" in the
21 Executive Office. I'm not sure that she described it that
22 way, but she currently serves as Executive Assistant to
23 the Executive Director. She enjoys working with the
24 Commission, appreciates the wonderful people she has a
25 privilege to work with in the past and looks forward to
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1 more opportunities in the future.
2 As you know, Commissioners, and staff, I -- I
3 moved to the Executive Office a few months ago. And I
4 will tell you without a shadow of a doubt, there has been
5 absolutely no point in time where Michelle didn't do
6 everything she could to keep me out of trouble and to
7 assist me in every way. I really appreciate it. Michelle
8 Klaus, 25 years of service.
9 (Applause.)
10 MR. COOK: Kim Ochs, in the State Parks
11 Division, began working for TPWD during the summers of
12 1976 and '77 at the Goose Island State Park in Rockport
13 and at Brown -- Lake Brownwood State Park in Brownwood
14 while attending college at Texas A&M. He began full-time
15 employment in February, 1978, at Lake Livingston.
16 In August of 1981, Kim was promoted to the
17 Assistant Manager at Lake Corpus Christi, and in July,
18 1986, was promoted to the Manager at Dangerfield State
19 Park, where he remains today. Kim Ochs in the State Parks
20 Division, Program Administrator IV with 25 years of
21 service. Kim.
22 (Applause.)
23 MR. COOK: Thank you, Kim. Thank you very
24 much.
25 (Applause.)
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1 MR. COOK: Next we have Floyd D. Randolph,
2 a Park Ranger V in the State Parks Division at Livingston,
3 Texas, with 25 years of service. Floyd began his
4 employment with TPWD in June of 1977 as a seasonal
5 part-time employee at Lake Livingston State Park. He has
6 moved up the ladder from Park Ranger I to Park Ranger V
7 and has remained at Lake Livingston throughout his tenure.
8 Floyd Randolph, State Parks Division with 25 years of
9 service.
10 (Applause.)
11 MR. COOK: Ronnie Gallagher, State Parks
12 Division, Maintenance Specialist in Lubbock, Texas, with
13 20 years of service. Ronnie began his career with TPWD in
14 June of 1982 at the Palo Duro Canyon State Park as the
15 Assistant Park Manager. He served five years at that
16 location. Then he was promoted to Park Superintendent II
17 at Matagorda Island State Park in June of 1987. While
18 there, reclassified to a Conservation Outdoor Recreation
19 Specialist VI. He is currently the Region 6 Maintenance
20 Specialist at the Lubbock office. Ronnie Gallagher, State
21 Parks Division, with 20 years of service.
22 (Applause.)
23 MR. COOK: Next we have a gentleman in our
24 Resource Protection Division that we all care a lot about,
25 John Rollin Macrae in the Resource Protection Division, 20
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1 years of service, Manager III here in Austin, Texas. In
2 his 20 years at the Parks and Wildlife Department he has
3 been in the Resource Protection Division. Rollin has been
4 instrumental in establishing all of the large wetland
5 mitigation banks and other conservation initiatives across
6 Texas. His tireless efforts toward wetland conservation
7 have inspired many, inside and outside the Department.
8 And he is considered by many of the biologists as a
9 mentor.
10 He has set standards for conservation that are
11 known and respected within the Department as well as in
12 other state and federal agencies. His dedication to
13 scientific facts has led to a consistent direction toward
14 conservation that is recognized statewide. He has led the
15 team that reviews 404 permits for urban and industrial
16 development in wetlands, to assure conservation
17 regulations are satisfied. His team looks at all Corps.
18 of Engineers permits and federal projects like the Gulf
19 Intra-coastal Waterway. So far, they have resulted in
20 over 30,000 acres of mitigation land. Rollin Macrae,
21 Resource Protection Division, with 20 years of service.
22 (Applause.)
23 MR. COOK: Brent Ortego in the Wildlife
24 Division and stationed in Victoria, Texas, he's a Program
25 Specialist V. Brent began working for TPWD in 1982 in the
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1 Jasper office as a Liaison to the U.S. Forest Service.
2 Then he game became the Region 3 Technical Guidance
3 Biologist in 1985 and Nongame Biologist in 1988. Brent
4 transferred to the Nongame program in Austin in 1990 and
5 the Planning Program in '91. He served as area manager at
6 Mad Island Wildlife Management Area starting in 1992,
7 moved to Guadalupe Delta Wildlife Management Area in 1996.
8 Since 1999, he has held his current position, Wildlife
9 Diversity Biologist in Region 4. He is a past president
10 of the Texas Organization of Endangered Species and the
11 current president of the Texas Ornithological Society.
12 Brent Ortego, Wildlife Division, Victoria, Texas, with 20
13 years of service.
14 (Applause.)
15 MR. COOK: Richard Adam Ott in the Inland
16 Fisheries Division joined Texas Parks and Wildlife
17 Department in 1982. His first assignment was as the
18 Assistant Project Leader in Tyler where he worked with
19 Charlie Inman. He refers to this as attending the
20 University of Inman and feels that his time with Charlie
21 was instrumental in the development of his career.
22 Following Charlie's retirement in 1988, Richard competed
23 for and was promoted to Project Leader where he has been
24 since. In addition to acting as a fisheries manager for
25 major East Texas reservoirs, Rick has also been an active
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1 researcher. Rick's research has resulted in authorship
2 and co-authorship of nine scientific papers. In recent
3 years, Rick has become more interested in development of
4 aquatic plant communities for fish habitat. He has
5 assisted in the development of a statewide aquatic habitat
6 initiative and has been active in the development of an
7 on-line habitat development manual through the Southern
8 Division American Fisheries Society Reservoir Committee.
9 Since 1998, Rick has been activity pursuing his Ph.D. in
10 Environmental Science through the Forestry Program at
11 Stephen F. Austin University. Richard Ott, Inland
12 Fisheries Division with 20 years of service.
13 (Applause.)
14 MR. COOK: Ricky W. Weinheimer in State
15 Parks Division, Exhibit Technician at Stonewall, Texas,
16 has been with the agency for 20 years. He began his
17 career at LBJ State Park 1982 as Park Ranger I. In
18 December, 1984, Ricky advanced to a Park Ranger II
19 beginning his career as an interpreter at the
20 Sauer-Beckmann Living History Farm. In April of 1987,
21 Ricky was promoted to Park Ranger III, as lead interpreter
22 at the Living History Farm. Currently Ricky is an Exhibit
23 Technician III and as an interpreter at the Sauer-Beckmann
24 Living History Farm, one of the premiere historic sites in
25 this Agency. Throughout the years as an interpreter,
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1 Ricky has mastered many of the historic demonstrations
2 seen on a Hill Country farm at the turn of the century.
3 His last venture is learning the art of blacksmithing and
4 has made exceptional strides in this endeavor.
5 Ricky has played an integral part in the
6 development and success of the Sauer-Beckmann Living
7 History Farm and to the overall development of LBJ State
8 Park. He has provided valuable interpretive experience to
9 literally thousands of park visitors, both on and off
10 site, skillfully sharing pertinent information about our
11 culture and natural resources. His loyalty, work ethic,
12 and dedication have been consistently above reproach and
13 he is truly an ambassador for TPWD in its mission as a
14 conservation agency. In the year 2000, Ricky received the
15 award as "Employee of the Year in Region 7," a feat that
16 he is most proud of.
17 Ricky has worked in all areas of the park,
18 including park maintenance and visitors services at the
19 front desk. He always accepts any type of assignment and
20 gives it his best. Congratulations to Ricky Weinheimer,
21 20 years of exceptional service for TPWD. Ricky.
22 (Applause.)
23 MR. COOK: Thank you, sir.
24 (Applause.)
25
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1 PRESENTATION - TEXAS RIVERS
2 MR. COOK: Thank you. Madame Chairman,
3 Commissioners, in May, Communications Director Lydia
4 Saldana briefed the Commission on the water communications
5 initiative that we're calling, "Texas, the State of
6 Water."
7 The July issue of the magazine was the first
8 volley in this effort and is the most comprehensive
9 publication we've ever produced on this important topic.
10 Today, we celebrate the publication of "Texas
11 Rivers," published by the Texas Parks and Wildlife
12 Department Press, this beautiful book features the prose
13 of legendary author John Graves and the wonderful
14 photography of Texas State photographer Wyman Meinzer.
15 Outside the Commission Hearing Room in the
16 lobby -- down at this end of the lobby, is a photo
17 exhibit, which I hope everyone will have a chance to look
18 at, which will travel to such high profile locations as
19 our State Capitol, the Texas Book festival, the Houston
20 Arboretum and to similar sites across the state. The
21 exhibit has been paid for by sponsor Brazos Mutual Funds,
22 which is also underwriting a PBS documentary which will
23 air next spring.
24 Wyman Meinzer joins us today to tell us a little
25 more about the book and to make a special presentation to
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1 the Commission. Wyman.
2 MR. MEINZER: I want to take this
3 opportunity to thank the members of the Commission for
4 having me here this morning, giving me the opportunity to
5 be here and speak on behalf of the book. I also - I think
6 that John couldn't be here, but I would like to say on his
7 behalf that we owe you guys everything for supporting this
8 project. This endeavor would have been completely
9 impossible without your input and your support and there
10 are so many people - I can't name them all, but Susan
11 Ebert, Larry Hodge, Dr. Larry McKinney, Lydia Saldana -
12 everyone has been so good and has really kept this ball
13 rolling. It's been a long project, I know at times it
14 probably strung out to where everyone thought it would
15 never end, but I think that in light of the water issues
16 in Texas I think this was a time when the project ended at
17 a good point. So hopefully that it will be a positive
18 influence on people of the State and how they perceive the
19 water and our natural resources in Texas.
20 I will go into some slides here and a - or power
21 point and kind of give you a rundown of some of the things
22 that happened along the way. This first image is a shot
23 that I took on the Pecos River and I couldn't devote - I
24 think - it's like seven days on the river whenever you put
25 in -- it pandale (phonetic) in a canoe so I had a friend
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1 of mine fly me in the helicopter and he flew from Dallas
2 and met me there. This is sort of a bittersweet moment -
3 actually this was - the moment that I took this shot, I
4 was kind of thrilled because previous to this I thought my
5 wife and my friend, the helicopter pilot, and his wife
6 probably had been killed in a crash because they said they
7 would be back in 45 minutes and I didn't see two of them
8 for two weeks. They flew over about 10 hours later and
9 dropped a message from an aircraft and let me know that
10 they were all okay. And so for the rest of the day I was
11 very happy very elated and took a lot of good images.
12 The Sabinal River - you know - it's a very
13 small, very short in the state - only about 60 miles in
14 length, but I tell ya, it's probably the cleanest river
15 and it's lined with cypress trees, it's a gorgeous stretch
16 of water. Definitely one that's a jewel for the State.
17 And I remember on this particular shot, I was headed to a
18 ridge above the Sabinal valley that morning with a rancher
19 and as we crossed the river on his ranch, I just said stop
20 here Billy, this is the place - we'll go to the high
21 country some other time. So this particular shot is on
22 private land holdings. And I might mention also before we
23 go further that everywhere we went in the State where we
24 described the purpose -- I don't know what's happening
25 here, Lydia. It's going crazy. I'm going to put it down
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1 just for a moment. But everywhere that we went - and
2 described the purpose of our endeavor that people embraced
3 us - everywhere. And they love the idea of Texas Parks
4 and Wildlife was supporting this and they thought it was
5 for a great cause because of the water issues that we're
6 faced with. And so - I felt like that John Graves and I
7 were more or less sort of like embassadors for Texas Parks
8 and Wildlife and everywhere that we encountered
9 individuals along the rivers never were we met with a
10 negative approach - no one ever considers anything but --
11 but there for a good cause. So I just thought you might
12 be interested in that.
13 And I tell you working with John Graves was an
14 absolute pleasure. He is an icon of Texas writers, a
15 gentleman of the highest order. My wife says I didn't
16 take any of that from him, but I tried. I was with him
17 for three years up and down these rivers. Boating, and
18 flying and walking and whatever, but John is just a great
19 person and his writing style is just -- I don't know - it
20 sets a mood for the book. it just makes you - you know -
21 really appreciate it even more. I mean - I say - you know
22 -- the photographs people say well, the photographs are so
23 great. I say - read the words, the words really tell the
24 story. I mean John Graves in his voice is unparalleled.
25 So when you take the work and you flip through it,
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1 visually you - I hope you'll be impressed, but take those
2 words and take them to heart because John Graves wrote
3 from the heart on this one. As we does always.
4 Here we are with Jack Scowles who is an author
5 and a rancher on the Pecos River. We're above a location
6 there way far in the outback. I might mention that I
7 wanted, in photographing the river, I wanted to cover
8 mainly private land holdings to show people that great
9 areas still exist along our rivers that's not necessarily
10 within the realm or within the parameters of the public
11 where they can actually get to them. I have a tendency to
12 believe that sometimes people say - well, all we got left
13 are the parks and that's wonderful, but beyond the parks
14 there are fabulous places and I think this might enhance
15 people's appreciation for the rivers beyond what they see
16 along the roadways. And so we sought out locations on
17 these private ranches and to show that the ranchers are
18 great stewards of the land.
19 This is a special moment on the Llano River with
20 John Graves as he's tying a fly. I savor these memories.
21 And here I am at pontoon crossing with John as he is
22 GPSing the location where there was an old stage stop and
23 an old bridge there (pointing) in the 1800s where soldiers
24 from Fort Lancaster would come often to try to protect the
25 people passing through to the gold fields in California -
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1 try to protect them from Indian attacks.
2 And here is what I would call the Kit Carson de
3 Plains. That's John talking to Alvin Lynn. Alvin Lynn is
4 the geologist, an archaeologist, an educator from Amarillo
5 and one of the things I found early on in this project was
6 that - and - I wasn't familiar, except for the Canadian, I
7 wasn't familiar with any of these areas of the State - you
8 know - in-depth - you know intimately. So I had to find
9 someone in each location that knew the land and the people
10 and the river and so the first guy I came upon the
11 Canadian was Alvin Lynn and he knew every trail from the
12 1840s, Kit Carson up to the present day and he was a
13 priceless individual to have there - a source of
14 information and so my friend Kanut Millhouse offered his
15 services of the helicopter to take us to some of the
16 wilder and woollier places along the rivers and it was
17 just a tremendous experience all the way.
18 Here we are on the Neches River after checking a
19 little throw line. James Smith, he was my Kit Carson on
20 the Neches River. James, since this picture was taken,
21 has since lost his wife unfortunately and I talk to him
22 frequently. The beauty of this also, sort of an ancillary
23 positive note on this book is that I made a lot of friends
24 along the way on these rivers. Lots of friends that I'll
25 always remember and I'll keep in contact with. James so
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1 graciously allowed us - John and I to stay in his river
2 house and cooked his catfish and told us some good stories
3 about the big thicket country in East Texas. And here is
4 John sharing some - or actually Greg - I don't recall his
5 last name, but on the Sabinal River he's sharing some
6 information about the river. He was our guide there on
7 the Sabinal. We were sitting at a park, their city park
8 studying maps. And Greg and John strolling down the side
9 of the river there beneath the canopy of cypress trees.
10 And then John Graves taking a little respite
11 from the canoe trip on the Llano to do a little fly
12 fishing. We had a lot of people really support us along
13 the way. Furnish canoes, food - we just had a lot of
14 support from all over the state. And it just shows that a
15 lot of people really consider this a wonderful project.
16 John writing notes - you know - I guess if I live to be
17 125 years old - I'll always regret one photograph that I
18 missed along the way and we were sitting on the banks on a
19 cliff about 300 feet above the Pecos River and it was late
20 in the afternoon and I had three cameras set up. I had
21 one on the River and two on some Indian rock art. And
22 that's all the cameras I had with me that day and I looked
23 over and John was sitting on a big boulder with his legs
24 hanging off and the river stretching in the distance at
25 sunset and I started to grab one of those cameras and I
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1 didn't do it, to take a picture of that, and every time I
2 see a photograph that I've taken of John, I will always
3 regret that one that I missed. I guess that's the way we
4 photographers are, though.
5 And here's John and Susan Ebert doing a little
6 fishing, canoeing on the Sabinal. She took some time to
7 spend with us along the river there a day. Had a great
8 time.
9 And you know, it's really funny. I wanted to
10 really cover the personalities along the river - each
11 river - and believe me I saw some real neat people. And
12 especially on the Neches. I'm a plains person. I love
13 the wide open country and I was a little apprehensive
14 about going to the big thicket in East Texas, but once I
15 got there I realized that people there are Texans just
16 like they are in Presidio, just like they are in - you
17 know - Brownsville and in Amarillo. But I heard about
18 this guy who lived way out on the river about 10 miles
19 from the closest bridge and so one of the game wardens
20 there took me to this fellow's house and he lived there
21 and lived off of a trout line. And he so graciously let
22 us come into this little house here. This was what he
23 lived on besides his fish. And he let me come inside and
24 photograph him sitting at this table by his bed. I might
25 mention that the game wardens and biologists along the way
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1 - helpful as they could be. Fabulous. When I couldn't
2 find the local, when I first went in to a river sometimes
3 I couldn't find a local - you know - that I could work
4 with - you know - I had to spend several days - and the
5 game warden would pick me up and say hey I can take you to
6 some places and let you meet some people. So they were
7 there at every turn and I really appreciate it. This is
8 on the Neches River.
9 Here is Mr. Lloyd Goodrich. He's a Pecos River
10 man. Lloyd - when I first drove up to his house there on
11 the Pecos - I thought my goodness - you know - I really
12 found a character here, but looking at Lloyd - you know -
13 I learned right then you don't ever underestimate anyone.
14 This man has two degrees in engineering, but he chooses to
15 live on the Pecos River in a real forbidding land - almost
16 inhospitable land. And just a gracious person spent time,
17 let me photograph all I wanted to and just shared some
18 good moments with me. I really appreciate Lloyd and all
19 the people like little Patty Brooks - 92 years old and
20 beautiful and spent an afternoon with her. She lives in
21 ______. Her life also being shaped by the Pecos River.
22 This is my wife - sometimes she accompanied me on these
23 trips. On this particular one, we were on historically
24 one of the most evil crossings on the Pecos River - Horse
25 Head crossing. So when as I was waiting for the sun to
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1 set and a Comanche moon to rise and I said, "Go over there
2 and pick up that pistol and puff on that cigar for me and
3 let's get a picture of a tough woman on a tough river
4 crossing." She'll kill me when she finds out I did this.
5 I'm dead meat. But this is one of our camps also along
6 the Pecos. This is where we flew into with the
7 helicopter. Actually what happened, my friend dropped me
8 off at this camp - said, "I'll be back in 45 minutes" and
9 I saw him two weeks later. So you can imagine my
10 apprehension all night long as I lay in my sleeping bag
11 and literally cried. I cried, I prayed, the only thing I
12 could see in my mind was them piled up somewhere with a
13 buzzard in the cockpit. We saw a lot of them coming in,
14 but the next morning I heard the drum of a plane as it
15 came over and I thought - you know - no one can navigate
16 but Kanut Millhouse like that, come right to this camp and
17 sure enough came up the river, threw out a milk jug with a
18 message in it and said we're okay, we'll pick you up this
19 afternoon. So - and here's John again on the Sabinal
20 writing. Writing notes. And John and I just taking a
21 little respite on the banks of the river.
22 I'll cherish this time. Again I want to thank
23 you for making it possible for me to do this with John
24 Graves and to work with all of you people and to work with
25 the State of Texas. It was an honor that highlights my
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1 career.
2 One more real neat individual, Mr. Dude
3 Fountain. Dude lives on the Angelina, but was raised on
4 the Neches. And, Dude - one of the game wardens there
5 when we drove by and saw Dude sitting on the porch and
6 said - let me go talk to Dude. He might not want anybody
7 around today and then he waved me over and said
8 everything's okay. And so we went in and shot Dude and
9 had a good visit and found out some neat things about the
10 life of Dude Fountain and the Neches River. James again
11 on the Neches. John again late in the afternoon on the
12 Pecos. Another good helper on the Pecos.
13 Thank you so much, I can't express my
14 appreciation enough. Thank you.
15 (Applause.)
16 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: On behalf of the
17 Commission, I want to thank Wyman and John Graves for this
18 spectacular effort. You've done a great honor to Texas
19 beauties - our rivers. And I also want to say that both
20 you and Mr. Graves are also Texas treasures and we're so
21 fortunate to have the two of you express this very
22 important subject matter. I don't think anyone in this
23 room doubts the importance of the water issue. We're
24 going to all have to work together. Government agencies,
25 our leaders, industry, Texas Parks and Wildlife, and
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1 citizens to be sure and express with a firm and coherent
2 voice the importance of these natural treasures and the
3 importance of plentiful and clean water to the state, to
4 its citizens, and to its wildlife. Thank you, Wyman.
5 PRESENTATION - NATIONAL FISHING INSTITUTE CONSERVATION
6 AWARD
7 MR. COOK: Madame Chairman, Commissioners.
8 There are five species of sea turtle that live in the Gulf
9 of Mexico. Four of these are on the threatened species
10 list and the other - the ridley - the Kemp's ridley is
11 actually considered the most endangered seat turtle in the
12 world. The Department has a long history of active
13 conservation efforts to recover this species. Those
14 efforts include support of the "head-starting" program in
15 the late 1980's which released over 15,000 Kemp's ridleys
16 off Padre Island to help create a secondary nesting site.
17 The Commission has also adopted conservation measures to
18 balance sea turtle protection with shrimp industry needs.
19 Lastly, we have provided direct funding in support of
20 turtle nest protection on both Padre Island and Ranch
21 Nuevo, Mexico, the primary Kemp's ridley nesting site in
22 the Gulf.
23 I'm happy to introduce to you today three
24 gentlemen who have also contributed significantly to sea
25 turtle conservation efforts: Mr. Dick Gutting with the
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1 National Fishing Institute in Washington, D.C., Mr. Les
2 Hodgsen with Marcos Seafood in Brownsville, and Mr. Pat
3 Burchfield with the Glady's Porter Zoo in Brownsville.
4 They are here to present the Department with an award for
5 some of our conservation efforts. I'll now ask these
6 gentlemen and Hal Osburn, the coastal Fisheries Division
7 Director, to join me at the podium.
8 MR. HODGSEN: Madame Chairman and
9 Commissioners, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and
10 friends. In 1983, the Kemp's ridley sea turtle hit the
11 lowest point, the fewest number of nesting females on
12 record and in that year the decision was made to do
13 everything possible to try and keep from losing this
14 magnificent species. There were times when some of the
15 laws came into direct conflict with the fishing industry.
16 As a representative of the seafood industry here in the
17 United States, we were more than concerned about what was
18 happening. We went to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife's
19 international coordinator for the project and asked him to
20 come to speak to our association which he did and he
21 explained to us that the problem with the Kemp's ridley
22 sea turtle was that there has been almost a one hundred
23 percent take of the eggs off the nesting beach in Mexico
24 and that efforts were being made worldwide to try and help
25 out that situation, but if we wanted to really recuperate
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1 the species, we had to do it where the problem existed.
2 And that was on the beaches in Mexico. So the National
3 Fisheries Institute, the Texas Shrimp Association, and the
4 Commande Duestre Pescada (phonetic) actually bought land,
5 constructed a camp at Tepe Quajes (phonetic). Then we
6 went to the National Marine Fisheries here in the United
7 States and got support for building other camps on the
8 Mexican coast and what we have realized is that with the
9 success that we have enjoyed with this project also goes a
10 lot more expense and we couldn't do it alone. We have had
11 to go out and look for other partners that would help with
12 the bi-national project. The last award that we presented
13 went to Honda America for helping us with the motor breaks
14 down on the beach and this year we're very honored to
15 present our award to Texas Parks and Wildlife. To tell
16 you exactly what your money has gone to, your significant
17 contributions, I'd like to ask the U.S. Coordinator for
18 the bi-national project, Dr. Patrick Burchfield to explain
19 a little bit about what your money's gone to and how the
20 project is coming along.
21 DR. BURCHFIELD: Thank you, Les, and thank
22 you for inviting us here today. It's really an honor to
23 be here and going back to 1978 when the bi-national
24 program began, Texas Parks and Wildlife was one of those
25 agencies instrumental in creating the bi-national effort
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1 to save the world's most endangered seat turtle. As
2 Mr. Hodgsen mentioned, by 1985 Kemp's ridley turtle had
3 reached a low point with only 702 nests for an entire
4 season as opposed to 40,000 plus turtles that crawled to
5 shore one day in 1947. But despite the early losses and
6 the fact that it seemed as though the turtle was in
7 absolute danger of becoming extinct, with time and
8 perseverance and more partners and more participation of
9 more agencies, we're on the road to recovery. This year
10 we protected 6,436 nests on the Mexican coast line and I
11 just got the data yesterday, we so far this year have
12 released 402,969 Kemp's ridley hatchlings back into the
13 Gulf of Mexico. And inasmuch as sea turtles know no
14 boundaries, they are a shared species. Texas and
15 Tamaluipas have been critical partners in the effort to
16 recover this species. We now have instead of the original
17 31 kilometers that we patrolled for three months, we have
18 a hundred miles of beach from La Pesca all the way into
19 Vera Cruz, six camps and for nine months out of the year,
20 we have more than 35 biologists plus volunteers working in
21 all of those camps. In large part, it's thanks to the
22 participation of the Texas Parks and Wildlife in the last
23 several years in particular that we've even been able to
24 make a beginning of the season in order to try and help
25 this species to recover.
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1 MR. GUTTING: Madame Chairman and members
2 of the Commission, I know you and certainly the audience
3 knows that this is a very strange moment in tome. Too
4 often when shrimp fishermen come here, people are fearful,
5 worried, angry. We know you have a very tough job. We
6 know you have to balance interests. But what we
7 unfortunately forget to do sometimes is to say thank you.
8 That's why I came from Washington, D.C., to say "thank
9 you." The destiny of our shrimp is linked to the future
10 of the turtles. And it took vision on your part to see
11 that the solution - part of the solution was on the
12 beaches in Mexico. Your support has made a real
13 difference, you have made a real difference. I travel
14 around the world and meet with many, many people, you
15 should take pride, you have done something here - reached
16 out beyond your borders, something extraordinary and you
17 have made a difference and we're very grateful and thank
18 you very much.
19 (Photographs were taken.)
20 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: You're right indeed -
21 it does feel a little strange three years ago when I first
22 came on the Commission this was - needless to say a very,
23 very contentious subject. We appreciate your kind words.
24 All too often I think - we don't recognize the success
25 stories when groups can come together and cooperate to the
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1 benefit of, in this case, the turtle, and the shrimping
2 industry participating. Thank you so much for being here
3 today. It's great. Thank you.
4 (Applause.)
5 AGENDA ITEM NO. 1: ACTION - APPROVAL OF AGENDA
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Gene McCarty, could I
7 have clarification as to the order that we will be
8 following?
9 MR. McCARTY: We should start with the
10 Action Item - Approval of the Agenda and then move Item 6
11 to the top of the agenda and then go back in order.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All right. I don't
13 think I have that in front of me if you could get it for
14 me, please. But first I'll go ahead and ask for approval
15 of the agenda.
16 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: So moved.
17 COMMISSIONER HENRY: So moved.
18 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
19 ("Aye.")
20 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
21 carries.
22 We will be moving Item 6 to -- is that correct?
23 Here we go. Sorry about that. We're going to be moving
24 Item 6 which is an action item, Regional Park Grants to
25 the next item on the agenda and then we'll go back to the
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1 normal order. Tim Hogsett, please.
2 AGENDA ITEM NO. 6: ACTION - REGIONAL PARK GRANT FUNDING
3 MR. HOGSETT: Good morning. Members of the
4 Commission, I'm Tim Hogsett, Director of Recreation Grants
5 Program in the State Parks Division. We're proposing
6 funding for Regional Park Grants this morning.
7 The program is designed to support
8 multijurisdictional projects of regional significance in
9 those serving Metropolitan areas. The kinds of projects
10 typically that we fund are intensive-use recreation or
11 regional conservation and recreation projects. The Vice
12 Chairman asked me yesterday in the briefing that we gave
13 to give you a little more information about the scoring
14 criteria for this program. We look first at compliance on
15 any existing grants and then additional priority is given
16 for acquisition that involves either intensive recreation,
17 linear greenways or conservation acquisitions.
18 We give additional priority when there are
19 partnerships involving the match between political
20 jurisdictions and where there are comprehensive plans in
21 place that show the need for the regional park. We give
22 additional priority for projects that involve multiple
23 jurisdictions in programming of the use of the site.
24 We give additional priority for match from the
25 private sector, where there is a partnership -- public and
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1 private partnership. Dedication of publicly-owned
2 nonparkland. We give additional priority for projects
3 that involve acquisition and/or development of water
4 access, water-based recreation or aquatic habitat
5 conservation.
6 We also give additional priority to projects
7 that involve the preservation of natural resources that do
8 not involve water. Linkages between political
9 jurisdictions, such as trails or waterways and, finally,
10 we give additional priority to projects that involve
11 conservation of natural resources such as green
12 construction-type projects.
13 We received five applications for the June 1st
14 deadline requesting $7.2 million. We have scored the
15 applications using the criteria that I just showed you
16 that the Commission has adopted and we're recommending
17 funding for one project in the amount of $2 million.
18 So the recommendation I bring forward to you is
19 funding for the projects listed in Exhibit A in the amount
20 of $2 million is approved as described for individual
21 projects in Exhibit B. I think you may have some
22 testimony, and I would also be happy to answer any
23 questions.
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: We have some
25 testimony. Do you -- does the Commission have any
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1 questions or comments of Mr. Hogsett? We'll hear the
2 testimony then. First is Greg Westmoreland. But before
3 Mr. Westmoreland comes over here -- you can come on up. I
4 want to recognize Representative Uher who is here today.
5 Thank you for coming. Would you stand up.
6 (Applause.)
7 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Would you like to make
8 a comment and we can put you on the list.
9 REPRESENTATIVE UHER: You can put me behind
10 the fine judge of Matagorda County.
11 MR. WESTMORELAND: Thank you,
12 Representative. Thank you, Madame Chairman. I'm Greg
13 Westmoreland. I'm the county judge of Matagorda County.
14 It's a pleasure to speak to you today. I will tell you
15 this project is very, very important to Matagorda County.
16 LCRA has done us a great favor by coming down and choosing
17 our county to put in this nature park. We know that this
18 grant is a very important part of that project. We're
19 here to enthusiastically support it and thank you and
20 thank the staff very much for their high scoring. I
21 congratulate them and thank them for recognizing a good
22 project when they see it. It's going to be a great
23 regional project, seriously. It's good for our county,
24 but it's good for the whole region. We unfortunately
25 suffer from flat growth in our county. We had less than 3
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1 percent growth in the last census from 1990. We do have
2 double-digit unemployment. So quite frankly, we could use
3 the business. We appreciate it very much and thanks for
4 letting me talk.
5 (Applause.)
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Representative Uher.
7 REPRESENTATIVE UHER: Madame Chairman, I'm
8 Tom Uher. I'm the speaker pro temporary of the Texas
9 House and then the Dean of the House, and I want to tell
10 you I've spent many a year where you are, behind committee
11 hearings, knowing the effort that you put in.
12 My first term of office there was an attempt to
13 split Parks and Wildlife back to two separate agencies. I
14 was one of those that believed that the Parks and Wildlife
15 mission was important to the future of this state. So
16 1969, we didn't change that. We've kept it in place and
17 over the years, your predecessors where you sit have done
18 a wonderful job of preserving the wildlife of this state
19 and providing recreation for many, many Texans.
20 When I first got elected there were about
21 9 million Texans in this great wonderful state of ours and
22 today we're on the 22 million. Lot of changes. As a
23 result of lot of changes today, we have a different
24 mission as we approach what our role might be through this
25 agency office and what we might do to compliment your
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1 efforts and your direction and your vision for the people
2 in this great state.
3 This project at the mouth of the Colorado is
4 going to be one of those exceptional projects that will
5 serve not just our immediate region, but it will also
6 serve the Metropolitan areas of Harris County, Fort Bend,
7 Brazoria, Montgomery Counties. About one-fourth of the
8 population will be within about an hour-and-a-half drive
9 to this new park site.
10 Interestingly, the Matagorda County has been the
11 number one birding center for the past four years.
12 There's an interest in birding that as a country boy I was
13 more interested in hunting and animal husbandry than
14 anything else, but I see today that we have a different
15 type of population with different interests. So the work
16 that you do and the recognition that you have for this
17 project is -- to me is very outstanding.
18 My first year or so I attempted to get the Parks
19 and Wildlife to buy some of this same land that is now
20 this LCRA 1,600-acre preserve. It will be a very positive
21 effort for our region. But it's going to do a lot for our
22 immediate area of Matagorda County. We're an interesting
23 county because we're primarily agricultural and oil and
24 gas, but we also have the nuclear plant there. We have
25 almost pristine beaches compared to other places in the
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1 state that's available for this. This project will bring
2 that part of our state, that nature to people of all walks
3 of life. So this project that has been recommended by
4 your very capable and able staff will compliment that and
5 supplement that in so many ways and certainly will give to
6 young school children the opportunity to come and have
7 almost a hands-on approach to that part of our wildlife,
8 this great center of nature. It will also be a place for
9 adults to come and study what we have.
10 And so I see that it's going to do a lot for our
11 region. It will create almost $8 million in economic
12 activity. It will create over 100-plus jobs. We think
13 that over the years once it's operational that we'll see
14 anywhere from 100,000 to 200,000 visitors each year. So
15 the prospects of this and so hopefully you will approve
16 this project and help the program move along and get it
17 into operation.
18 Again, I want to thank you for your service,
19 because you spend many long hours up here, and I know it
20 sometimes gets awfully tiring, some of the challenges that
21 you have. So thank you from the bottom of my heart for
22 the years of service that you've given here, Madame
23 Chairman, and also the leadership and direction that you
24 provide for the future in this state.
25 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
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1 (Applause.)
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Donna Brasher.
3 MS. BRASHER: Good morning, Madame Chair,
4 and members of the Commission. I wanted to let you now
5 how much LCRA appreciates the opportunity to work with you
6 once again on a large regional project. Just to let you
7 know, the $2 million should, you approve it today, will be
8 leveraged into a $15 million project. You know as well as
9 I do that the -- the business of providing parks and open
10 spaces for our public constituents in the State of Texas
11 is not business as usual. So it's going to take these
12 kinds of creative partnerships in order for us to provide
13 what we lack so desperately and what we're behind at
14 providing. So thank you very much for your consideration.
15 (Applause,)
16 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Angelo,
17 do you have a question or comment?
18 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: I would like to ask
19 Tim a question. It was discussed yesterday, there's
20 been -- some of the folks that have applied for this grant
21 have at least been a little concerned about some of the
22 criteria and whether or not the -- particularly the water
23 aspect of it is totally fair since a fair part of the
24 state is not blessed with water resources. Do you -- do
25 you feel that the guidelines need to be tweaked a little
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1 bit, or are you satisfied that they really give a fair
2 opportunity to everybody?
3 MR. HOGSETT: Well, we really don't have
4 enough mileage in this program for me to make a real
5 precise judgment on that. I will say that the scoring
6 system that you adopted was different from the scoring
7 system that we used in our two pilot reviews that we did,
8 two pilot awards in that as a result specifically of some
9 testimony that we heard out in Midland at our public
10 hearing, we added the criteria -- a ten-point criteria for
11 the conservation of natural resource sites that don't
12 involve water. So I hope that that will be sufficient.
13 It might be that we may need to consider raising the point
14 value there some -- somewhat.
15 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Well, there's no
16 question that this project today that you're recommending
17 is a superb example of what the whole program is about.
18 But I think since this a fairly new program for us, we
19 need to keep on top of the scoring system and make sure
20 that you all are satisfied that it's -- that it is fair
21 and that the comments you're receiving from people that
22 are making applications, if they have some ideas that need
23 to be incorporated that we -- we look carefully at doing
24 that.
25 MR. HOGSETT: Absolutely. We will.
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1 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Thank you.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Are there any comments
3 or questions from any of the other Commissioners? If
4 there are not, do I have a motion?
5 COMMISSIONER AVILA: So moved.
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Second?
7 COMMISSIONER WATSON: Second.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
9 ("Aye.")
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Motion carries.
11 MR. HOGSETT: Thank you.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you, Tim.
13 "Funding for projects listed in Exhibit A in the amount of
14 $2,000,000 is approved, as described for individual
15 projects in Exhibit B."
16 AGENDA ITEM NO. 2: BRIEFING - TEXAS WILDLIFE EXPO
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: The next item, Item
18 No. 2 is a briefing, Texas wildlife Expo. Ernie Gammage
19 will present.
20 (Whereupon a briefing was presented to the
21 Commission, the following proceedings were
22 heard:)
23 AGENDA ITEM NO. 3: BRIEFING - TPWD/USFWS RELATIONS
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: The next item on the
25 agenda is also a briefing item, Texas Parks and Wildlife
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1 Department and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Relations.
2 I want to welcome Dale Hall, our Regional Director for
3 Fish and Wildlife based in Albuquerque.
4 (Whereupon a briefing was presented to the
5 Commission, the following proceedings were
6 heard:)
7 AGENDA ITEM NO. 4: ACTION - LOCAL PARK GRANT FUNDING
8 OUTDOOR RECREATION GRANTS
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: The next item is an
10 action item, Local Park Funding Outdoor Recreation Grants,
11 Tim Hogsett.
12 MR. HOGSETT: Good morning, again. We're
13 presenting for your consideration today grants under the
14 Outdoor Recreation Grant portion of the Texas Recreation
15 and Parks Account.
16 We received 38 applications for our January 1st
17 deadline requesting approximately $15.7 million. All the
18 applications were reviewed, site visits performed and
19 scored according to the criteria that you've adopted for
20 the program. These are rank ordered and can be found in
21 Exhibit A of this item, and we're recommending funding for
22 the top 15 projects for $6.6 million in matching funds.
23 The highest scoring project is a record high score and the
24 lowest scoring project that we're recommending is also a
25 record bar if you are -- our recommendation that we bring
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1 before you is funding for the projects listed in Exhibit A
2 in the amount of $6,607,022 is approved as described for
3 individual projects in Exhibit B. And I'll be glad to
4 answer any questions that you have.
5 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Any questions before
6 we take public testimony? Thank you, Tim. We'll maybe
7 get back to you. Jonathan Schulz, I believe, would like
8 to speak on this item.
9 MR. SCHULZ: Yes, sir, Thank you.
10 Commissioners, we're grateful to be here today. I am the
11 mayor of the City of Karnes City. We are in contention
12 for the grant today for half a million dollars to build a
13 park in our city. We haven't had a park there since I was
14 a young man, and we have quite a few business people and
15 individuals who have donated their time and their property
16 to build a beautiful 23-acre park in the City of Karnes
17 City. One that I know the City of Karnes City and Texas
18 Parks and Wildlife will be proud to be a part of, and we
19 appreciate your consideration. Thank you.
20 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Thank you for being
21 here. Randy Truesdell.
22 MR. TRUESDELL: Good morning,
23 Commissioners. My name is Randy Truesdell. I'm the
24 Director of Parks and Recreation for the City of Lubbock.
25 I wanted to come down today and just express our
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1 appreciation for your consideration of this grant funding.
2 This funding will be used to develop McAlister Park which
3 is in southwest Lubbock. It's a 270-acre park.
4 We've developed many partnerships to bring this
5 park into existence. One of those is with U.S. Fish and
6 Wildlife in developing a habitat for burrowing owls. That
7 will be a place for many people to come out and enjoy the
8 activities of the burrowing owls. I would also like to
9 recognize and thank you Hogsett and Jeff Hauff and Elaine
10 Dill for their assistance. They've been very professional
11 and they've answered all our questions and very willing to
12 work with us in this process. I want to thank you again
13 and invite you to come to Lubbock and enjoy our open
14 spaces, our parks and we would certainly welcome a visit
15 from you. Thank you.
16 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Hollis Rutledge. I
17 should say my good friend Hollis Rutledge.
18 MR. RUTLEDGE: I wish to yield, if I may,
19 Mr. Angelo, to our mayor who will be speaking on behalf of
20 the City of Pharr, and I thank you all very much for
21 considering our application.
22 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Very good.
23 MR. PALACIOS: Good morning, Madame
24 Chairman, members of the Board, Executive Director and
25 Staff. My name is Leo Palacios, mayor of City of Pharr.
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1 I'm here for the City of Pharr. I would like at this time
2 to extend a -- my most sincerest appreciation for the
3 consideration you have given to our application for a
4 project that we have been trying to get approved for the
5 last few years. We appreciate it very much. We want to
6 thank you all for taking time to consider this
7 application. This grant will help the City of Pharr,
8 change the quality of life of, many, many people in our
9 area. And again, we want to extend our appreciation for
10 allowing to us to participate in this grant and hopefully
11 that you will grant us this application, this grant, and
12 you will help us to make this project a reality. If not
13 so, we'll probably have to put it back on the back burner
14 for another couple of years. So thank you again on behalf
15 of the City of Pharr and God bless you.
16 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Thank you.
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Tony McGee and Hector
18 Palacios.
19 MR. McGEE: Chairman Armstrong and members
20 of the Commission, I'm the mayor of Wimberley. With me
21 here today is our former major, Linda Hewlett, a member of
22 our City Council, Martha Niece, and chairman of our parks
23 and recreation board, Chris Kusak (phonetic), all of whom
24 have put in a tremendous amount of work on the application
25 that you're considering on behalf of Wimberley this
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1 morning. I hasten to add that Linda is our former mayor,
2 because she chose not to seek re-election to the office,
3 not because the voters swept her out and swept me in.
4 Wimberley wishes to express its appreciation to
5 the staff of the Parks and Wildlife Commission that helped
6 us with this, and particularly Elaine Dill. Wimberley is
7 a newly incorporated city and this for us was an initial
8 endeavor and so we -- we appreciated it very much the help
9 that we got. We scored very high on -- from our
10 application, and I believe that our high score, while
11 there was a great deal of effort put into it, I believe
12 the reason we scored so high was because of the uniqueness
13 of this parkland that will be possible with your grant.
14 It's located in the geographic and population center of
15 Wimberley. It is a virgin stand of cypress trees along a
16 natural creek that flows from Jacob's Well, which is a
17 spring -- spring-fed creek. It will provide access to the
18 beauty and naturalness of the Hill Country to the tourists
19 that come to our area from not only the whole State of
20 Texas, but from all over the United States and, for that
21 matter, the world.
22 It -- it has a more -- I believe a more
23 significant reason for being considered for a grant.
24 Those of us that live in the Hill Country always
25 appreciate its beauty, but we sometimes don't realize that
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1 most of the people that see that beauty, they see it from
2 a car kind of driving through. They see it from a
3 distance. Unless they're fortunate to be invited by a
4 private landowner, they don't get to see it up close.
5 This is a pristine area of the Hill Country that
6 has not ever been developed, and it will be made available
7 on a close inspection basis to all of the public. We
8 placed the nature -- a conservation easement on it which
9 will ensure that it will always remain in its natural
10 state for the benefit of -- of generations to come. And
11 so we would -- we would very earnestly request that --
12 that this grant be -- be approved and that we pledge
13 ourselves to very wisely and -- and diligently to spend
14 this grant in accordance with your guidelines. Thank you.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Hector
16 Palacios.
17 MR. PALACIOS: Madame Chair, Commissioners,
18 good morning. If you see any resemblance between Mayor
19 Palacios and myself, he is my brother.
20 MR. LEO PALACIOS: I'm the old one.
21 MR. HECTOR PALACIOS: Yes, you are. I'm
22 here on behalf of Hidalgo County. We have submitted an
23 application and this is the second time we've gone through
24 the process. I certainly appreciate any consideration and
25 ask for your approval. This particular facility will sit
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1 in an area that has about 40, 45 colonias within a
2 two-mile area and it's north of the City of San Juan which
3 has a population of -- of about 25, 30,000 people. Some
4 of you are familiar with Hidalgo County. It's right on
5 the border, and consequently, we have the distinction or
6 misfortune having most of the colonias in South Texas in
7 our area. This area has been grossly unserviced in the
8 past, not necessarily from your department, but I'm
9 talking local folks and we're gone a long ways, come a
10 long ways. And I think this will continue to allow to
11 improve the quality of life for a lot of people in the
12 area. And I certainly ask for your blessings and your
13 approval of this application. Thank you.
14 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
15 MR. HECTOR PALACIOS: Are there any
16 questions?
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Are there any
18 questions from the Commission or comments? Mr. Ramos?
19 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: The only comment that
20 I have is I admire you for coming back. This should be an
21 example, that just because you don't get your application
22 granted the first time, if you're persistent and you work
23 with staff, you have a good shot at it. And again, I
24 thank staff not only with your project, but others and
25 this should be an example of persistence and additionally
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1 for taking the initiative to identify areas like what you
2 have. I'm from Laredo and I'm very sensitive to and very
3 much aware of the colonia issues, so I admire you all for
4 doing that.
5 MR. HECTOR PALACIOS: Thank you,
6 Commissioner. By the way, the staff has been great. They
7 have been very helpful. So thank you again.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Are there any further
9 comments or questions from the Commission?
10 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Excuse me.
11 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Excuse me.
12 Commissioner Fitzsimons has a comment or question.
13 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: I wanted to also,
14 after Commissioner Ramos' comments, I think more than any
15 other item I get calls on are local park grants maybe
16 that's because I'm from South Texas in a rural part of the
17 state. And like Commissioner Ramos I have a lot of
18 friends in that part of the world. And I tell them all
19 the same thing. You do a great job, Tim, and I just tell
20 them follow the guidelines of the scoring and keep on
21 keeping on. And I know it's tough, but for those of you
22 that -- that may not have it approved this time, stay with
23 it and there's just nothing more to it than following
24 those guidelines. And thank you, Tim, for doing that good
25 job.
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1 MR. HOGSETT: Thank you.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Any further comments
3 or questions? If not, do I have a motion?
4 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Move.
5 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Angelo
6 has moved approval. Do I have a second?
7 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Second.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Second from
9 Commissioner Ramos. All in favor.
10 ("Aye.")
11 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
12 carries.
13 "Funding for projects listed in Exhibit A in the amount of
14 $6,607,022 is approved, as described for individual
15 projects in Exhibit B."
16 AGENDA ITEM NO. 5: ACTION - SMALL COMMUNITY GRANT FUNDING
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: The next item, Action
18 Item No. 5, Small Community Grants. Mr. Hogsett again.
19 MR. HOGSETT: The Small Community Grant
20 Program is a new program, as you know. We did a pilot
21 test of it and received about 60 applications in just a
22 matter of a month or so. You've made this program
23 permanent recently. And once again, it was very
24 successful in -- in terms of the numbers of applications.
25 The program is designed for government -- local
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1 governments of 20,000 population or less. It is a
2 50 percent matching grant program, grant ceiling of no
3 more than $50,000. And we hope that we've developed
4 what's a simple application process. It doesn't take a
5 lot of time and necessarily professional skill to put
6 together. We received 62 applications for our April 30th
7 deadline requesting $2.7 million in matching funds. We
8 have rank ordered and scored -- we've scored and rank
9 ordered all of the applications received and are
10 recommending approval for the first 22 of those 62
11 applications.
12 The staff recommendation therefore is that
13 funding for projects listed in Exhibit A in the amount of
14 $980,293 is approved as described for individual projects
15 in Exhibit B. I'll glad to answer any questions, if
16 you...
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have any
18 questions of comments of Mr. Hogsett? We do have some
19 people signed up. Curtis Schrader and Wanda Herd.
20 MR. SCHRADER: Good morning, Madame
21 Chairman and Commissioners. I'm Curtis Schrader, the city
22 administrator for the City of Marfa, which is in West
23 Texas. And the gentleman that -- that presented the Texas
24 River said that the Pecos was in the outback. Well, Marfa
25 is west of the outback, west of the Pecos.
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1 I'm sorry that the staff did not recommend
2 approval for our project. The Marfa swimming pool is the
3 only public swimming pool within Presidio County and so
4 many of our -- of our kids will not be able to partake of
5 that -- what some would consider a simple pleasure.
6 A couple of years ago, the Texas Department of
7 Health came up with some new guidelines for public pools,
8 and that's the reason for our request is to meet those new
9 guidelines that the Department of Health has. I would
10 like to also comment on the -- the program itself. The
11 Small Community Grant Program is a new project, and I
12 would ask you to continue to increase the funding level
13 for this program. There were more than -- or almost
14 double the number of applications for this program than
15 any of the other programs and for -- percentage-wise, a
16 small additional amount of money, an additional
17 $2 million, all 64 of these applications would get some
18 money. Small communities are the heart and soul of Texas.
19 There are more small communities of less than 10,000 in
20 Texas than there are any other size community.
21 Fifty thousand dollars or $40,000 or $20,000 in
22 a -- in a community like Marfa with a population of 2,121
23 according to the census has a great, great impact, much
24 more so than that same 40 or $50,000 in a community of
25 even 10 or 20,000. We have a very limited tax base. We
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1 have high unemployment and projects like this are really,
2 really important to us. And, again, I'm sorry that
3 there's not enough money to go around, but I would urge
4 you to apply more money to this program and continue
5 funding it. Thank you.
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Wanda Herd followed by
7 Dock Jackson.
8 MS. HERD: Madame Chairman and Commission,
9 good morning, and staff. I'm Wanda Herd, mayor of the
10 City of Wheeler, and I want to thank you for recommending
11 us for a small communities grant program. We have a city
12 park that is still the center of our town, which is not
13 heard of in a lot of places. We still gather every week
14 for community ice cream suppers and family reunions and
15 picnics. And what I have learned in the last few years
16 with grandmother of triplets, it is a very good place to
17 take your little young grandchildren so that they can
18 play. We just want to say thank you for recommending us
19 and for the wonderful job you all do. Thank you.
20 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Dock Jackson and
21 Sheila Childs.
22 MR. JACKSON: Good morning, Madam
23 Commissioner -- Madame Chairman, I mean, and Commissioners
24 and staff. I am Dock Jackson. I'm the Director of Parks
25 and Recreation for the City of Elgin. I have with me
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1 today, I'm honored, in fact, to bring with me the mayor of
2 the City of Elgin, Mayor Eric Carlson and the mayor pro
3 tem Gladys Ward with us. And we are just thrilled at your
4 recommendation or the staff's recommendation for the small
5 parks and communities grant. We think it's a wonderful
6 program and we hope that you will continue to fund the
7 program.
8 The project that we brought forward is the
9 Thomas Memorial Park, which is a park that we have long
10 wanted to -- it's been a dream for many years to try to
11 renovate and do some work with. This funding, if it's
12 granted will allow us to bring that dream to its fruition.
13 Elgin has been known far and wide as the sausage capital
14 of Texas and now we want it to be known for its parks and
15 recreation. Thanks to your foresight and hopefully your
16 approval today, there's a new saying going around in Elgin
17 and that is that the parks and recreation, the benefits
18 are endless. We would just like to thank you for your
19 foresight and hopefully your continued support of the
20 small communities, because they are the life blood off our
21 state and without this funding we would not be able to do
22 some of the projects that we would like to do. And
23 hopefully, we will be able to move up to some of the
24 larger projects later on. We have a new department and we
25 are moving in the direction. And with your guidance and
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1 the guidance of the staff, we would really appreciate your
2 support. And we thank you again.
3 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you and welcome,
4 his honor.
5 Do we have any questions from the Commission or
6 any comments? No comments, no questions. Do I have a
7 motion?
8 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: You do.
9 COMMISSIONER WATSON: Second.
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
11 ("Aye.")
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
13 carries.
14 "Funding for projects listed in Exhibit A in the amount of
15 $980,293 is approved, as described for individual projects
16 in Exhibit B."
17 AGENDA ITEM NO. 7: ACTION - NATIONAL RECREATIONAL TRAIL
18 GRANTS FUND AWARDS
19 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Next item is Item No.
20 7, Recreational Trails Grants, Tim Hogsett.
21 MR. HOGSETT: This is a pass-through
22 federal aid program. The Department receives funds
23 through gasoline tax on offroad vehicles. We received 83
24 applications, which is a record number of applications,
25 for this program, requesting approximately $6.6 million.
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1 Our State Trails Advisory Board has reviewed these
2 projects and together with staff are recommending funding
3 for 32 of the projects. And the recommendation we would
4 bring forward to you today is funding for 32 projects
5 listed in Exhibit A in the amount of $2,072,937 is
6 approved. I would be glad to answer any questions.
7 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Any questions for
8 from the Commission? I'm not sure if we have anybody
9 registered. Yes. Jeanne Patterson.
10 MS. PATTERSON: Good morning. It's so nice
11 to come to a podium and say thank you to people for a
12 change instead of having a complaint. I'm with the Texas
13 Bicycle Coalition and one of the recommended grants this
14 year is for a Texas Trail Care Crew. We are so excited
15 about this project, because for 24 months we will be
16 traveling around the state teaching sustainable trail --
17 natural trail construction, design and maintenance to
18 trial users. We will be meeting with equestrians, hikers,
19 even motorcycle people. So we are really thrilled about
20 this and really looking forward to the opportunity to work
21 with the Texas Parks and Wildlife as well as community
22 parks, county parks in this great state. But that's all I
23 have to say. Thank you very much.
24 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Appreciate you being
25 here. Thank you. There's no other public comment. Do we
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1 have any questions or comments from the Commission? If
2 not, do we have a motion?
3 COMMISSIONER WATSON: So moved.
4 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Second.
5 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: It's been moved and
6 seconded. All in favor say aye.
7 ("Aye.")
8 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Motion carries.
9 Thank you, Mr. Hogsett.
10 "Funding for 32 projects recommended in Exhibit A in the
11 amount of $2,072,937 is approved."
12 AGENDA ITEM NO. 8: ACTION - TARGET RANGE PROGRAM
13 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: We have one more for
14 you, Item No. 8, Target Range Granted.
15 MR. HOGSETT: These are recommendations for
16 funding from the National Recreation Hunter Education and
17 Target Range Program. These are again pass-through
18 federal funds that are administered by the Department
19 passed through from the Wildlife Restoration Act. Those
20 are 75 percent matching grants. We are recommending
21 funding for two projects, for the total of $120,000. Two
22 projects at $60,000 each. And I would be glad to answer
23 any questions that you have.
24 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: We do not have any
25 members of the public registered to speak on this item.
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1 Are there any questions or comments from the Commission or
2 do we have a motion?
3 COMMISSIONER MONTGOMERY: Motion.
4 COMMISSIONER RISING: Second.
5 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Motion by
6 Commissioner Montgomery, second by Commissioner Rising.
7 Do we have any discussion? All in favor say aye.
8 ("Aye.")
9 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: All opposed? Motion
10 carries. Thank you Mr. Hogsett.
11 "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission authorizes the
12 Executive Director to execute contracts funding the
13 projects at Exhibit B and C pending availability of
14 federal funds."
15 AGENDA ITEM NO. 9: ACTION - FY2003 OPERATING AND CAPITAL
16 BUDGET AND TEXAS PARKS AND WILDLIFE INVESTMENT POLICY,
17 BUDGET POLICY
18 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Another action item
19 Fiscal '03 Operating and Capital Budget and Parks and
20 Wildlife Investment Policy and Budget Policy. It will be
21 presented by Suzy Whittenton.
22 MS. WHITTENTON: Thank you. We'll quickly
23 run through the recommended operating budget. The
24 operating budget consists of salaries, fringe benefits,
25 other operating expenses and the minor repair program and
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1 state parks. Staff is recommending a $203.2 million
2 operating budget as well as $53.9 million capital budget.
3 Capital budget consists of vehicles, equipment, computers
4 and construction and repair. Construction, of course, is
5 the large item there due to the Proposition 8 bonds
6 available.
7 Grant budget is recommended at $29.5 million,
8 most of which is in the local parks.
9 Total operating budget -- total operating
10 capital and grant budget along with debt service for
11 revenue bonds is recommended at $292.2 million. The
12 budget also includes full-time equivalent employees of
13 3,148 which is about 3.7 percent higher than our
14 Legislatively mandated cap. The budget also includes an
15 allocation of overhead costs between funding sources as
16 outlined in the document and methodology.
17 Super Combo revenues are allocated to the stamp
18 funds at the same level as in the previous year. We're in
19 the second year of our data collection through surveys and
20 plan to lay out any necessary changes to the allocation
21 next August.
22 The budget policy this time includes a change
23 that will allow us to incur construction expenditures
24 related to Proposition 8 bonds prior to the issuance of
25 those bonds.
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1 And the investment policy which is statutorily
2 required must be reviewed by the governing body each year.
3 There are no changes recommended this year to that policy.
4 We are in the process of submitting our
5 Legislative appropriations request for the next biennium,
6 fiscal years '04 and '05. We are asking for additional
7 funding from the Legislature for that biennium. The
8 request includes $7.4 million per year for the 2002
9 unfunded pay raise as well as $4 million per year and 43
10 FTEs for state park operations. We're also asking for
11 general revenue funding for an additional game warden
12 cadet class and an exemption from the capital budget
13 limitations for land acquisitions where there's no cost to
14 the state. We're including a request for $350,000 per
15 year to replace the amounts cut last session for capital
16 budget -- capital project-related salaries and authority
17 to be reimbursed for law enforcement costs related to boat
18 sales and used tax collections derived from dealer fraud
19 investigations.
20 And finally, we're asking for clarification,
21 clean-up of technicalities on the floating cabins
22 accounts. And that concludes my presentation. I'll be
23 happy to take any questions.
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have any
25 questions or comments from the Commission? We have -- we
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1 have one person signed up to speak, Kirby Brown. Is that
2 correct?
3 MR. BROWN: I have nothing to say. Thank
4 you.
5 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Are there
6 any comments or questions from the Commission? If not...
7 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Move approval,
8 Madame Chairman.
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do I have a second?
10 COMMISSIONER WATSON: Second.
11 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Second from
12 Commissioner Watson. All in favor?
13 ("Aye.")
14 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
15 carries.
16 "The Executive Director is authorized to expend funds to
17 operate the Parks and Wildlife Department in accordance
18 with the Proposed FY2003 Operating Budget (Exhibit A), the
19 Proposed FY2003 Capital Program (Exhibit B), and the
20 Proposed FY2003 Grant Budget (Exhibit C)."
21 AGENDA ITEM NO. 10: ACTION - LICENSE LEGIBILITY RULES
22 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Action Item No. 10,
23 License Legibility Rules. Suzy.
24 MS. WHITTENTON: Thank you. Madame
25 Chairman, Commissioners. I think we had -- before we get
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1 into that some copies of the new license that we were
2 wanting to let you take a look at if you haven't seen it.
3 This is -- what the new license looks like. If you buy a
4 license off of the P.C. version of the WorldCom
5 application. If you buy it through the hypercom
6 terminals, it looks a little different, it doesn't have
7 the little pictures on it, but I wanted you to see what it
8 looks like.
9 And also, yesterday I reported that sales were
10 down about 21 percent from last year because of the
11 promotion, and as of today we're only down 19 percent, so
12 the gap is closing. We had a big day yesterday. We sold
13 over 33,000 licenses and we're expecting over 50,000
14 today, so we're getting ready for a big weekend.
15 Section 30 of the Sunset Bill, Senate Bill 305
16 requires Parks and Wildlife rules to specify standards for
17 licenses including the legibility. Proposals were laid
18 out at the May Commission meeting. The proposed changes
19 to Chapter 53 Subchapter K include that licenses must be
20 printed on durable paper, be waterproof, tear resistant
21 and that the print must be indelible. The print must be a
22 reasonable size given constraints of the overall size of
23 the license and in no case less than six-point font. The
24 print must be a color that contrasts with the background.
25 These provisions do not apply to licenses sold over the
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1 Internet and printed directly by customers.
2 Also, the Executive Director may waive
3 provisions in case of unforeseeable events or emergencies.
4 These rules were posted on the Texas Register on July the
5 12th and no comments have been received to date.
6 I recommend -- staff recommends the Commission
7 adopt 31 TAC 53.100 concerning license format and
8 legibility with changes to text as published in the
9 July 12th issue of the Texas Register.
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have any
11 comments or requests for Suzy? We have no one signed up
12 to comment no. Do I have a motion?
13 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Motion for approval.
14 COMMISSIONER RISING: Second.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
16 ("Aye.")
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
18 carries.
19 "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts new 31 TAC
20 53.100 concerning License Format and Legibility, with
21 changes to text as published in the July 12, 2002 issue of
22 the Texas Register (27 TexReg 6236)."
23 AGENDA ITEM NO. 11: ACTION - ALTERNATIVE LICENSE RULES
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: No. 11, Alternative
25 Licensing Rules, Jerry Cooke.
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1 DR. COOKE: Madame Chairman, members, my
2 name is Jerry Cooke. I'm Game Branch Chief for the
3 Wildlife Division presenting these proposed changes to the
4 statewide hunting and fishing proclamation related to
5 alternative license. A substantial fraction of the total
6 operating funds of this agency come from licensed sales.
7 While our automated point of sales system provides good
8 utility for selling licenses, monitoring revenues and
9 providing realtime access to licensed buyer information,
10 like all automated systems it is subject to catastrophic
11 failure. During the five years that we have issued
12 licenses through a POS system, we have not needed an
13 alternative to the automated system. However, there was
14 no provision in our rules should that need have arisen.
15 The proposal in essence will -- will be an optional rule
16 in the sense that it will be determined by the type of
17 license held by a hunter. A hunter who holds a license
18 from a point of sale system has no rule change at all
19 proposed in this -- in this proposal.
20 However, if one is holding the alternative paper
21 license, this rule change would remove the requirement for
22 tagging. It would broaden the use of the resource
23 documents so that it could be used in lieu of a tag and it
24 would expand the license log to include all species that
25 were tagged through the POS license.
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1 The recommended motion to the Commission is the
2 Texas Parks and Wildlife Department adopts 31 TAC 65.7 and
3 65.8 concerning alternative licenses and harvest log,
4 respectively, with changes to the proposed text located in
5 Exhibit A as published in the July 19, 2002, issue of the
6 Texas Register. If you have any questions, I would be
7 happy to try to answer them for you.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Are there any
9 questions of Dr. Cooke? Do I have a motion.
10 COMMISSIONER WATSON: So moved.
11 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Second.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
13 ("Aye.")
14 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
15 carries. Thank you, Jerry.
16 DR. COOKE: Thank you, ma'am.
17 "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts 31 TAC
18 Sections 65.7 and 65.8, concerning alternative licensing
19 and harvest log, respective, with changes to the proposed
20 texas (located at Exhibit A) as published in the July 19,
21 2002, issue of the Texas Register (27 TexReg 6490)."
22 AGENDA ITEM NO. 12: ACTION - SCIENTIFIC BREEDER
23 REGULATIONS DISEASE TESTING AND MONITORING MEASURES
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: No. 12, Scientific
25 Breeder Regulations Disease Testing and Monitoring
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1 Measures. Jerry Cooke, again.
2 DR. COOKE: Madame Chairman and members, my
3 name is Jerry Cooke, Game Branch Chief for the Wildlife
4 Division presenting you these proposed changes to the
5 Scientific Breeder Proclamation. Chronic waste and
6 disease has developed into a national issue of public
7 concern. The proposal before you was initially presented
8 during your January 2002 meeting. Action on this item was
9 postponed both at the April and the May Commission
10 meetings and was republished to allow the Texas Deer
11 Association more time to develop a voluntary program
12 adequate to address the state's concern for monitoring of
13 this disease. The goal for -- for a voluntary monitoring
14 program to detect a 2 percent prevalence of the disease in
15 Texas was 126 facilities. Since the last meeting, this
16 Department has -- our department have finalized our plans.
17 We're on the verge of completing our management plan for
18 the disease. But this plan includes testing all clinical
19 animals that are encountered in the wild. To date, we've
20 tested 11. All of them have been negative. We also plan
21 to test deer taken from our State Park and Wildlife
22 Management Area public hunts this fall which will number
23 between 500 and 1,000 animals.
24 As of yesterday morning at 8:10, and I haven't
25 bothered the lady since then, there was 170 applications
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1 from scientific breeders to establish this voluntary
2 program. And certainly the Texas Wildlife Association and
3 Texas Deer Association, all of those who worked toward
4 this are to be complimented on this action. Because of
5 this, the proposal to define in a healthy condition within
6 a context of an obligatory testing and monitoring program
7 is not needed and we recommend that it not be adopted at
8 this time, nor the provisions that would establish certain
9 prohibitions for breeders who do not comply with there
10 definition. However -- and as long as the monitoring is
11 adequate in this state, we all believe that it should be a
12 voluntary program and -- and we all should work toward
13 continuing that in that context.
14 There are other provisions that are also
15 proposed in this same proclamation, but I do believe that
16 you should seriously consider adopting. One is the
17 November 1 farm report which was adopted by a previous
18 Commission, but for whatever reason we never got it
19 published with the Secretary of State. Therefore, it's
20 never really become a rule. And because -- I don't think
21 anybody sitting on this Commission actually voted on that
22 item, we thought we would bring it back to you for
23 consideration, rather than handle it as a housekeeping
24 measure. Also, we wish to clarify in the rules, that when
25 you temporary transfer an animal, the animal cannot leave
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1 the state. That's not temporary as far as our
2 jurisdiction is concerned. Also to clarify that deer
3 released into the wild from a scientific breeder facility
4 would require written approval from the Department and
5 that approval can come in many forms. We didn't really
6 plan to complicate this measure very much.
7 Also, as we discussed yesterday, you adopted a
8 suspension on importation into Texas. We believe that at
9 this time that it's -- we should consider removing that
10 prohibition because the Texan Animal Health Commission has
11 completed and adopted their rules for entry requirements
12 into Texas, which has been heavily reviewed, heavily
13 complimented. I think it's one of the best in the state
14 and probably serve as the model for other states. Those
15 entry requirements are basically if an animal -- if a
16 facility that's going to be importing animals to Texas is
17 in a state where chronic waste and disease has never been
18 found and that state has a monitoring program and the
19 monitoring program is defined in their rule, then a
20 facility would have to be under that monitoring program
21 for at least three years before we would consider allowing
22 the deer to come into Texas.
23 If the state has no monitoring program, it has
24 no state-sponsored monitoring program, a facility may
25 bring their records had to the Animal Health Commission
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1 for certification to show that they have, in fact, placed
2 on themselves a monitoring program that matches the
3 description in the rules, but they would have to have been
4 under that program for at least five years in order to
5 comply with their entry requirements.
6 And, finally, any state in which chronic wasting
7 and disease has ever been found would have to be part of a
8 state monitored program and have been monitoring for five
9 years successfully before they would be allowed to be
10 brought into the state.
11 So the staff's recommended motion is the Texas
12 Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts TAC 65.602, 65.608,
13 65.610, and 65.611 concerning Scientific Breeder Permits
14 with changes to the proposed text located in Exhibit A as
15 published in the July 19, 2002, issue of the Texas
16 Register. If you have any questions, I would be happy to
17 try to answer them for you.
18 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Does the Commission
19 have any questions or comments? I would like to mention
20 that Ken Waldrop from the Texas Animal Health Commission
21 is here and very generously has offered to answer any
22 questions that we might have. But do you have any
23 questions now of -- of Jerry Cooke? Commissioner Ramos?
24 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I have a few. Jerry,
25 you mentioned the release of animals from a scientific
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1 breeder facility into the wild?
2 DR. COOKE: Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
3 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Can you be more
4 specific as to what exactly would happen if a breeder
5 wanted to release an animal?
6 DR. COOKE: Basically, this is done in the
7 context of our disease concerns in this state. Basically,
8 parts of this provision has been in the rules forever that
9 has actually not been exercised by us. The option of
10 making inspections beforehand. What we are proposing is
11 basically this: If there is an animal in a facility that
12 is overtly showing signs of disease, animals should not be
13 released from that facility until that disease condition
14 is clarified. Basically, we have no personal concerns if
15 the breeder chooses to use a licensed veterinarian to sign
16 a certificate of inspection certifying that no overt
17 disease is in this facility at the time release is being
18 considered.
19 Alternatively, one of our biologists or one of
20 our Game Wardens could look and say, "There's no animals
21 obviously ill here," sign the back of his own business
22 card with the date and time and say it's been inspected
23 for release and hand it to them for their records. In
24 other words, we're not talking about a huge new series of
25 permits and purchasing of permits or keeping big data
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1 logs. We just want either a veterinarian or one of our
2 people to look at the facility and certify that there's no
3 animals that are overtly ill at the time of release.
4 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: So that at the point
5 that the animal were to be released into the wild you
6 would have a level of comfort as to the health of that
7 animal basically?
8 DR. COOKE: The health of the animal and
9 the fact that there's obviously not something else in that
10 facility that could have infected him at the time.
11 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Yeah. We had
12 substantial discussion yesterday, Jerry, regarding, you
13 know, the interstate regulations and the monitoring with
14 the Texan Animal Health Commission. A concern that I have
15 is in addition to that, and I think you've touched on it,
16 you're currently acquiring data that eventually will give
17 you a basis or a level of confidence that, in fact, we
18 don't have health issues with chronic waste disease within
19 the State of Texas?
20 DR. COOKE: Yes.
21 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Correct?
22 DR. COOKE: That's correct.
23 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: And I think -- what is
24 your target number of carcasses, as you might say, or
25 animals that you want to test would give you some comfort?
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1 DR. COOKE: We have several levels of
2 comfort. Obviously, we have 14 counties that are -- that
3 are -- have been identified as counties of high risk,
4 because lots of animals have been imported and released
5 into those counties and there's lots of deer that were
6 already there. Those identify those. And we have
7 sampling requirements for each of those counties that will
8 cover over the next several years, next two to four years
9 to get that covered. There are breeder facilities in all
10 but three of those counties. So we're going to have some
11 secondary monitoring from that facility. It's like a
12 canary in the mine sort of a thing.
13 Also, we're concerned specifically with region
14 by region and I'm talking ecoregion here, which --
15 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Within the state?
16 DR. COOKE: Within the state. Basically we
17 have eight regulatory districts. We've kind of aimed our
18 sampling at those eight regulatory districts. We're
19 looking at between 125 and 200 deer per ecoregion
20 distributed through the region as an adequate sample to
21 cover that.
22 And additionally, we'll be taking animals from
23 our Wildlife Management Area and State Park Public Hunts
24 which will augment this to be a certain extent. But we
25 actually are using those as much to satisfy or to show the
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1 breeders that we're also trying to examine our own
2 properties. That's the A part. But the B part is it
3 gives our guys an opportunity to put their hands on a lot
4 of animals in a short period of time and train our guys do
5 this right. Nothing would be worse than to have submitted
6 300 samples to the TVDML and find that they were all done
7 wrong. So we want to be sure our guys are up to speed.
8 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Is there a magical
9 percentage or an ideal percentage that you would like to
10 achieve before you would have the -- the satisfaction or
11 the comfort that, in fact, we're safe within the state,
12 and there's no obvious evidence of chronic waste disease?
13 DR. COOKE: That -- that sample size is our
14 goal. That will -- that -- according to Dan Baca who is
15 an epidemiologist and STAT person for the Animal Health
16 Commission has calculated that sample size aimed at being
17 able to detect a 2 percent prevalence of the disease in
18 Texas, which is a little tighter even than you normally
19 encounter. Most of the time across the United States when
20 they've encountered a disease, it's been about 5 percent
21 incidence. So this gives us a little bit tighter than
22 tight. And I can't say that when we get half of that
23 done, we'll be good. You know, that's our sample size.
24 And we will, as I said, be testing, clinical animal right
25 along.
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1 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: And from a time-wise,
2 in order for you to achieve the 2 percent level that
3 you're comfortable with, would you be able to give us any
4 idea as to how long, based on your current projections,
5 how long it will take to reach that level?
6 DR. COOKE: We will aim at two years.
7 Realistically it may be three, because as I said, we've
8 got this first year we're going to have to spin up and see
9 where -- you know, how much effort -- we're trying to
10 solve as many problems as we can. But there's two that we
11 don't want to tackle the first year. One is animals that
12 are in a locker plant or private property, just like a
13 cow. You can't just go in there and take a sample off a
14 cow without permission of the owner. And also private
15 property issues related to our confidentiality statutes.
16 Those are two complications that I think we don't need to
17 attack the first year, but we will certainly have them
18 solved by the second year. And if that's necessary --
19 those are necessary to complete our sample size, then we
20 on could do it in two years.
21 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: It seems to me and
22 this is just my opinion, that in order to expedite the
23 gathering of the data that perhaps we ought to look at
24 other options or other procedures to where we can get to
25 the 2 percent and give us that level of comfort at a much
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1 quicker time, perhaps than the time table that --
2 DR. COOKE: I concur. I concur.
3 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Could you work on
4 something along that?
5 DR. COOKE: Absolutely. Absolutely.
6 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: Madame Chair.
7 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Fitzsimon
8 s?
9 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: Jerry, thanks
10 for all your hard work on this. I know this has taken up
11 the better part the year it seems like. Two questions,
12 first, yesterday, we mentioned the Texas Veterinary
13 Diagnostic Lab at College Station.
14 DR. COOKE: Yes, sir.
15 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: Do you have any
16 idea the capacity is for the number of carcasses they can
17 test?
18 DR. COOKE: We had an opportunity to talk
19 to the director of TVDML, they met with us and the Animal
20 Health Commission. He was -- of course, this was the
21 first year they've ever had it and he's making estimates
22 based on not really being overloaded yet. He estimated in
23 the neighborhood of 100 to 125 per day once the samples
24 were preserved and formalized and ready to go through the
25 process.
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1 When the samples were adequately preserved and
2 formalized, that's with formalin, not as in formal
3 presentation, once those samples were formalized, it would
4 take about 48 hours to do the cycle for the final
5 examination. So, you know, it depends on how high it gets
6 stacked.
7 This is also a USDA sponsored sampling site,
8 therefore USDA samples get first call if they're sent from
9 elsewhere in the United States. He said comfortable he
10 thought he could get from a raw sample into the lab
11 probably get it out in two weeks.
12 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: A two-week
13 response time?
14 DR. COOKE: Uh-huh. Even under pressure.
15 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: And the cost?
16 And the cost.
17 DR. COOKE: The cost -- all the costs that
18 we calculated was in terms of both TB and chronic wasting
19 and disease. And that -- that combination came to $55, as
20 I recall, for a single sample. I think the CWD test is
21 $25 if I'm not mistaken. I can get you the accurate
22 figures. I'm sorry I'm having to estimate here. That was
23 one of the notes I did not bring.
24 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: And in reviewing
25 the minutes from our last meeting, I noticed that we
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1 discussed not only the number of breeders that the TDA and
2 the TWA would help to get signed, but also the population
3 of animals.
4 DR. COOKE: Uh-huh.
5 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: I represented
6 that and at one time we talked about that minimum of 127
7 was it representing roughly 5,000 animals?
8 DR. COOKE: Uh-huh.
9 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: Could you tell me
10 where we are today?
11 DR. COOKE: The total animals held in
12 breeder facilities is between 19 and 20,000 animals.
13 Those that signed up for this program so far with the
14 Animal Health Commission is about half that number. It's
15 right at 10,000 animals in those that have signed up for
16 the voluntary program. We also looked at how they were
17 distributed across the state and the geographic
18 distribution of those who had volunteered very closely
19 matches the distribution of the composition of breeders in
20 the state.
21 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: So this may be
22 for Ken Waldrop or Dan Baca, but the Animal Health
23 Commission I would guess is more than satisfied for that
24 sample?
25 DR. COOKE: Yes. I won't speak for him,
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1 but I think we can hear his head rattling.
2 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: I think that's
3 all I have. Thank you.
4 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I would like -- I have
5 a question for Ken Waldrop please.
6 DR. WALDROP: Yes, ma'am.
7 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Ken, thanks again for
8 your help and for being here today. I would like you to
9 express to us your level of comfort with Parks and
10 Wildlife's lifting of the importation restrictions that we
11 implemented back in the spring. Could you address that
12 from the Texan Animal Health Commission point of view?
13 DR. WALDROP: Yes, ma'am, I would be glad
14 to. As Dr. Cooke has already mentioned, there were a
15 number of parties that were involved in -- in producing
16 these new entry requirements as implemented by the Texas
17 Animal Health Commission, including representatives from
18 Parks and Wildlife. We felt that it was important to go
19 ahead and maintain a level of commerce or to have door
20 open to individuals and operations that were interested in
21 that, but we certainly wanted to raise the bar. And now
22 in addition to burcilosis testing and tuberculosis
23 testing, we've added this CWD requirement. And again,
24 this was basically a unanimous agreement about -- within
25 all the groups that were involved, elk breeders,
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1 scientific breeders, exotic operations, that these were
2 very workable, you know, business-type dealings that they
3 could live with. From a disease point of view, I actually
4 am very comfortable with this. There are states right now
5 that can meet that five year entry, including states that
6 have had CWD in the past. South Dakota would be the most
7 shiny example of that, and I know the program they've had
8 there. So I'm very confident, you know, with these entry
9 requirements that have been formulated. So, again, my own
10 personal level of confidence and that of the agency is
11 that this is a good thing.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: So you're confident
13 that the protected afforded the state in deer herds of
14 this state based on the monitoring requirements that you
15 are now going to insist upon are equal to the total
16 suspension of importation?
17 DR. WALDROP: Well, I think, Madame
18 Chairman, there are actually two -- two different areas
19 here. There is -- one area is we want to prevent the
20 importation of this disease. If it's outside, we don't
21 want it brought in. That's where the entry requirements
22 come in. I cannot tell you that that's absolutely risk
23 free, but we do feel confident that this is certainly an
24 acceptable level of risk management.
25 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: There's no --
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1 DR. WALDROP: The other thing is -- the
2 other area would be if we have CWD within the state we
3 need to find it. We do feel like certainly the
4 participation of the scientific breeders within our
5 monitoring program has been very good and we can indeed
6 find it if it's here.
7 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have they other
8 comments from the Commission?
9 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I just have one.
10 Doctor, I don't know if you recall my questioning of
11 Jerry, but would you agree the more aggressive we can
12 become in assimilating the data to acquire the 2 percent,
13 the sooner and the better we'll know if in fact it's here
14 in the state? Otherwise, until we reach that level,
15 there's going to be some degree of uncertainty as to
16 whether it's here or not.
17 DR. WALDROP: Certainly, Commissioner
18 Ramos, I agree with that.
19 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Okay.
20 DR. WALDROP: The difficulty is in some
21 ways the logistics of it.
22 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I guess that's our
23 problem.
24 DR. WALDROP: Well, we have some of that --
25 own some of that problem, you know, my agency does as
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1 well.
2 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Certainly, the Texas
3 Animal Health Commission would support any effort that we
4 would take in that regard to try and achieve that goal as
5 quickly as possible?
6 DR. WALDROP: Absolutely, sir.
7 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Thank you very much.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
9 DR. WALDROP: Thank you.
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Any other questions?
11 We have some people signed up to comment on this.
12 Doctor -- okay. Kirby Brown and then Ellis Gilleland.
13 MR. BROWN: Madame Chairman, Commissioners,
14 I just want to comment on behalf of the Texas Wildlife
15 Association that we deeply appreciate the concern and the
16 hard work and involvement of the Commission as well as the
17 staff in this activity. Appreciate Ken Waldrop and the
18 Texas Animal Health Commission also in working through
19 this and in making significant progress toward determining
20 of CWD is in Texas and what we would do next if it is.
21 And I think that's important.
22 Also look forward to working with staff and
23 Commission on approaches to Triple T permitting that
24 allows reasonable transplant activities that continues to
25 protect deer herds from the disease. Thank you again for
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1 your help on this and we support the recommendation.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Karl Kinsel, you're up
3 after Mr. Gilleland.
4 MR. GILLELAND: I have three -- three
5 handouts. My name is Ellis Gilleland. I'm a private
6 citizen representing myself and Texas Animals which is an
7 animal rights organization on the Internet. I've given
8 you three handouts, the first of which is a copy of the
9 Texas Register from the 19th of July, 2002. This is a
10 publication that you're dealing with or the resolution
11 that you're dealing with to pass today. There are three
12 or four things I find trouble -- I have trouble with on
13 this, indicated in yellow, marked.
14 The first is you still -- you're in denial. You
15 have no testing program. You had no testing program at
16 the last meeting. You have no testing program now.
17 There's no testing in this document. There's no testing
18 program in writing. There is no testing program for
19 Wildlife Management Area, state park hunting, nothing.
20 It's just an old dream that Jerry has and some day it may
21 be reduced to writing and put into effect. There's no
22 testing program for the deer in the pens. If you believe
23 there is or you have it, will you please publish it and
24 put it out so the public can see it. You have no testing
25 program.
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1 The second thing you have here, prior written
2 authorization for release of the deer. They call over the
3 telephone and Jerry gives them okay over the telephone?
4 No. The deer should be inspected before they are released
5 physically by somebody.
6 The third thing is you're saying that monitoring
7 allows the health status of the captive deer to be
8 monitored or this rule does. The only thing you're
9 monitoring is the deer that exits the pen and goes out in
10 the wild. You're not monitoring the herd. The only
11 monitoring being down is being done by the Animal Health
12 people. The only thing you're monitoring are the fawns,
13 the number of fawns produced every year, they mail a
14 report to you, that's it. That's the only thing you're
15 monitoring is somebody in the office is monitoring a piece
16 of paper that comes in, 39 fawns this year. That's all
17 you're monitoring. You're in denial. You're doing all
18 this oral dreaming and some day it may come to pass. You
19 are republishing a definition of why you approved this
20 definition exactly verbatim last meeting. You're now
21 publishing it again. You published it on the 3rd of May.
22 We approved it. It was published the 1st of March.
23 You're now publishing again, 19th of July. Healthy
24 condition, exactly the same thing we had before. And the
25 last you have an ambiguous statement that says what is a
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1 healthy condition of a deer? Okay. Here's your rule is
2 what's published. It says, "The deer can be released in
3 healthy condition into the wild in this state if the deer
4 are in -- not in a healthy condition."
5 That's an ambiguous statement. Which means in
6 legalese -- you lawyers, it means the deer can be released
7 whether it's in or not in a healthy condition. That's
8 what you published. You lawyers can verify whether I'm
9 lying or not. Thank you.
10 MR. KINSEL: Madame Chairman,
11 Commissioners, I'm Karl Kinsel, Executive Director of the
12 Texas Deer Association. Two issues and I'll be very brief
13 on them. One is a thank you and two is an invitation. To
14 save time I'll simply yet strongly say that I second all
15 the words and comments voiced mainly by Kirby Brown,
16 Derrick Gardner yesterday and add to that a little bit
17 that I also think the Texas Animal Health Commission and
18 Ken Waldrop. We've remained -- started out friends,
19 remained friends, we're still friends through all the
20 trials and errors and we've accomplished Mission
21 Impossible, I believe. In gratitude I would like to
22 invite and be honored if each and/or all of you could be
23 our guest at our annual membership meeting which is in San
24 Antonio on the 13th and 14th. Certainly you'll be
25 welcomed and honored free of charge, needless to say, as
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1 our guests to see some great examples of some superb
2 animal husbandry that's being done by the producers and
3 exhibit of our suppliers. This is a great outdoor effort
4 that's being held under your direction. We're doing
5 great. There's no doom and gloom here as old -- sometimes
6 it seems like that's all you get to hear. I want to tell
7 you the deer industry is alive and doing well and doing
8 well to promote hunting in this great state. We're
9 expanding, we're improving the quality and the quantity of
10 the state-owned deer as well as the privately-owned deer
11 and said I want to thank you for that.
12 One special note and that is that having started
13 with this a year ago, being hit with it very early on in
14 January and looking at it in March and May, in March
15 specifically, when Chairman Idsal made a comment at the
16 Texas Cattle Raisers. I took that to heart and kind of
17 held her to her word and it proved to be extremely
18 fruitful. She said joint effort on behalf of regulatory
19 agencies that allows producers to do that what they knew
20 its best initially without having to respond to imposed
21 regulations. I felt strong about that and I think the
22 positive response of the producers especially in the
23 limited time proves that when regulatory agency provides
24 reasons and tools with which producers can operate, then
25 cooperation can exist between producers, associations, and
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1 regulatory agencies. Thank you.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Thanks to
3 everybody involved in getting this done. I know it was a
4 tremendous amount of work. Another wonderful example of
5 industry groups and government and the like working
6 together to do a voluntary monitoring program which is
7 always preferred. Now let's make sure it works and we
8 keep a healthy deer herd. Thank you.
9 Do we have any other comments from the
10 Commission on this or questions? Do we have a motion?
11 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: So moved.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Motion by Commissioner
13 Fitzsimons. Do I have a second?
14 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Second.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Second by Commissioner
16 Ramos. All in favor?
17 ("Aye.")
18 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
19 carries.
20 "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts 31 TAC
21 Sections 65.601, 65.602, 65.608, 65.610, and 65.611,
22 concerning Scientific Breeder's Permits, with changes to
23 the proposed text as published in the July 19, 2002, issue
24 of the Texas Register (27 TexReg 6492)."
25
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1 AGENDA ITEM NO. 13: ACTION - 2002-2003 MIGRATORY GAME
2 BIRD PROCLAMATION - LATE SEASON PROVISIONS
3 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Item No. 13, Migratory
4 Game Bird Proclamation - Late Season Provisions, Vernon
5 Bevill.
6 MR. BEVILL: Madame Chairman, members of
7 the Commission, my name is Vernon Bevill. I am the Game
8 Bird Program Director. We are here today to finalize the
9 regulatory cycle for migratory game birds for season of
10 2002, 2003. There are a couple of changes that I would
11 like to highlight for you very briefly. The federal Fish
12 and Wildlife Service has approved an extension of
13 frameworks from the Saturday nearest September the 24th to
14 the last Sunday in January for duck season if the -- if
15 the package is liberal or moderate. That extension goes
16 away if it's a restrictive package.
17 Canvasback breeding population this year did not
18 reach the threshold that we have established for a
19 nationwide season, so the Fish and Wildlife Service has
20 opted to close that.
21 Pintail breeding population was again below what
22 we would like to see and the Fish and Wildlife Service
23 with the support of the flyways agreed to a 39-day season
24 with a one bird bag for pintail.
25 The east goose zone of Texas we have divided
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1 into northern and southern sections to accommodate the --
2 the framework extension for ducks as well as a deal with
3 the light goose conservation order.
4 And the bag limit for Canada geese in the east
5 goose zone has been increased from one to two.
6 For duck, geese and mergansers -- I mean, for
7 ducks, mergansers and coots the High Plains Mallard
8 Management Unit will have a 98-day total regular season.
9 The other 9 days are taken up with the September teal
10 season. We're proposing a youth hunt October 19th and
11 20th. We are also proposing a little change there to take
12 advantage of early arrival of both teal and other species
13 by extending the -- the hunting opportunity immediately
14 after the special teal season closes for one week,
15 September the 23rd through the 29th when the regular first
16 segment of the duck season will begin. And that will
17 allow some additional opportunity that we've got a lot of
18 positive feedback on from the high plains hunters.
19 Then the regular long split of the duck season
20 would begin on October the 26th and extend to
21 January 22nd, which laps over into the middle of the week.
22 The north zone would have a 76-day season with
23 the youth hunt on the weekend of the 26th of October for
24 two days. Then we would have that short split that we've
25 traditionally had there November the 9th and 10th followed
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1 by the long split, November the 16th, through January the
2 26th, taking advantage of the other end of the framework
3 extension for ducks. So for Texas, it's probably the only
4 state in the country that will have taken advantage of
5 both ends of this framework extension. I can't wait to
6 see what some of my friends to the north have to visit
7 with me about that.
8 The south zone we are proposing a season similar
9 to last year. The first split would run from November the
10 2nd to December the 1st. However, due to some survey work
11 we've done recently, the south zone hunters tell us very,
12 very, very vividly that they would like more of their
13 hunting days in December, so we are proposing instead of
14 having a 12-day split in early December to shorten that to
15 five days and reopen the second split on the 7th of
16 December and run it through January the 19th. And we're
17 not proposing to take advantage of the later framework in
18 the south zone because of our commitment to the snow goose
19 conservation effort to reduce that population to more
20 manageable levels.
21 For the bag limit on -- on ducks, it will be
22 similar to last year with similar restrictions with these
23 additions, again, the pintail will be a one bird bag but
24 will be reduced to a 39-day period during the season that
25 we would set basically the last 39 days of the north zone,
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1 the last 39 days of the south zone and then the High
2 Plains Mallard Management Unit would be -- mirror the
3 south zone period of time for -- for pintail.
4 And again, we're opting to close the canvasback
5 season statewide.
6 For geese in the western goose zone, basically
7 it will be some similar to last year with calendar shift,
8 and so you're already familiar with that, I think.
9 For the eastern goose zone, for dark geese,
10 white-fronted geese, again a two bird bag this year,
11 October the 26th to January the 19th. Canada geese and
12 Brant we are increasing that bag to two birds October 26th
13 to January the 19th, but the aggregate bag can be 3, 2 of
14 either species, primarily Canada and we hardly ever take a
15 Brant in Texas.
16 Light geese in the eastern goose zone. That's
17 where we're splitting to the north and south segments. In
18 the north segment it will be October 26th to January 26th
19 and then in the south segment it would be October the 26th
20 to January the 19th.
21 In the south segment we then immediately go to
22 the extended light goose conservation order that would
23 begin on -- or on the 20th, Monday the 20th, and extend to
24 March the 30th. And in the north portion of that same
25 zone it would -- it would initiate after the duck season
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1 closes on the 27th and run through March the 30th. High
2 Plains Mallard Management Unit would be similar to last
3 year beginning on February the 10th and running through
4 March the 30th with the extended shooting hours, no limit
5 and the use of electronic callers being available.
6 We have the opportunity for falconry -- an
7 extended falconry season in both the north and south duck
8 zones with those dates being in the north January 27th to
9 February 17th and in the south January 20th to February
10 the 10th.
11 The crane season, similar to last year, although
12 we have a potential of a 37-day crane season in Zone C,
13 because of our institution of the light goose conservation
14 order early, that restricts the number of days in that
15 crane season. We're proposing December the 21st to
16 January the 19th there, and then closure so we can go do
17 the light goose conservation rules.
18 Public comments have been pretty good this year.
19 We've had 77 total at this time. We've had support for
20 the High Plains Mallard Management Unit extension, the
21 framework. I would draw your attention to the south zone
22 where we've had the significant number of 32 commenting in
23 opposition to closing on the 19th which they had basically
24 said they wanted us to go to the end of the framework
25 opportunity there, which was the 26th. Again, our reason
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1 for not -- not proposing that relates to our commitment to
2 the light goose conservation season and trying to reduce
3 that population down. We feel like that's the paramount
4 conservation issue that we must deal with, and so we're
5 not recommending that to the Commission today.
6 We've had a scattering of comments on other
7 parts of the proposal, some -- some pintail hunters,
8 enthusiasts would like to see the 39 days set at the
9 beginning of the season, but we think that -- that
10 probably the smarter approach is the end of the season,
11 which was similar to what we did last year when we had
12 that same situation with the -- the canvasback. And you
13 can look at the -- the scattering of comments there for
14 your review.
15 The adoption motion that we are recommending to
16 the Commission is that Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
17 adopts the amendments to 31 TAC 65.314, 65.317, .318, .320
18 and .321 concerning the Migratory Game Bird Proclamation
19 with changes to the proposed text (located in Exhibit A)
20 as published in the April 27, 2002 issue of the Texas
21 Register. There's a typo in that recommendation that I
22 just caught.
23 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I have a question for
24 you. Could you go over -- I was away and I was listening
25 to this over the intercom. Could you go over the split --
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1 the mourning dove split season in the south zone real
2 quick?
3 MR. BEVILL: The mourning dove.
4 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: The mourning dove
5 south zone split season.
6 MR. BEVILL: You asked me for the dates I
7 don't have in front me of me but basically.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Yeah. Let's go over
9 the basics. You said that the public comment was strong
10 that we lengthen the split season --
11 MR. BEVILL: No, not mourning dove. For
12 the duck season.
13 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Oh, duck.
14 MR. BEVILL: Did I say mourning dove?
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I thought I heard
16 mourning dove. And I thought I don't remember covering
17 this yesterday.
18 MR. BEVILL: We're done with the mourning
19 dove. I may have said mourning dove.
20 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: That's what I heard
21 and I thought I missed something.
22 MR. BEVILL: We have the opportunity to go
23 to January the 26th which is the last Sunday in January.
24 We are utilizing or proposing to utilize that opportunity
25 in the north zone. Our north zone hunters always say they
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1 want the latest season possible. The south zone, we're --
2 we're getting some comments that they also would want to
3 have --
4 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: But they want
5 December 8th.
6 MR. BEVILL: -- that late split going to
7 the end of the framework. But we're opting not to
8 recommend that to you although it's your prerogative to
9 change that if you like because of our commitment that
10 we've consistently made to try to deal with reducing this
11 light goose population.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Okay. No, it was just
13 a plan old misunderstanding.
14 MR. BEVILL: Okay.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: We have -- do we have
16 any comments from the Commission? Dr. Rising?
17 COMMISSIONER RISING: Vernon, I was
18 reviewing this Exhibit A and I notice -- there's a -- in
19 the adoption for the types of ducks and the numbers,
20 there's a -- it does state one canvasback in the thing,
21 and I wanted to make sure we --
22 MR. BEVILL: When we -- when we published
23 that exhibit back in April --
24 COMMISSIONER RISING: Uh-huh.
25 MR. BEVILL: -- the Fish and Wildlife
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1 Service had not met and reviewed all their numbers and
2 made their decisions. So basically we published what
3 we -- we brought forward what we had from last year and
4 then later in the summer they make their final rules and
5 that's when that changed. So --
6 COMMISSIONER RISING: So this .318 is not
7 what we're adopting here --
8 MR. BEVILL: Yeah. You're adopting the
9 proclamation with changes as proposed.
10 COMMISSIONER RISING: This exhibit is
11 not --
12 MR. BEVILL: That exhibit is --
13 COMMISSIONER RISING: Not exactly what --
14 MR. BEVILL: -- goes back to the April --
15 COMMISSIONER RISING: Got you. Okay.
16 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: We have one person
17 signed up for this one. Kirby Brown.
18 MR. BROWN: My name is Kirby Brown with
19 Texas Wildlife Association. Madame Chairman,
20 Commissioners, we support the staff proposal as it
21 is. Thank you. Wouldn't change it.
22 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you Kirby. Are
23 there any other more questions or comments or from the
24 Commission? If not, do I have a motion?
25 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Move for approval.
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1 COMMISSIONER AVILA: Second.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I have a motion by
3 Commissioner Angelo, second by Commissioner Avila. All in
4 favor?
5 ("Aye.")
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
7 carries.
8 "The Texas parks and Wildlife Commission adopts amendments
9 to 31 TAC Sections 65.138, 65.320, and 65.321, concerning
10 the Migratory Game Bord Proclamation, with changes to the
11 proposed text (located at Exhibit A) as published in the
12 May 3, 2002, issue of the Texas Register (27 TexReg
13 3707)."
14 AGENDA ITEM NO. 14: ACTION - NONGAME REGULATIONS
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Action Item No. 14.
16 Nongame Commercial Permit Regulations, John
17 Herron.
18 MR. HERRON: Thank you, Madame Chairman and
19 Commission. My name is John Herron. I'm the Chief of the
20 Wildlife Diversity Branch in Wildlife Division and I'll be
21 briefing you today on two different regulatory items. The
22 first concerns a change in nongame regulations. Fairly
23 simple change. We are proposing to amend the regulation
24 to allow individuals to temporarily possess and move
25 threaten endangered species when those are threatened by
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1 construction, right of way maintenance or similar
2 activities. We've had many requests for this kind of
3 authorization but do not currently have a permit that
4 covers the activity. The regulation would allow the
5 Department to authorize temporary possession and take by
6 letter rather than creating a new permit. It would also
7 allow us to determine when to issue that permit to an
8 individual based on their qualifications.
9 The second item which is, as we discussed
10 yesterday, more complex, concerns the revisions to our
11 nongame collection and sale regulations. These are
12 regulations that the Commission considered back it 1998
13 and became effective in '99. At that time we promised to
14 come back to the Commission after three years and tell you
15 how well things had worked and propose any changes that we
16 felt were necessary.
17 As I mentioned yesterday, too, we do have some
18 changes that I'll be highlighting from what was published
19 in the Texas Register during the summer based on public
20 comment and staff input. Overall, the permit system I
21 think has been a tremendous success. There was a lot of
22 trepidation when we put these in place several years ago,
23 but it seems to be humming along fairly well right now.
24 To date this table shows permits we've issued over the
25 past three years, roughly 400 collector permits each year
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1 in between 120 and 174 dealer permits. Of course, the big
2 thing we were looking for with the regulation was data,
3 having some handle on what the level of commercial trade
4 and take of these species were. As this slide shows these
5 are the top three species in regards to take, black-tailed
6 prairie dogs, spiny softshell turtles and western
7 diamondback rattlesnakes. The first two takes for the
8 three years exceeded 50,000 animals and for the
9 rattlesnake we are just under 30,000 animals reported
10 taken and sold during the three-year period. Overall, we
11 had 19 species that were reported with trade exceeding
12 2,000 animals over the three-year period. And of course,
13 the data has been very helpful to us. And based on that
14 data, we've realized that we can now focus the regulations
15 more on those species that we're most interested in.
16 So the changes we're proposing, first
17 simplifying the requirements of the permit. Currently one
18 has to have this permit if one has ten or more of one
19 species, 25 in aggregate or for commercial sale. We're
20 going to simplify it and just have either sale or
21 possession of 25 or more of a listed species. Those
22 listed species we're proposing to reduce from 210 that are
23 currently in the regulation to 40. These are the 40 that
24 seem to be most common in trade and those that we feel we
25 need to monitor. We're simplify, the reporting
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1 requirements requiring only dealers to submit an annual
2 permit. Collectors will no longer have to submit an
3 annual report -- I'm sorry, I meant report to us. We feel
4 we're getting the data we need from the dealers alone.
5 And then other changes we are proposing to prohibit
6 certain means and methods of take and we're clarifying
7 that anybody who collects for commercial export purposes
8 has to have a permit even if they're not selling the
9 animals within Texas. Some minor changes, we propose to
10 change the permit names, the public was having trouble
11 distinguishing between what a commercial and a dealer
12 permit were. We are proposing now just to refer to the
13 permits as a nongame permit and a dealer's nongame permit.
14 This is a change from what was published. The first
15 permit originally we were still calling a nongame
16 commercial permit. Based on a public comment we're just
17 now stating it will be a nongame permit. What we
18 published also clarifies that the difference between a
19 dealer and collector is a dealer is an individual who can
20 sell these animals to the public. The other permit, the
21 nongame permitee you can only sell to dealers, so
22 basically if someone wants to sell to the public, they'll
23 need to become a dealer. Also, there is a -- an exception
24 in the existing regulation if somebody was selling
25 processed products, for example, leather goods or other
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1 things made from animals, they would not need a permit,
2 but we were missing people who were collecting animals and
3 immediately processing them. So we now require that
4 anybody who collects and then processes those animals
5 themselves must still have a permit and report to us.
6 Means and methods, we discussed this yesterday.
7 Currently what we proposed would prohibit the use of
8 vacuum-powered devices. Largely the consideration here is
9 the take of prairie dogs for the pet trade. We're
10 requiring that traps be tagged. One minor change from
11 what was published is what was published said only
12 unattended traps would have to be tagged. We are
13 proposing that all traps would now have to be tagged which
14 alleviates having to figure out if something is really
15 attended or not. Then we're proposing that turtle traps
16 must have an opening above the water so the that the
17 animals that are caught are not drowned.
18 Regarding vacuum-powered devices, as I explained
19 yesterday, the original intent that -- the reason we
20 proposed this was at the time we started this regulation
21 in draft about a year ago, the U.S. Department of
22 Agricultural was also prohibiting the use of vacuum
23 devices. We felt we should change our regulation for
24 consistency purposes. Since then, the USDA has revised
25 their policy. They are now allowing the use of vacuum
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1 devices on a case-by-case basis and have authorized, I
2 think, two individuals to use these devices in Texas. We
3 have still maintained in it our proposal because one of
4 our other concerns is take of nontarget species since a
5 vacuum device is rather nonspecific and as we talked about
6 yesterday, it's very similar to the buy-catch concerns we
7 have for commercial fisheries.
8 I mentioned reporting already. As I said, some
9 changes to the reporting, as well. We're now requiring
10 dealers to record the permit number of anybody they buy
11 from. We're changing the reporting period. We have a
12 problem right now where a person has to renew their permit
13 before we've received their permit from the previous year.
14 Changing these dated will allow us to assure they've given
15 us the report before we authorizes renewal of their
16 permit. And then finally we're requiring that records be
17 maintained for two years. This is different than what was
18 proposed in the Texas Register. We said one year there,
19 but we realized with our changing and reporting we have an
20 overlap there. We really need them to retain two years of
21 records so that we can go back and check what happened
22 during that August to September time frame the year
23 before.
24 I mentioned the species effected. As I said, we
25 reduced the number of species down to 40, focusing more on
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1 getting the data on commercial harvest and sale as those
2 species we're most concerned with. One thing I didn't
3 mention yesterday but I want to mention today is really
4 the success of this regulation is no small part due to the
5 cooperation we've had from permitees and the people out
6 there, their advice and their participation has been a big
7 help in making this a success.
8 And in one final note, we are removing bats from
9 the list of species and the reason we are is because they
10 are now protected by statute based of Legislative action
11 during the last Legislative session.
12 Just to quickly review the species that will
13 still on be on the list, these toads, salamander and box
14 turtles will remain on the list requiring a permit. In
15 addition, as I was mentioning yesterday one of our big
16 concerns is the take of the aquatic turtles for Asian food
17 market. They will remain on the list. The banded gecko
18 and several lizards remain on the list as well, and the
19 diamondback rattlesnake, the jackrabbit and the prairie
20 dog. Again species we've seen a lot of trade in and we
21 feel we need to continue to monitor. These six species we
22 had included on the list in what we published in the Texas
23 Register; based on public comment it was suggested we
24 could drop these. Let me have my slides catch up with me,
25 because they are just very abundant in the wild and in
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1 some cases, the take of these is not really very
2 significant. There. We're caught up again.
3 In addition, due to public comment we're
4 proposing to add back several species we had thought about
5 deleting them from the regulation. Most of these for
6 aquatic turtles, as I explained yesterday. One of the
7 concerns brought up to us if we only list one or two
8 aquatic turtles, we may find a situation where trade
9 shifts to related species. So clearly it was a good
10 point, so we decided to add these species back onto the
11 regulation as well as the diamondback terrapin which is a
12 species of concern, the spade foot toad which is similar
13 to another species we already have on the list, and then
14 the other rattlesnakes, again concern being that trade may
15 shift from western diamondbacks to some of these other
16 species some of which are relatively rare. With that, I
17 would be happy to answer any questions the Commission may
18 have.
19 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Questions before we
20 go to public comment? We have several people registered.
21 Mr. J.W. Vanderpool.
22 MR. HERRON: I don't think Mr. Vanderpool
23 heard you.
24 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Is he here?
25 MR. HERRON: Yes. I saw him in back here.
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1 MR. VANDERPOOL: Am I the only one?
2 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: We have a couple
3 others.
4 MR. VANDERPOOL: I have a handout. Madame
5 Chairman and Commissioners, I'm J.W. Vanderpool from
6 southwest Kansas and I am the one that kind of originated
7 the vacuum machine method of prairie dog collection.
8 Because of the bad publicity of my competition, the USDA
9 shut down the collection of prairie dogs by water and by
10 vacuum two years ago. The water people got together and
11 threatened a lawsuit and so they turned them lose
12 individually inspected. Then the next year, I talked the
13 USDA into inspecting the vacuum machines. Dr. Elizabeth
14 Pannell (phonetic), the USDA inspector for Big Spring,
15 Texas, area came out and inspected me for two days. She
16 brought her supervisor, Dr. Hamile (phonetic) out of Fort
17 Worth. They video filmed everything from vacuuming them
18 and from the baby prairie dogs how we took care of them.
19 And took four of them down to Texas A&M for necropsies and
20 could find nothing wrong with them. So they could find
21 nothing wrong with the animals that I had collected at the
22 time they were there inspecting them. So they reversed
23 the policy on the back -- the back two pages of that
24 handout I gave you is the revised policy that is presently
25 in date.
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1 The vacuum method is, to my opinion, absolutely
2 the most humane way of catching prairie dogs. And the way
3 I target the young prairie dogs only instead of getting
4 other species of critters is looking with binoculars out
5 on the field and you have to see the baby pups on the
6 mound and if you see baby pups on the mouth, there's not
7 any owls or rabbits or anything else it that hole. That's
8 the den that they were born in and the mother prairie dog
9 keeps everything run off from that hole. If there's a
10 snake or something in there, the baby prairie dogs won't
11 go in there. And so it's a matter of the method and
12 experience you keep from getting other targeted species.
13 And it works so efficient and so quickly that I can catch
14 more prairie dogs.
15 The numbers you see in there, most of them are
16 from Texas Parks and Wildlife and it's just easier to
17 catch them with a vacuum, it's faster and more humane.
18 I'd like to urge you to keep the collecting methods the
19 same as they are right now. That's the reason I'm here.
20 I heard of my opposition, some of my competitors was going
21 to be here and that's the reason I'm here. Thank you.
22 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Kirby Brown. And
23 Ellis Gilleland.
24 MR. BROWN: Madame Chairman, my name is
25 Kirby Brown with Texas Wildlife Association. And we just
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1 support the staff proposal as it stands. It's an
2 interesting comment by Mr. Vanderpool if there are
3 guidelines that could be incorporated, we would be
4 interested it that, because I believe there -- there are
5 occasions where the capture and transplant of prairie dog
6 populations is something we should be interested in aside
7 from the trade.
8 Also I want to echo what was said yesterday that
9 the staff has done a great job in implementing these
10 regulations and moving them forward and proving that the
11 permitting can take place that both protects the private
12 landowner and the collectors out there and gathers the
13 information in a reasonable way. Thank you.
14 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Ellis Gilleland.
15 MR. GILLELAND: I have a two handouts. My
16 name is Ellis Gilleland speaking for Texas Animals, an
17 animal rights organization on the Internet. I want to
18 refer you to the publication in the Texas Register,
19 because that's the legal presentation that we're dealing
20 with. Is the 23rd May, 2002, Texas Register which
21 publishes a list of the animals that have been removed.
22 Out of a total of 209 animals on the list, which are being
23 tracked and dealt with by Parks and Wildlife, you only
24 kept 28. So that's what has been published. There's
25 nothing about adding and subtracting all these things that
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1 Mr. Herron's down up and down, up and down, up and down.
2 That's not in the Texas Register. The legal publication
3 was 209 and of the 209 you struck them all expect 28.
4 So now my request to you is if you want to do
5 this add, subtract, add, subtract, sideways, up and down,
6 diagonal, please republish it so the public can see what
7 is happening, because there's only 28 animals left on the
8 list.
9 The second thing is on your biodiversity, I feel
10 it's important to track them all. And the reason why is
11 that biodiversity is important. I've given you a real
12 short article. You can grasp -- even our corporations are
13 getting on the biodiversity.
14 And the last thing I would like to touch upon,
15 the handout I gave you is from a newspaper in Live Oak
16 County, The Progress dated the 1st of March, 2000, it
17 says, "Attention snake owners, ranchers, deer horns, began
18 3rd of March we will be making weekly stops throughout the
19 brush country in South Texas. We're buying live
20 rattlesnakes, dead rattlesnakes, rattles, exotic snakes,
21 live litters, box turtles, water turtles, centipedes,
22 vinegarones, skulls, bones, horns of ram, billy goat, wild
23 boar, et cetera, et cetera, and more," that they don't
24 list. And then it says in big bold capital letters, "If
25 it's in the woods and there is a legal market on it, we
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1 buy it."
2 Ladies and gentlemen, will you please keep all
3 nine -- all 209 on the list. Add another 209, great, I
4 don't care how many you add. But please keep the 209 and
5 republish this whole can of worms so the public can know
6 what's on the list and what isn't on the list. The public
7 throughout Texas doesn't have access to all this oral
8 fantasies I hear. Thank you.
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Perry Hounshell? I
10 apologize if I butchered your last name.
11 MR. HOUNSHELL: Perry Hounshell. Madame
12 Chairman, staff, the USDA came and inspected my method of
13 collection, which is modified grain vacuum and found that
14 it was the most humane way that they could see of
15 collecting prairie dogs. And the only thing that I can
16 see wrong with it is people could -- people could see
17 wrong with it is my competitors saying bad things about
18 it, which aren't true. If you all have got any questions
19 about it, how it works or anything, I'd -- I'd like to
20 answer them. That's fine.
21 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Mr. Angelo, do you
22 have a question?
23 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: How does yours
24 differ from the other gentleman that spoke or does it?
25 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, whenever I started
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1 using my vacuum was the first year that he got his shut
2 down. And the way I had mine set up was different and so
3 we got them to come and look and he changed his to where
4 we can't catch adults, just the babies.
5 And as far as catching anything other than
6 prairie dogs, we don't, because like he said, you check
7 the hole, the prairie dogs are on the hole. And if they
8 go deep in the hole, you don't get them. They go down
9 about 3-foot, you'll get them. If they go on down any
10 deeper, you don't get them. I mean, you don't suck out
11 every prairie dog that you see. It's kind of like water.
12 Whenever you put water in a hole, you don't get every
13 prairie dog out of there.
14 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: What kind of
15 mortality do you have --
16 MR. HOUNSHELL: I have zero mortality.
17 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: How much?
18 MR. HOUNSHELL: Zero.
19 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: How much --
20 MR. HOUNSHELL: In my exports, I have in
21 seven years, I've had eight deaths and I've shipped all of
22 the world. I've had eight deaths in seven years.
23 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: If you didn't use
24 the vacuum, what other method would you catch them.
25 MR. HOUNSHELL: I wouldn't, because I go
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1 behind people using water and I suck up dead prairie dogs.
2 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: When they use water,
3 if they don't get out, they drown. Is that right?
4 MR. HOUNSHELL: Right. But, you know, I
5 don't want to say anything about the way other people
6 collect them. One guy might put too much water in a hole
7 and then another guy might not. So, you know, you
8 can't -- you can't just shut down everybody because of
9 what one person does. That's like putting soap in and
10 stuff in, you know, people that love animals wouldn't do
11 that.
12 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: How many people do you
13 know that operate the vacuum machines?
14 MR. HOUNSHELL: Me and Mr. Vanderpool.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: And can you address
16 the concerns about what we are calling buy-catch.
17 MR. HOUNSHELL: The burrowing owl?
18 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Well, the burrowing
19 owl or snakes, rabbits, things that go into the vacuum
20 that you're not looking for.
21 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, the first time
22 Mr. Vanderpool was -- they came and inspected him; the man
23 came up and said, "I want you to get prairie dogs out of
24 this hole right here." And he said," Well, that's not the
25 way I do it." And he said, "Well, that's the way I want
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1 you to do it so I can watch how you do it." Well, you
2 don't do it that way. You look through binoculars, you
3 see the pups at about 100 yards, you drive up to the hole,
4 you suck on it for a few seconds and either you get them
5 or you don't. But there wouldn't be any burrowing owls or
6 snakes or rabbits in that hole because that's where the
7 babies are living and the mama keeps everything run out of
8 there. And the burrowing owl doesn't stay in the holes
9 with babies.
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Do you
11 have any questions? Commissioner Ramos.
12 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I just have a couple.
13 How does the design of your machine differ from the other
14 one to where it can distinguish between a baby and an
15 adult.
16 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, it's -- we use a
17 bigger hose, a six-inch hose. It's bigger, and the
18 suction is not that great. And whenever the pups come up
19 out of the hole, they don't come up fast. They float into
20 a holding. Those pictures that you had of my machine are
21 from four years ago. Last year I spent $70,000 redoing my
22 whole operation. So, you know, I've got a lot of money
23 invested.
24 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: So it's not the size
25 of the hose as much as the amount of suction that you're
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1 applying?
2 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, it's both. It's the
3 size of hole and amount of suction. The bigger the hole,
4 the less suction you get.
5 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: But what I'm saying is
6 if a larger -- if an adult for example, were to come up,
7 would it go through your system?
8 MR. HOUNSHELL: It would go up just like
9 the babies do, but you don't have the suction on the hole
10 in order to get the adults up. You're dealing with a
11 little bitty baby that doesn't weigh hardly anything.
12 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: No, I understand that.
13 The only distinction you have is the amount of suction --
14 you're saying you don't apply enough suction to where the
15 large ones can't float out.
16 MR. HOUNSHELL: Exactly.
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Have these pups been
18 weaned?
19 MR. HOUNSHELL: Oh, yes, ma'am.
20 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Well, what about the
21 very small pups that -- do you pull them up by mistake
22 or --
23 MR. HOUNSHELL: No. The very small ones
24 are still in the nest down in the hole.
25 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Deep down?
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1 MR. HOUNSHELL: Yeah. And the suction --
2 the vacuum won't suck them up. You don't get pups that --
3 unless their yea eight deep (indicating). They go any
4 deeper than that, you won't get them.
5 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I think I would like
6 to have Mr. Herron answer some of these questions if you
7 don't mind?
8 MR. HOUNSHELL: Uh-huh.
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do you have any other
10 questions of --
11 COMMISSIONER RISING: How deep are the
12 nests where the small left babies are?
13 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, they'll go on down
14 and there might be two or three different chambers, but
15 they go down and then turn and then go way back and then
16 down again, so.
17 COMMISSIONER RISING: When they get a
18 little older they go higher up closer to the surface.
19 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, what they do is when
20 they wean them, they're not getting milk from that mama,
21 so their out eating.
22 COMMISSIONER RISING: So you can see them
23 out on the mound?
24 MR. HOUNSHELL: Yes.
25 COMMISSIONER RISING: That's what you're
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1 talking about. You're spotting the babies on the mound
2 with the mother.
3 MR. HOUNSHELL: Yes. After they're weaned.
4 COMMISSIONER RISING: But the little bitty
5 ones are down in the nest.
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: At what age do they
7 leave the nest totally?
8 MR. HOUNSHELL: Well, after six weeks the
9 mama kicks them out. And then a bunch of them will all go
10 to one hole and sometimes there will be 15 or 16 in a hole
11 and then they spread out and that's how the town grows.
12 They kick them out and they push them all to the outside
13 and then they start having babies there and then they push
14 them out. And that's how it grows. And the big -- like
15 Big Springs we collect the babies from that every year.
16 And they have a big problem with it, digging under the
17 airports and that's all -- only place that I -- I collect
18 from is the airport there. And they have a big problem.
19 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Pretty prolific.
20 MR. HOUNSHELL: If it wasn't for me and
21 Mr. Vanderpool, they would have to shut don't the Big
22 Spring Airport or go in and kill all the prairie dogs.
23 It's just that -- they're there by the tens of thousands.
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I would like to hear
25 from Mr. Herron.
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1 MR. HOUNSHELL: Okay.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
3 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Thank you.
4 MR. HERRON: Thank you, Madame Chairman.
5 Yes. As we're learning, we continue to learn in this
6 whole process. And I do not doubt the fact that both
7 Mr. Hounshell and Mr. Vanderpool are telling -- they know
8 more about catching these animals probably than anybody
9 else in this room. Just to get some perspective, you
10 know, as I recollect, I think we have anywhere between
11 eight and ten individuals -- you all have a handout that
12 Mr. Vanderpool gave you from our data that are actually
13 involved in the collection of prairie dogs. Two of those
14 individuals use vacuums, the others are using other means.
15 And so as I was saying, this has been a learning
16 experience for us as well. I think what's been described
17 to you in regards to that life habits and the fact that
18 the vacuum is apparently only effective for those that are
19 really in the first part of the tunnel, there's usually a
20 couple small side chambers there, as well, is undoubtedly
21 correct. And honestly, you know, in regards to the
22 regulation, this is not a -- there is certainly not the
23 most important part of this regulation. I did not mention
24 to you before that we have had other public comment asking
25 us to address other means and methods which we chose not
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1 to bring to the Commission at this time; such things as
2 the use of gasoline in rattlesnake roundups, the use of
3 not just water in prairie dogs but also the additives of
4 soap, ammonia and other things to get animals out of
5 there. I think it's an issue we're going to have to come
6 back and look at again in regards to means and methods of
7 take. Certainly, if it's the Commission's preference, we
8 can come back and revisit the vacuum issue at another time
9 as well.
10 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: I would move
11 approval of the recommendations made by Mr. Herron with
12 the exception that the vacuum method be continued to be
13 approved and monitored.
14 COMMISSIONER AVILA: I would second that.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
16 ("Aye.")
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
18 carries.
19 MR. HERRON: Thank you very much.
20 "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts 31 TAC
21 Sections 65.173 and 325-65.331, concerning Nongame permits
22 and Special Provisions, with changes to the proposed text
23 as published in the May 3, 2002, issue of the Texas
24 Register (27 TexReg 3710)."
25 AGENDA ITEM NO. 15: ACTION - LAND AND WATER RESOURCE
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1 CONSERVATION AND RECREATION PLAN RESOLUTION
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Action No. 15, Land
3 and Water Resources Conservation and Recreation Plan
4 Resolution, Emily Armitano and Jeff Francell. Is that
5 everyone?
6 MR. FRANCELL: Chairman Armstrong,
7 Commissioners, I promise this is the final presentation on
8 the land and water plan. We'll be able to move on after
9 today. We're here today to present the plan. You have
10 copies of it. There were some red line changes this week
11 that have you copies of. And the presentation we're going
12 to run through quickly, but there is a little bit of new
13 information here from the plan. The plan was a
14 requirement of our Sunset Bill. We were required to
15 develop a ten-year statewide strategic plan. The
16 Commission is required to adopt this plan by October 15 of
17 this year. It's important to know that this plan will
18 also serve as the Texas Outdoor Recreation Plan required
19 by the National Park Service for land and water
20 conservation funds. This is a strategic plan that
21 analyzes conservation and recreation needs, identifies
22 threatened land and water resources and establishes
23 priorities. The Department will use this plan in
24 decisions on acquisitions, divestiture, private landowner
25 programs, local park grants and other conservation
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1 partnerships and programs.
2 We analyzed Texas from an ecoregion standpoint
3 looking at threats, looking at conserved lands, lands
4 under wildlife management plans, and biodiversity and
5 prioritized the South Texas Plains, the Gulf Coast and the
6 Black Land Prairies as our highest priority ecoregions.
7 This is a map that you probably haven't seen
8 before. It's a map that we can use to locate State Parks
9 or Wildlife Management Areas in the future. Shaded in the
10 light green up in the High Plains and the cross timbers
11 are on the two ecoregions that do not have adequate
12 wildlife management areas. This plan recommends that we
13 create wildlife management areas in those two ecoregions.
14 The areas around Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio
15 and the Lower Rio Grande Valley are highlighted. That
16 will be the acquisition or partnership approach to
17 developing these larger parks over the next ten years.
18 Other important data to be factored in will be
19 rivers. The plan recommends that state parks, wildlife
20 management areas wherever possible be located on major
21 waterways. We also named some priority state parks and
22 wildlife management areas for expansion in the plan. The
23 criteria involved was the location of the site for state
24 parks, natural and cultural recreational resource value,
25 the ability to expand the site, whether there's
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1 undeveloped land around it or whether it's surrounded by
2 an urban area, the current size of the site, whether it is
3 relatively large already or whether the site had proven
4 through visitation to be a destination. We also have
5 prioritized some wildlife management areas for expansion.
6 The criteria we used was the natural and recreational
7 value, the ability to expand again, its current size and
8 whether or not acquiring more land would improve access.
9 These are the wildlife management areas listed in the
10 plan. We also dealt with a tough issue in this plan of
11 divestiture of state parks and wildlife management areas.
12 This was required by the Sunset Bill. We developed
13 criteria for state parks, whether the site functioned more
14 as a local park than a state park, whether it was small,
15 whether it was undeveloped, or whether it was adjacent to
16 another entity who might manage it better. We also listed
17 criteria for divestiture of wildlife management areas
18 slightly different, whether it was adjacent to another
19 organization who can manage this site, whether it was too
20 small for research and demonstration, whether it was
21 isolated or presented other management issues. It's very
22 important to know and to let all the public know that
23 parks and wildlife will operate all the open state parks
24 and wildlife management areas and historic sites listed in
25 this plan until an appropriate owner can be found.
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1 On our historic sites list, I presented that
2 list yesterday of low and high priorities. Just to let
3 you know the criteria that went into that evaluation,
4 whether it was important to cultural themes in Texas or
5 our national heritage. Probably the thing that was
6 weighted the most was interpretive value of the site,
7 whether somebody could go there and learn something about
8 history. The integrity of the site was a factor, whether
9 it was important to Texas history or an outstanding person
10 or event was there, whether it had significant
11 architecture, archeology or scientific value as well as
12 other factors. This all went into that ranking process.
13 We also did a gap analysis in the plan. The main
14 recommendation here is that we need to work with the
15 Historic Sites Advisory Committee, the Texas Historical
16 Commission and other experts, academics to further refine
17 this process and give us strategies for selecting new
18 historic sites in the future.
19 You've seen this slide before. I won't spend
20 much time on it, but it is important that rivers are a
21 focus in this plan. We talk about how we've -- Parks and
22 Wildlife has had an effort over the last 12 years to
23 determine the water needs of our bay and estuary systems.
24 The focus of this plan is really to take that to our
25 rivers, our 15 major river basins in Texas. And over the
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1 next ten years determine their water flow needs for fish
2 and wildlife and recreation. We also looked at all our
3 major bay and estuary systems on the coast. All our major
4 bay and estuary systems are important but we did
5 prioritize them and rank them one through nine. The
6 Galveston Bay system was at the top. The key priorities
7 from this plan, the key goals that we set, were to provide
8 more large recreation areas within 90 minutes of our your
9 major metropolitan areas. That we need to expand our
10 efforts with landowners to include water quality and
11 quantity, to continue to conserve wildlife habitat and
12 also to increase our efforts to provide public recreation
13 on private land with those landowners what are willing to
14 enter into those kinds of agreements. We also talked
15 strongly in this plan about how we need to effective
16 communicate to state leaders, to citizens and to
17 regulatory agencies the value of ensuring that there's
18 adequate fresh water in Texas rivers and bays not only for
19 fish and wildlife but also for humans. And one final note
20 much the plan does talk about how the longer we wait to
21 act, the more of an impact all of these issues will have
22 on Texas' quality of life and also its economy.
23 Public comment was taken the plan, the draft has
24 to been on the with web site since June 20th. Eight
25 public meetings were held across the state, we've had
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1 1,200 e-mails, 200 letters and a petition drive. The
2 draft that's on the Internet now was placed there Friday
3 and then you have some small changes in red lined with you
4 now.
5 So the staff recommends to the Texas Parks and
6 Wildlife Commission that they adopt the following motion
7 that the Parks and Wildlife Commission adopt by resolution
8 which is in an exhibit the land and water resources
9 conservation and recreation plan.
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you, Jeff. It
11 indeed has been a tremendous effort and a great
12 accomplishment. I'm very proud of the staff and you and
13 Emily and all the others involved in this great effort.
14 As I said yesterday, I'll say it again today, there will
15 be those who say that this plan does not go far enough and
16 those that will say that this plan goes too far in some
17 instances. I asked you all and the ad hoc committee to
18 come up with a plan of achievable goals. I think the plan
19 does that. The good intentions or nice, but achievement
20 is better. And I think that going forward we have a solid
21 plan that we can -- that can guide us for the next ten
22 years and I want to thank the entire department, because
23 everybody got involved in this, for this tremendous
24 effort. And I think we've got some comments and that some
25 people on the Commission would like to ask questions and
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1 comment, as well.
2 Our first person is David Langford. And that
3 followed by Kirby Brown.
4 MR. LANGFORD: Madame Chairman, members of
5 the Commission, I'm David Langford, Texas Wildlife
6 Association. I would like to comment on the plan and make
7 sure it's on the record here at this particular hearing.
8 In the plan, it calls -- mainly because I want to
9 emphasize a couple things. In the plan, it calls for
10 getting together with the Private Lands Advisory Committee
11 to brainstorm ideas and to come up with new ideas and I
12 wanted to briefly talk about one of those ideas that we've
13 mentioned in comments and at the public hearing, but I
14 sure want to make sure that I enlist your help in this.
15 And two things happened in the last couple weeks that I
16 think exemplify the need for this. And it's a
17 clearinghouse for information about landowners who are
18 willing to provide access and those people who want
19 access, which is an awful lot.
20 A couple weeks ago, or every year, I participate
21 in the Prop 11 seminars where the people who are trying to
22 either get or keep the wildlife management tax valuation,
23 they put on seminars three Saturdays in a row at the
24 Cibolo Wilderness Area in Boerne. This time there were 18
25 landowners and you know, these people, everyone of them
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1 had -- they owned property in northern Bexar County and
2 southern Kendall County. So there they are trying to hold
3 off asphalt from covering them up. And they are all
4 interested in wildlife. I think only two of them had
5 houses on the property. The rest of it was, you know,
6 places for reflection and to get away. And then yesterday
7 at this hearing there was a couple right here. The
8 gentleman had a very strong accent and then I think it was
9 his wife testified right after that and they talked about
10 needing and wanting to find places where they could go
11 read a book, just be quiet and still for a while.
12 Well, you know, there's 18 landowners that are
13 wanting to do that and then here's a lot of people that
14 also want to do that and they've got no way to find each
15 other. So I understand the devils and the details. How
16 do we work that out? There's got to be, especially now
17 with the digital age and, you know, it seems to be we can
18 work out a way where a lot of these nonconsumptive,
19 nonhunting recreational opportunities can be provided if
20 people can but find one another. So I want to commit that
21 we'll definitely help you all work with that.
22 Listen, I am to close by saying I was very
23 interested in the comments from Mr. Hall of the Fish and
24 Wildlife Service a minute ago. I think there's only two
25 or three people in the room that sat here and listened to
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1 Dave Frederick when he came here and he said the exact
2 same things. And it didn't work out that way. Nobody
3 wants to see it work out, as Mr. Hall said, more than the
4 Texas Wildlife Association and more than me. But we've
5 heard it before, and I would ask everybody, once again the
6 devils and the details. Let's see what happens. And I
7 certainly hope it happens this time. Nobody would be
8 happier than me. Thank you.
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Ellis Gilleland, you
10 will be after Kirby Brown.
11 MR. BROWN: Madame Chairman, Commissioners,
12 my name is Kirby Brown with the Texas Wildlife
13 Association. We want to thank you for the opportunity to
14 provide input on the land and water conservation plan. It
15 looks like a very good plan. I think this is a great
16 step. It's a dynamic document. As we get into it if we
17 see problems it gives us an opportunity to change those
18 things. I think that's good too. I applaud you on this
19 approach and applaud the staff for the tremendous amount
20 of work they've done pulling that together. I think it's
21 going to be a good plan and we support the process that
22 was involved in it. Thanks so much.
23 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Brian Sybert you will
24 follow Mr. Gilleland.
25 MR. GILLELAND: My name is Ellis Gilleland
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1 speaking for Texas Animals. I've given you four handouts.
2 The first one is Hunting Declines as Social Landscape
3 Shifts. And the reason why I've submitted this to you is
4 because the emphasis in your plan on the Internet is
5 hunting. It does not show up in these slides that were
6 presented today.
7 The hunting is declining because your sales
8 yesterday we saw because of the social landscape. Even
9 your Mr. Doodo (phonetic) says the trend has been taking
10 place for the last 20 years. It reminds me of the wet
11 noodle and water running upstream. You are not going to
12 win it. And then the other underlined, losing licenses
13 has a revenue impact is one of the reasons I would have
14 been very interested in exploring avenues of other
15 funding. Your emphasis on hunting, I give you a clipping
16 from The Progress newspaper again, entitled, "Texas Parks
17 and Wildlife Working to Build More Support for Hunting."
18 And this goes in the future of hunting in Texas and so
19 forth.
20 You've done a multiplicity of studies over the
21 last five years. I don't know how many millions of
22 dollars have been spent. The A&M study in '98, Texas
23 Outdoors, '98, Future Hunting, A&M 2000, Ms. Dinkins
24 Taking Care of Texas, Smidley Texas Tech, Texas Parks and
25 Wildlife 21st Century. You've probably got about 4 or
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1 $5 million worth of surveys here. Now, none of them have
2 an emphasis on hunting. They're almost void. They're all
3 on parks near the urban areas. That's what it boils down
4 to. People don't want to hunt, folks. I've given you a
5 printout. This is from your own future of hunting. A&M,
6 Hunting is way down at the bottom of the list. Close to
7 home, fishing, walking, park visits, hiking, camping. Far
8 away from home fishing, camping, hiking and then hunting
9 down at the bottom with boating 6 percent and 5 percent.
10 You're forcing hunting. Look at your wall. Are there any
11 fish out there on the wall, ATVs on the wall, bird
12 watching on the wall, no. It's all big rack deer. Those
13 are your deer because you make your money off of them.
14 You're pushing deer on the public. The public doesn't
15 want them.
16 I've given you a deal -- alternate funding.
17 There's alternate funding. These people here this is a
18 Houston Chronicle Monday 17 June, 2002, City Wants
19 Visitors to Flock there Naturally. There are alternate
20 means of funding, Ms. Madame Chairman, if you open your
21 eyes and look for them and stop looking at the big racks.
22 There's dollars out there and there are people that want
23 to spend them and they want to go and get green. They'll
24 love you and they'll go with you, but you're not going to
25 push big racks on them because they're thinking people,
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1 they're intelligent people. Thank you.
2 MR. SYBERT: Madame Chairman, members of
3 the Commission, my name is Brian Sybert. I'm representing
4 the Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club. Thank you for
5 the opportunity to speak. Before my comments I would like
6 to just take the opportunity to thank Jeff and Emily and
7 everybody who put a lot of work into the plan. A lot of
8 time went into it and definitely they deserve our thanks.
9 In terms of the plan itself we would have liked to have
10 seen -- more -- seen the recommendation include more
11 acquisition of park land in those recommendations. But
12 having said that, we feel that the plan makes many
13 important recommendations for meeting both conservation
14 and recreation needs in the state. So we do think there's
15 a lot of important things that the plan addresses. And
16 it's a very important starting point. At this point, once
17 the plan is adopted, we really need to make implementation
18 of the plan a top priority and securing the financial
19 resources to make the plan a reality, a top priority and
20 that's for the Commission, for the citizens of the state
21 and everybody. That's going to be extremely important as
22 we go obviously into these upcoming session and sessions
23 after that. And I would also want to point out that the
24 Commission and the Department on the emphasis that's been
25 placed on water and we need to continue to keep a large
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1 focus on water especially going into the Legislative
2 sessions where there's going to be a lot of hard decisions
3 made on the water issue and that's going to be extremely
4 important.
5 Again, I would just like to say thank you. And
6 that concludes my comments.
7 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
8 MS. LEHMANN: Thank you for this
9 opportunity to speak. I'm just a private citizen and I do
10 agree very much with what Brian Sybert said about the
11 importance of water. As a matter of fact, the very report
12 says that the most common concern no matter what our level
13 of income, no matter where we live in Texas is the quality
14 and quantity of water. So I looked through this plan, got
15 some things off of the web -- your web site last night and
16 I have some suggestions.
17 First, I read on Page 61, "Strategies for
18 meeting the conservation and recreation needs on water as
19 follows: The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has
20 responsibility for maintaining healthy bays, adequate fish
21 populations, productive commercial fisheries and excellent
22 recreational fisheries."
23 In this same report I read our bays are getting
24 saltier, our fish populations, some of them have dropped
25 drastically, some of them are in danger of extinction. I
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1 read that the shrimp fishery has overfished. And as far
2 as excellent recreational fishing, when you need inflows I
3 read even the Colorado River can't make it to Gulf of
4 Mexico. Something is not right, and I don't think we're
5 addressing this.
6 I wish we could have some teeth. You're
7 responsible. You've listed the responsibilities and
8 you've listed your failures, but you haven't asked for
9 some kind of teeth so you can carry out your
10 responsibilities. I've heard very great accounts of how
11 well you are doing in so many fields, but in this one of
12 water this is vital. We have wrangled over land, over oil
13 and more and more we'll be wrangling over water and this
14 will rest with you, because what fish need, people need.
15 Please put this at the top of your priority. Please.
16 And I thought that not only demand teeth but as
17 the environmentalists have asked you, please buy land
18 connected with the sources of pure water. It's going to
19 be a fight more and more over the whole globe and in this
20 state. Please get the sources of water protected over our
21 aquifers, our springs, our head waters. Please do this.
22 Put it at the top of the list, because whatever else you
23 do in recreation, it's very important and you're doing a
24 fine job, if you don't protect our water, same as the
25 fish, it's going to be at your door. So I'm just asking
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1 you as a private citizen please to put this condition of
2 water, it's quality and quantity at the very top of your
3 program. Thank you very much.
4 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Do we have
5 any comments or questions from the Commission regarding
6 the land and water conservation plan?
7 COMMISSIONER AVILA: I do.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commission Avila.
9 COMMISSIONER AVILA: I just want to say
10 that -- commend both Jeff and Emily an outstanding job and
11 they certainly represent the next generation of our
12 department for young people and did a tremendous job as we
13 all reminded them as we get to talk to them. And for the
14 public, we look to divest ourselves of properties that
15 we've had in the inventory for a long, long time that over
16 time have become nothing more than small parks in some of
17 our rural cities or lessor historical sites that take
18 money from the Department to operate to maintain and to
19 have staff on -- on location and -- and as we give these
20 things to the local governments, that helps us do -- it
21 will help us do in the future the mission that they've
22 outlined in their program.
23 Small acreage, undeveloped land holdings, we
24 receive because we have purchased over years, they've been
25 bequeathed to us in Wills, they come to us as gifts or we
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1 just simply horse trade with other agencies or entities in
2 the state that do not fit what this plan now describes. I
3 just ask that we do the study to see what the best usage
4 is as we look to administer the disposition and -- and
5 that's all I have, Madame Chairman.
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you,
7 Commissioner Avila. Do we have any questions or comments?
8 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: I do.
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner
10 Fitzsimons.
11 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: I want to join
12 the Chairman and the other members of the Commission in
13 commending Jeff and Emily on their work. There is a very
14 tough, big job. As Bob Cook said yesterday, when it
15 started it looked really insurmountable, impossible. You
16 pulled it off, did a great job. We have information now
17 we've simply never had before to make some decisions that
18 will be tough, but I would like to respond to the comments
19 regarding, I think, primarily water.
20 I represent the Commission on the Texas Water
21 Advisory Council which the last session of the Legislature
22 created to identify water issues during the interim and to
23 make recommendations to the next Legislature and to the
24 leadership.
25 I don't think there's any coincidence that two
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1 of the three stated priorities in the conclusion of our
2 land and water conservation plan deal directly and
3 precisely with water. That's at Page 71. The only real
4 difference of opinion that I think I have, and I can't
5 speak for all of the Commission, but it's certainly my
6 philosophy, is that to protect something does not mean
7 that it is owned by the public. We learn today from
8 Mr. Hall, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service what many of us
9 already knew, that private stewardship is why we have so
10 many of our natural resources in the good shape they're
11 in, and that's where some of the final remnants that
12 Mr. Hall talked about are. And there is -- it is
13 hydrologically, practically impossible for the public
14 like -- for the Parks and Wildlife Department surely, to
15 buy every acre of recharge, every acre of watershed that's
16 necessary to protect our water. It has to be done through
17 partnerships with the private landowners that own those
18 watersheds. The watershed; if you will look at the
19 millions of acres of watershed in our various streams,
20 it's just -- it's huge. And that's where we're directing
21 a lot of our interests in this plan. And the plan very
22 specifically sets out goals. For instance, not to belabor
23 by pet issue of watershed management, but the wildlife
24 management plans if they're going to be doubled in the
25 next ten years to include watershed management, that's
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1 clearly a specific monitorable goal. So I want to commend
2 the team, the ad hoc committee. I was not on the ad hoc
3 committee. But I can tell you every Commissioner had an
4 opportunity to participate and I certainly took mine. So
5 don't think there's any doubt that water is at the top of
6 the priority list. Matter of fact, it is mentioned as two
7 of the three priorities on Page 71. Thank you.
8 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: For the record, I
9 would like to thank the ad hoc committee. They -- the
10 committee was made up of myself, Commissioner Henry,
11 Commissioner Montgomery, Commissioner Ramos, Dealey
12 Herndon, Barry Miller and Chairman Emeritus Bass. Did I
13 get everyone? They did a tremendous job. We met
14 regularly and wrestled with all these issues and we're
15 proud of the work that's been accomplished here. Now
16 let's go out and implement this plan and see what the
17 results are. We're very, very pleased. Are there any
18 other questions regarding this? If not, do I have a
19 motion?
20 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Move for approval.
21 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Second?
22 COMMISSIONER AVILA: Second.
23 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I have a motion by
24 Commissioner Ramos, second by Commissioner Avila. All in
25 favor?
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1 ("Aye.")
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
3 carries.
4 "The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission adopts by
5 resolution (Exhibit A) the Land and Water Resources
6 Conservation and Recreation Plan."
7 AGENDA ITEM NO. 16: ACTION - NOMINATION FOR OIL AND GAS
8 LEASE - HARRIS COUNTY
9 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: No. 16, Nomination of
10 Oil and Gas Lease Harris County, Ronnie Ray.
11 MR. RAY: Madame Chairman and
12 Commissioners, my name is Ronnie Ray. I'm with the Land
13 Conservation Program. This item is the recommend --
14 consideration of the nomination for oil and gas lease at
15 Sheldon Lake State Park in Harris County. The nominated
16 acres is 1,303 acres. Minimum bid would be $150 per acre,
17 the royalties would be 25 percent with a $10 per acre
18 delayed annual rental. The restrictions would be
19 offshore -- I mean, I'm sorry, off site operations only.
20 The motion recommended is "The Executive Director is
21 authorized to nominate for oil and gas lease to the board
22 for lease for Parks and Wildlife lands, four tracts of
23 property consisting of 1,303.31 mineral acres out of the
24 Sheldon Lake State Park at $150 per acre with a 25 percent
25 royalty, $10 per acre rental, and a three-year term,
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1 incorporating the restrictions set out in Exhibit A. The
2 income from the bonus bid and delayed rentals will be
3 dedicated to Sheldon Lake State Park. This action will
4 not be considered a precedent."
5 Any questions?
6 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: We have -- do we have
7 any questions or comments from the Commission? Because we
8 have one person signed up on this issue, Mr. Gilleland.
9 MR. GILLELAND: There's one handout. My
10 name is Ellis Gilleland speaking for Texas Animals. If
11 water is so important, why do you keep drilling oil wells
12 in the middle of them -- middle of it. I beseeched you
13 last meeting to please not drill oil in Sea Rim State
14 Park, marshlands, wetlands, practically on my knees,
15 begging you. Oh, water is so important. Hollow words.
16 Hollow words. Your actions do not match your words.
17 You're now going to drill in another wetlands area,
18 Sheldon Lake. It's not alligators this time. It's
19 people. It's young people, little guys we're talking
20 about, because it is an environmental education center.
21 Those of you from Houston know it to be a popular place
22 for school kids. Teachers take bus loads of kids out
23 there. I've given you an article on it. It's published
24 in the Amarillo Globe News about this fantastic
25 educational facility next to Houston 16 miles from
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1 downtown Houston. It's an outdoors classroom, a teaching
2 vehicle for all the kids in Houston. Texas voters
3 approved -- on the second page, "Texas voters approved the
4 $2.5 million bond issue for Sheldon Lake to begin the
5 first phase of multiphase development plan that would
6 include construction and offloading plaza for school,
7 scout groups, new interests, new park complex, classrooms,
8 additional nature trails, et cetera, et cetera."
9 That's where you want to drill your next oil
10 well. It seems like ever since we got a petroleum
11 engineer on the Commission, we seem to be having a
12 plethora of oil drilling projects in State Parks. Oh,
13 it's okay. We're going to do directional drilling. Well,
14 it isn't okay, because accidents happen, pipelines cross
15 wetlands, dry lands, everything else. And once those
16 lands are soiled and sullied we ought to ship a bottle of
17 water to Mr. Fitzsimons and let him drink his oily water.
18 Thank you.
19 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Are there any comments
20 or questions from the Commission? We have a motion by
21 Commissioner Angelo and a second by Commissioner Henry.
22 All in favor?
23 ("Aye.")
24 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed. Motion
25 carries.
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1 "The Executive Director is authorized to nominate for oil
2 and gast lease to the Board for Lease for Parks and
3 Wildlife Lands, four tracts of property consistent of
4 1303.31 mineral acres out of Sheldon Lake State Park, at
5 $150.00 per acre with a 25 percent royalty, $10.00 per
6 acre rental, and a 3-year term, incorporating the
7 restrictions set out in Exhibit A. The income from the
8 bonus bid and delay rental will be dedicated to Sheldon
9 Lake Stare Park. This action will not be considered a
10 precedent."
11 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Let me mention for the
12 general public, this particular lease does not give the
13 operator the right to access the surface for drilling
14 purposes, so it's clearly a -- it has an express
15 restriction and we've been very careful to preserve the
16 surface in all these state parks and sites for oil and gas
17 purposes.
18 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you,
19 Commissioner Ramos.
20 AGENDA ITEM NO. 17: ACTION - LAND SALE - TARRANT COUNTY,
21 HARRIS COUNTY, AUSTIN COUNTY
22 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Item No. 17, land
23 sale, Jack Bauer.
24 MR. BAUER: Good afternoon, Madame Chairman
25 and Commissioners. My name is Jack Bauer, Director of
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1 Land Conservation. As follow-up from yesterday's
2 Executive Session, we have land sale proposals that was
3 heard in the Conservation Committee Executive Session.
4 And I have them summarized for your consideration today.
5 They will include the sale or proposed sale of 400 acres
6 in Tarrant County of Eagle Mountain Lake State Park.
7 Revenue from this presumably would go for the -- for the
8 purchase of other lands that could be converted to
9 available park lands for the public.
10 Also under consideration is the sale of
11 facilities on four lots in Seabrook, the Seabrook Marine
12 Lab. It's excess property now. Staff that use these
13 facilities is now at the Dickinson site.
14 And we have the lands associated with a golf
15 course at Stephen F. Austin proposed for sale to the
16 Stephen F. Austin Golf Association.
17 And the proposal that we are recommending would
18 read, "The Executive Director is authorized to take all
19 necessary steps to sell, at or above fair market value the
20 400-acre Eagle Mountain Lake State Park in Tarrant County,
21 property associated with the Seabrook Marine Lab to the
22 City of Seabrook in Harris County and approximately 95
23 acres associated with the golf course at Stephen F. Austin
24 State Park in Austin County to the Stephen F. Austin Golf
25 Association. In the case of Eagle Mountain Lake State
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1 Park, preference will be given to accommodate sale of the
2 property to a local governmental entity."
3 I would be happy to answer any questions.
4 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have any
5 comments from the Commission?
6 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Madame Chairman, I
7 might ask, we mentioned yesterday that we had
8 correspondence from the comptroller's office concerning
9 the golf course at the Austin park. And I'm sure there
10 was some misunderstanding there and I know that that's
11 going to be clarified with her office if this action is
12 taken today, but I wanted to make sure there that was a
13 matter of record that we're going to take care of that.
14 MR. BAUER: Yes, sir.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have any other
16 questions.
17 COMMISSIONER HENRY: Just one. We also
18 indicated that we may want to ask the general counsel to
19 take a look at this overall issue with regard to accepted
20 bids and whether or not we are required in all instances
21 to accept the high bid or higher price.
22 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Avila.
23 COMMISSIONER AVILA: With regards to the
24 Eagle Mountain Lake and Jack you can answer this, do we
25 need to add to that property to a local government entity
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1 or a public privatization entity that would use it as a
2 park?
3 MR. BAUER: I think that certainly takes
4 the sentiment of staff and obviously of the Commission.
5 So if you wanted the motion expanded further, I would --
6 you know, whatever recommendation you would have.
7 COMMISSIONER AVILA: I think we may very
8 well see some of that together. It might be
9 public/private.
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Are you saying that we
11 should add to the language something about public, private
12 or some combination thereof type thing?
13 COMMISSIONER AVILA: Yes, ma'am.
14 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Can we do that?
15 MR. BAUER: Yes, ma'am.
16 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: I agree.
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Did I -- Commissioner
18 Fitzsimons did you want to make a comment? No. We have
19 two people signed up to speak on this one. Ellis
20 Gilleland, Wesley Stripling.
21 MR. GILLELAND: Who's going first?
22 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: You go first,
23 Mr. Gilleland.
24 MR. GILLELAND: I don't have a handout.
25 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Old habits.
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1 MR. GILLELAND: Ellis Gilleland speaking
2 here from Texas Animals. I am very much opposed to the
3 400 acres of Tarrant County being sold off to the highest
4 bidder. That's a beautiful spot on the lake, and why are
5 you selling it, oh, it's 400 and not 4,000. How big is
6 Central Park? Madame Chairman probably knows. I venture
7 to guess off the top of my head, it's probably 400 acres.
8 Okay. Let's get rid of it. It's not 4,000. Do you see
9 the absurdity of that? Do you see the absurdity of your
10 thinking? 400 acres in Tarrant County is gold, because in
11 your lifetime, not in mine, because in your lifetime
12 Tarrant County will be all concrete, Dallas county and
13 Tarrant County and you'll benefit from it, but you'll die
14 with a load on your heart if you get rid of that
15 400 acres. Save that for the people on the lake. The let
16 400 acres go around that lake. That's -- let's make a
17 Central Park in Tarrant County. All your studies -- all
18 your studies say metropolitan areas and parks. Now you
19 want to sell this one off. No justification given, no
20 reason. Oh, let's hit sale. We don't need a reason. You
21 need a reason with me.
22 Item C, sale of 95 acres of golf course. Do not
23 sell the golf course. Make a contract like you did at
24 Bastrop. Bastrop State Park contract is in this
25 gentleman, Cook's office, go look at it. You can grab
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1 that contract, ring them, twist them, move them, eject
2 them, shake them down, anything you want to do, kick them
3 out on the contract, but if you sell that -- if you sell
4 that golf court in the middle -- in the middle of the
5 Stephen F. Austin State Park, you've had it forever and
6 you're probably throwing the mineral rights to boot,
7 knowing you folks. Do not sell the golf course. Make a
8 contract like you did at Bastrop. Get some money out of
9 it. You want money. You're after money. Make a high
10 buck contract. That ought to appeal to you. Do not sell
11 the land. That will -- the ladies that just testified,
12 she'll love that. The old folks are smart enough to see
13 that, see the concrete coming. You young folks are not.
14 Hold onto the land. Thank you.
15 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: We have a Lon Burnam
16 signed up to speak. And Jon Robinson.
17 MR. BREEDING: Yeah. Actually it's Les
18 Breeding for Lon Burnam, sorry.
19 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Okay. Go ahead.
20 MR. BREEDING: My name is Les Breeding.
21 I'm the Legislative Director for State Representative Lon
22 Burnam and I have a letter from him that I would like to
23 read and then just a couple of quick comments. And this
24 is from the Representative, "I would like to join my
25 colleague, Representative Charlie Geren in expressing
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1 concerns regarding the proposed sale of the Eagle Mountain
2 Lake State Park by the State Parks and Wildlife. The park
3 has the potential of providing recreational opportunities
4 for my constituents in District 90 -- Representative
5 Burnam represents a district within the confines of the
6 City of Fort Worth -- because it's location is so near the
7 City of Fort Worth. Other options at a greater distance
8 from the city, such as 90 miles, for instance, would not
9 be nearly as useful for them. Additionally the value of
10 preserving this park cannot be underestimated. I
11 appreciate the work of the Texas Parks and Wildlife
12 Conservation Committee in responding to their charge to
13 maximize efficient use of public land. Although the Eagle
14 Mountain Lake State Park would likely be a valuable piece
15 of property on the market, it's even more valuable to the
16 citizens of Texas from a recreational and conservation
17 standpoint. In light of these thoughts, I urge the
18 Commission to develop the Eagle Mountain Lake State Park
19 as part of the TPWD system or transfer it to another
20 governmental entity for local management as recommended by
21 your Land and Water Resources Conservation Plan. And
22 thanks for your time and assistance, and we look forward
23 to working with you."
24 And I think that we're generally going in the
25 right direction. I think the many thing that causes us
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1 concern is just a straight sale to a private entity. That
2 situation I think would really be difficult for us to --
3 to contemplate. If you are able to find a local entity
4 that is able -- that you're able to transfer to, you know,
5 those options make sense. I think that we have a little
6 bit of concern in being careful that that time line is not
7 too expedited, though. You know, if we are thinking that
8 this is going to turn over fairly quickly and the private
9 market would really love, I'm sure, for that land to turn
10 over quickly. It's valuable property. And it -- if that
11 forces you all to move too quickly, it will be quicker
12 than what the local entities can move. They need to think
13 about making the decision. It's a commitment on their
14 part. They need to raise monies. All of those things are
15 going to take time as we all know. And the private sector
16 can move a lot more quickly than what they can. So I hope
17 that you all are planning on, you know, this being a good
18 long-term decision that's going to be the best for the
19 state and particularly for the folks there in Tarrant
20 County. If you all could keep us informed, our office,
21 and I'm sure that Representative Geren's office would like
22 that too, of any progress that's happening on the
23 particular site, that would really be helpful. And if we
24 can do anything for you, we would want to do that.
25 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you.
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1 MR. BREEDING: Sure.
2 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Jon Ed Robbins.
3 MR. ROBBINS: Madame Chair, Commissioners.
4 I'm Jon Ed Robbins. I'm Precinct Administrator for
5 Tarrant County Precinct 4 Commissioner, J.D. Johnson. I'm
6 here this afternoon representing the Commissioner's Court
7 of Tarrant County. Only after signing up to speak this
8 morning did I become aware of yesterday's actions and
9 certainly the Commission's Court will applaud the
10 opportunity that you're providing for our local
11 governments to acquire this -- this park. The park is
12 located in Precinct 4, and it is a very beautiful piece of
13 land. The -- I guess in a perfect world, we might be
14 allowed a little bit more time. This -- I understand the
15 appraised value of this park is in excess of $6 million
16 and as Mr. Gilleland commented I think it's already turned
17 to gold, that's land in Tarrant County. Fort Worth and
18 Tarrant County, we're all but have our final budgets
19 approved, so it's going to be rough getting that $6
20 million together in such a short time. We might be back
21 asking for a brief extension if we get close. But we
22 appreciate your thoughts. Thank you.
23 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Do we have
24 any comments or questions from the Commission?
25 Commissioner Fitzsimons? I'm sorry.
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1 MR. STRIPLING: I'm Wes Stripling and I was
2 signed up to speak.
3 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Oh, my goodness. I'm
4 so sorry. Yes, sir. Wesley Stripling. So sorry.
5 MR. STRIPLING: Madame Chairman,
6 Commissioners, my name is Wes Stripling. I'm an attorney.
7 I'm here today representing Lloyd, Walsh -- that would be
8 William Lloyd Walsh and Richard Walsh. William Lloyd
9 Walsh was the original owner of approximately 100 acres of
10 the for 400-acre property in Tarrant County. He sold that
11 property to the Parks and Wildlife approximately in 1980,
12 retained 50 percent of the minerals. Richard Walsh is an
13 adjoining landowner. We're here today to oppose any type
14 of sale to a private development. I would echo
15 Commissioner Avila's sentiments of that. You all reflect
16 carefully on the proper disposition of these properties.
17 The purpose of the acquisition originally was for public
18 convenience, necessity and other purposes, and it was
19 acquired under threat of eminent domain. And I have a
20 letter from the Commission that will confirm that. And
21 certainly an eminent domain, the only purpose for eminent
22 domain is indeed the public convenience and necessity or
23 other public purpose. I would suggest that sale to a
24 private enterprise would not satisfy that.
25 I would also suggest that a sale of a property
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1 of this size would be in conflict with the mission
2 statement of the Commission, and that is to conserve and
3 manage natural resources and to provide outdoor recreation
4 and manage historical sites.
5 In the overall conservation water plan, this
6 area is a Tier 2 priority and I would suggest that to sell
7 this to a private developer, simply would be more
8 condominiums, more boat ramps, more boat traffic and in an
9 area that is already widely overdeveloped in the Eagle
10 Mountain area. I also suggest that there has been
11 insufficient public information on the impact that this
12 sale would have on the area and that that's something that
13 I would think that you all would want to consider.
14 The only public notice regarding the sale of
15 this property pertained to the public notice and public
16 comment on the plan in its entirety and those hearings
17 were conducted in Plano and -- Plano north of Dallas and
18 in Amarillo. And so I would say that the Commission has
19 been deprived of any meaningful comment from the people
20 who would be most impacted from the sale. And so,
21 therefore, we would respectfully request that you deny the
22 approval of the sale today until you get -- put some
23 safeguards in place to assure that this would not fall
24 into the hands of a private developer. Thank you very
25 much.
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1 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Do we have
2 any comments or questions from the Commission?
3 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I do. Sir, counsel,
4 Mr. Stripling.
5 MR. STRIPLING: I'm sorry.
6 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I just have a
7 question. Have you looked at the deed to determine
8 whether or not there's any express restrictions or
9 limitations in the deed?
10 MR. STRIPLING: I have. There is not.
11 There's a reservation of 50 percent of the minerals.
12 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: And that's it?
13 MR. STRIPLING: Uh-huh.
14 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: But there is no
15 limitation on sale or for future use or anything?
16 MR. STRIPLING: There is no restriction. I
17 do have, however, the letter from the Texas Parks and
18 Wildlife Commission which I would be happy to make a copy
19 available to the Commission which indicates -- I can read
20 it to you. It's quite brief.
21 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Do you know if that
22 letter was incorporated into the deed?
23 MR. STRIPLING: I do not know the answer to
24 that question. The truth of the matter is my clients
25 had -- only became aware of this issue just a few days ago
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1 and really have had insufficient time to properly evaluate
2 it. Would you like for me to read the letter?
3 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: If you would like to.
4 MR. STRIPLING: This is from the Executive
5 Director, Charles Travis, to Mr. Walsh, "I wish to advise
6 you that the Parks and Wildlife Commission authorized
7 acquisition of your 99.66 acres in Tarrant County for
8 public convenience necessity and other purposes. Although
9 the property was acquired by negotiation, it was
10 negotiated and acquired under the threat of the
11 Department's power of eminent domain. Sincerely," and
12 then it's not only signed by the Executive Director but
13 also approved by Les King, who was at that time Assistant
14 Attorney General.
15 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Okay. Thank you.
16 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Do we have any
17 comments from any of the other Commissioners?
18 Commissioner Avila?
19 COMMISSIONER AVILA: The only comment I
20 would add to this and obviously I think everybody knows
21 this, it's been very well and thoroughly discussed. In
22 regards to moving forward, I would bow to the sentiments
23 of my fellow Commissioners as such action is, you know,
24 commensurate with what our plan is in terms of acquiring
25 land in larger amounts within a 90-minute area and so
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1 forth. Yesterday we talked about a time frame and
2 deliberately didn't put this in Jack's motion, because it
3 actually gave more time. I mean, so the way I'm
4 interpreting this is we're going do give every preference
5 to the local government, local communities in putting this
6 together assuming we move forward in some steadfast way
7 and that there is no time frame. Am I right on that,
8 Jack?
9 MR. BAUER: I think in my interpretation of
10 being a land person, I think that that in general is true.
11 I think the other factors that would be involved in this
12 from a decision of all of us would be, of course, we're
13 trying to find a suitable replacement and so there are
14 other lands and other components of the transaction in
15 general that would be in consideration, but I think, yeah
16 you have heard from staff and certainly the sentiment of
17 staff is that the opportunity for this facility to stay
18 available and open to the public for the people of Fort
19 Worth is what everyone would like to have. And to the
20 extent that we can use the values that we have invested in
21 this property convert to another place also for the people
22 of Fort Worth, could very possibly create a situation
23 where everybody comes out of this in a very positive way.
24 COMMISSIONER AVILA: I think that's
25 important for everybody to realize, that this is a -- the
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1 direction we're talking here is we're going to get a
2 two-fer out of this. We're looking for nondeveloper
3 public privatization use of that area and still get an
4 area of 4 or 5,000 acres within 90 minutes is what you're
5 saying.
6 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Madame Chairman.
7 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Ramos?
8 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Just for the record,
9 Jack, if we were to pass this motion we would be
10 authorizing staff to sell it, but obviously staff will
11 make the decision as to whether it should be sold at some
12 point? You're really asking for the authority to pursue
13 the sale of these tracts. Correct?
14 MR. BAUER: Yes, sir, that's correct.
15 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: But if for whatever
16 reason the price or for whatever reason it does not
17 happen, you're not mandated to sell it, in other words,
18 and you're not asking that it be mandated for sale; you're
19 just asking for authority to sell.
20 MR. BAUER: Yes, sir, that's correct.
21 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: That's fine. Thank
22 you.
23 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Avila, do
24 you have any more further questions or comments? Do we
25 have any further questions or comments?
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1 MR. STRIPLING: This is the only property
2 of three properties that are being proposed for sale right
3 now where even though the Commission is expressing good
4 intentions as to what the disposition of that is, there
5 actually is no restriction on who that would be sold to
6 and indeed there -- if the staff is authorized to sell
7 that, then the way that I understand the resolution that
8 is a cart blanche to sell it and if they determine at that
9 time that they can raise the money to sell it to a private
10 enterprise that it could therefore be sold to a private
11 enterprise without further comment. Would that be
12 correct?
13 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: I don't believe that's
14 correct. I believe that they would have to come to us for
15 approval for the sale before that sale could be
16 consummated. Is that correct?
17 MR. BAUER: That would be the way that we
18 would feel a comfort level in doing it. We might have
19 greater authority than that, but I don't think we would
20 have the comfort level to do that without assuring that
21 the Commission knew what the -- what the technical
22 components of the transaction were to be.
23 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Donato?
24 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: I want to suggest in
25 view of that statement that we amend your proposed
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1 recommendation and that the staff as it relates only to
2 the Eagle Mountain Lake State Park that you come back to
3 the Commission for express authority to consummate the
4 sale. In other words, you have the authority to proceed
5 with it, but before that sale would be consummated that
6 would you come back to the Commission with the details and
7 subject to Commission approval.
8 COMMISSIONER HENRY: I second that.
9 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Only as to that with
10 one Eagle Mountain Lake State Park.
11 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Commissioner Angelo?
12 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Is that a motion to
13 adopt it with that change?
14 COMMISSIONER RAMOS: Yes.
15 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: I would second that
16 motion.
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: All in favor?
18 ("Aye.")
19 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Opposed? Motion
20 carries.
21 "The Executive Director is authorized to take all
22 necessary steps to sell, at or above fair market value,
23 the 400-acre Eagle Mount Lake State Park in Tarrant
24 County, property associated with the Seabrook Marine Lab
25 to the City of Seabrook in Harris County, and
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1 approximately 95 acres associated with the golf course at
2 Stephen F. Austin State Park in Austin County to the
3 Stephen F. Austin Golf Association. In the case of Eagle
4 Mountain Lake State Park, preference will be given to
5 accommodate sale of the property to a local governmental
6 entity or governmental/private partnership and the
7 Executive Director is directed to bring a sale
8 recommendation before the Texas Parks and Wildlife
9 Commission for final approval."
10 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Thank you. Okay.
11 Thank you. Mr. Cook, do we have any further business?
12 MR BAUER: Ma'am, we have one more item.
13 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Oh, I'm sorry. Oh, my
14 goodness. Go ahead. Sorry. Yeah, but do it quickly.
15 AGENDA ITEM NO. 18: ACTION - LAND ACQUISITION - CAMERON
16 COUNTY, SMITH COUNTY, WILLACY COUNTY
17 CHAIRMAN ARMSTRONG: Action Item No. 18
18 Land Acquisition.
19 MR. BAUER: We're obviously all quite ready
20 to be done.
21 COMMISSIONER AVILA: Move approval.
22 MR. BAUER: The other component of land
23 actions is -- are the proposals for land acquisitions and
24 we have three. This is again a very brief summary from
25 discussions yesterday in Executive Session. The lands are
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1 that are considered for acquisition include a 600-acre
2 habitat tract in Smith County as a habitat addition to Old
3 Sabine Bottom Wildlife Management Area and the purchase of
4 a perpetual lease on 40 acres of land in Willacy County
5 that would be, again, a habitat addition to the Arroyo
6 Colorado Unit of the Las Palomas Wildlife Management Area
7 and at the Longoria Unit of Las Palomas in Cameron County
8 a habitat addiction of farmland adjacent to that tract.
9 And the motion that we have before you would
10 give staff authority to take the actions to acquire these
11 three tracts as briefed. And I would be happy to answer
12 any questions on this item.
13 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Are there any
14 questions or comments from the Commission? Do we have a
15 motion?
16 COMMISSIONER AVILA: Moved.
17 COMMISSIONER FITZSIMONS: Second.
18 COMMISSIONER HENRY: Second.
19 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Discussion? All in
20 favor say aye.
21 ("Aye.")
22 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Opposed? Motion is
23 adopted.
24 "The Executive Director is authorized to take all
25 necessary steps to acquire approximately 600 acres in
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1 Smith County as an addition to Old Sabine Bottom Wildlife
2 Management Area, approximately 40 acres in Willacy County
3 as a perpetual lease addition to the Arroyo Colorado Unit
4 of the Las Palomas Wildlife Manage Area, and approximately
5 117 acres in Cameron County as habitat additions to the
6 Longoria Unit of the Las Palomas Wildlife Management
7 Area."
8 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: Is there any other
9 business before the Commission?
10 MR. COOK: No, sir.
11 VICE-CHAIRMAN ANGELO: If not, this meeting
12 is adjourned.
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1 THE STATE OF TEXAS )
2 COUNTY OF TRAVIS )
3 I, Rhonda Howard, a Certified Court Reporter in and
4 for the State of Texas, do hereby certify that the above
5 and foregoing pages constitute a full, true, and correct
6 transcript of the minutes of the Texas Parks and Wildlife
7 Commission on August 29, 2002, in the Commission hearing
8 room of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Headquarters Complex,
9 Austin, Travis County, Texas.
10 I FURTHER CERTIFY that a stenographic record was made
11 by me at the time of the public meeting and said
12 stenographic notes were thereafter reduced to computerized
13 transcription under my supervision and control.
14 WITNESS MY HAND this ____ day of
15 ____________________, 2002.
16
17
18 ___________________________
Rhonda Howard, Texas CSR 4136
19 Expiration Date: 12/31/2002
3101 Bee Caves Road
20 Suite 220, Centre II
Austin, Texas 78701
21 (512) 328-5557
22
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24
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1
2
3
4 ___________________________
KATHARINE ARMSTRONG, CHAIRMAN
5
6 ___________________________
ERNEST ANGELO, JR, VICE-CHAIRMAN
7
8 ___________________________
JOSEPH FITZSIMONS
9
10 ___________________________
KELLY W. RISING, M.D.
11
12 ___________________________
PHIL MONTGOMERY
13
14 ___________________________
JOHN AVILA, JR.
15
16 ___________________________
ALVIN L. HENRY
17
18 ___________________________
DONATO D. RAMOS
19
20 ___________________________
MARK E. WATSON, JR.
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