Public Notice and Request for Comments on the Texas Coastal Management Program's Submission of Proposed Program Changes
NOTICE: Pursuant to 15 CFR §923.84, notice is given that the Texas General Land Office (GLO),
on behalf of the State of Texas, has submitted a request to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Office for Coastal Management (NOAA/OCM) for approval of changes to the federally approved Texas Coastal Management Program (CMP).
Purpose of Notice: The CMP was established by the Coastal Coordination Act, Texas Natural Resources Code, Chapter 33, Subchapter F, as amended. In 1996, NOAA found that the Texas CMP met the criteria for federal approval pursuant to the federal Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA). Once approved by NOAA, the program became eligible to receive federal funds, and the state was granted authority to review proposed federal actions that may have reasonably foreseeable effect on uses or resources of the Texas Coastal Zone for consistency with the enforceable policies of the Texas CMP. OCM must review and approve changes to a state’s CMP before those changes can be incorporated into the CMP and/or used to review proposed federal actions for consistency with the enforceable policies of the Texas CMP.
Description of Proposed Changes: The program change submission covers program changes from December 1, 2022 through July 10, 2023. Additional information and related documents are available on the GLO’s website at: https://www.glo.texas.gov/coastal/protecting-coast/federal-consistency .
The program change submission consists of four parts; (1) the main body describing the program changes; (2) an attachment consisting of the rule proposal package for 31 TAC Chapters 26-30, which was published in the Texas Register on January 27, 2023; (3) an attachment consisting of the changes to Texas’s Listed Activities Subject to CZMA Review in redline format; and (4) an attachment consisting of the new rules adopted in 31 TAC Chapter 30, “Procedures for Federal Consistency with Coastal Management Program Goals and Policies.”
The submitted program changes involve minor administrative and editorial amendments to the CMP rules in Chapters 26- 29. These non-substantive amendments implement the 2013 program change submission approved by NOAA. This includes the administrative transfer of the CMP rules to 31 TAC Chapters 26-30, as well as necessary updates to internal cross references within the rules due to the transfer. The program changes also include the replacement of the federal consistency procedures in 31 TAC Chapter 30. New Chapter 30 reorganizes, streamlines, and clarifies the rules to adhere to the federal regulations in 15 C.F.R. Part 930 and implements the amendments to the Coastal Coordination Act, as amended by SB 656.
The GLO has evaluated these changes pursuant to 15 C.F.R. Part 923, Subpart H, and concluded that these changes do not make substantial changes to the enforceable policies or authorities of the Texas CMP related to uses subject to management, special management areas, boundaries, authorities, and organization, and coordination, public involvement, and the national interest. No new enforceable policies are proposed to be added to the CMP with the submitted program changes.
Notice is being provided to the general public and affected parties, including local governments, state agencies, and regional offices of relevant federal agencies as required by 15 C.F.R. §923.81(e)(1). A list of persons and organizations notified is available for inspection or can be provided upon request from the contact information below.
COMMENTS
Pursuant to 15 CFR §923.81(e)(3), comments may be submitted through the Program Change Portal website which can be found at: https://coast.noaa.gov/czmprogramchangeor written comments may be sent to Joelle Gore, NOAA/OCM, 1305 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD, 20910 within 21 days of the date of issuance of this notice.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Additional information and documents related to this Program Change, are available on the NOAA’s Program Change Portal at: https://coast.noaa.gov/czmprogramchange
More information about the Texas CMP’s federal consistency review authority can be found at:
https://www.glo.texas.gov/coastal/protecting-coast/federal-consistency
If you have questions regarding this notice, please contact Texas GLO Federal Consistency Coordinator, Leslie Koza at: Federal.Consistency@glo.texas.gov.