For several weeks, I have been posting about why Senate Bill 7 (SB7) deserves our support. I focused mainly on the flood mitigation dollars it would provide and how it could accelerate projects that actually reduce flood risk.

Senator Creighton’s office provided this link to an interview that Austin television station KXAN did with him. It focuses heavily on another aspect of the bill: the development of a statewide flood plan.

SB7 passed the Senate unanimously and was referred to the House Natural Resources Committee on March 28.

The House is currently considering a bill that would do some of the same things: HB13. The Natural Resources Committee reported favorably on it, but the Calendars Committee has not yet scheduled it for debate in the House.

The low numbers on both of these bills indicate that they are high priorities within their respective chambers. I suspect at some point in the near future a conference committee will try to reconcile the best aspects of both bills.

In the meantime, Senator Creighton’s bill is out of the gate faster and farther down the road. It deserves all the support we can give it.

Posted by Bob Rehak on 4/4/2019

583 Days since Hurricane Harvey