Mr. Sanders,
I could not find a way to directly email your conservation
director, Alan Allen, who wrote the following article (TPWD Fee Distribution)
for your website, but there is pending legislation I think your club needs to
know about.
In this article, Mr. Allen discusses the fees that your group pays
and the disparity of the allocation of those fees within TPWD. My group has
OFFERED to pay fees and permits but the TPWD has recommended to the legislature
that all "protected freshwater areas" in the state of Texas be
permanently closed to all "motor vehicles - meaning any wheeled or
tracked vehicle, machine, tractor, trailer, or semi-trailer drawn by
mechanical power and used to transport a person or things."
A protected freshwater area is defined as "the bottom, bed or
bank of any navigable river or stream within the gradient
boundaries."
What this means to me is that you and your members will no longer
be able to launch your boat on your trailer into any river in the state
of
Senate Bill 155 and it's companion bill
House Bill 305 are now being considered in the legislature. SB 155 was authored
by Judith Zaffirini of
www.capitol.state.tx.us
, go
to the search engine marked "quick bill status" and type in HB 305 or
SB 155 and you can read the text of the bills from there.
If you have any further questions, or I can help your group in any
way, please feel free to contact me. And if you could "spread the
word" within your organization, and with other anglers who may be
affected, I would truly appreciate it.
Sincerely,
Carol L. Smith
AMA CC Texas Hill Country
TORA - Hill Country Representative