R96-060RESOLUTION NO. R96-~
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION
OF THE CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH,
FLORIDA,' OPPOSING RECOMMENDATIONS IN
THE PRESIDENTS 1996 BUDGET REQUEST
WHICH WOULD REMOVE FEDERAL
PARTICIPATION IN WATER RESOURCES
PROJECTS , INCLUDING BEACH
RENOURISHMENT PROJECTS, WHICH ARE
NOT "NATIONALLY SIGNIFICANT",
RECOMMENDING THAT THE CURRENT
FEDERAL CRITERIA FOR PARTICIPATION
AND COST-SHARING BE RETAINED, AND
OPPOSING ANY FUTURE LEGISLATION
WHICH MAY ELIMINATE OR LIMIT FEDERAL
PARTICIPATION IN SUCH EFFORTS; AND
PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, President Clinton's Fiscal Year 1996 budget
request contains proposals to introduce legislation which will
eliminate federal financial participation in water projects,
including shore erosion control, hurricane and storm damage
reduction, and flood control projects which are not considered
to be of "national significance", and including all beach
nourishment projects nationwide; and
WHEREAS, for those projects which can demonstrate
"national significance", the Administration proposes to
increase the minimum qualifying benefit/cost ration to 2:1
from 1:1, and to increase the non-federal share of the cost
from fifty percent (50%) to seventy-five percent (75%); and
WHEREAS, most of Palm Beach County's beachfront has been
and is continuing to experience severe erosion due to natural
causes such as storms, hurricanes, sea level rise and man-made
influences; and
WHEREAS, since the early 1970's, Palm Beach county has
acted as local sponsor for numerous federally-funded shore
protection projects, providing increased beach width and storm
protection along approximately eight (8) miles of the County's
44-1/2 mile coast, at a total cost of approximately $28.7
million of which approximately $10.3 million was the federal
investment, $8.6 million was the state share and $9.8 million
was local money; and
WHEREAS, the calculated value of the shorefront
development in Palm Beach County which is protected by beaches
from hurricane and storm wave damage is in excess of $6.5
billion; and
WHEREAS, the health of Palm Beach County's beaches is
fundamental to the health of the County's tourism industry,
which in turn is a foundation of the County's economy; and
WHEREAS, according to a recent Corps of Engineers study,
the justification for federal participation in Palm Beach
County's beach renourishment and erosion control projects is,
and has been, their demonstrated contribution to the nation's
national economic development (NED) consistent with protection
of the nation's environment, pursuant to environmental
statutes, applicable executive orders, and requirements to
preserve human safety, social well-being and cultural and
historic resources; and
WHEREAS, beaches are the most important single factor
inducing tourists to visit Florida; and
WHEREAS, the 21.6 million tourists who annual visit
Florida's beaches directly spend $7.9 billion, create 359,000
jobs, and generate $15.4 billion for Florida's economy; and
WHEREAS, seven million foreign tourists visit Florida
each year, with 2~3 million from Canada who stay an average of
twenty-one (21) days each and spend $1.6 billion annually; and
WHEREAS, travel and tourism is the largest industry in
the U.S. and the world, the largest employer in the U.S.,
accounts for the greatest job growth in the U.S., is the
leading component of a growing service-industry international
trade surplus for the U.S. (only agriculture generates a
larger trade surplus), and is an industry in which the U.S.
dominates worldwide in revenues and profits; and
WHEREAS, annual average federal expenditures for beach
nourishment projects over the past forty-four (44) years have
been about $15 billion and the gross regional product produced
from beach tourism ~or coastal states is estimated to be about
$170 billion, indicating the extra-ordinarily positive
benefit/cost ratio of protecting the nation's beaches; and
WHEREAS, Palm Beach County and other local municipalities
have successfully and in good faith constructed its projects
which the expectation that the federal obligation to
participate in these projects for their economic lives would
be honored; and
WHEREAS, eliminating federal participation in beach
nourishment, flood control, and shore protections programs
will remove a talented and experienced pool of U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers scientists and engineers from coastal research
efforts and place a significant additional burden on state
agencies and educational institutions to continue such
research; and
WHEREAS, eliminating the federal role in projects for
flood control, hurricane and storm damage and shoreline
erosion control will at least double the cost of the projects
for states and local governments, placing an unacceptable
financial burden on these entities, and reducing the ability
of state and local governments to protect file, land, and
coastal structures and infrastructure.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF
THE CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA THAT:
Section 1. The City Commission of the City of Boynton
Beach, Florida, does hereby oppose the recommendations in the
Presidents 1996 budget request which would remove or limit
federal participation in water resources projects, including
beach renourishment projects, which are not "nationally
significant" and recommending that the current federal
criteria for participation in water resources projects,
including beach renourishment projects, which are not
"nationally significant" and recommending that the current
federal criteria for participation in such projects.
Section 2. The City of Boynton Beach hereby requests
that this Resolution be submitted to U.S. Representative E.
Clay Shaw; U.S. Senator Connie Mack; all Palm Beach County
Municipalities; and the Board of County Commissioners of Palm
Beach County.
Section 3. This
immediately upon passage.
Resolution shall take effect
PASSED ANDADOPTED this
~Commissioner
F day of May, 1996.
CITY OF BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA
M~yor /
Commiss loner ~
Com~ss loner
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