Responding to recent public input on standards for private boat docks on the Highland Lakes, the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) announced that it will step back and restudy the proposals over the next few months. LCRA drafted the standards to address concerns by lakeside residents that abandoned and broken-down private docks pose potential safety and water quality problems. LCRA has worked with advisory groups, including PLTA , over the past year in developing the standards.

An LCRA representative told PLTA that "We have made considerable progress in developing standards that will address safety concerns thanks to the public input received, but the information we received at the latest public meetings tell us that we still have a way to go to address the safety issue without burdening residents who own boat docks".

One specific provision for which LCRA will be seeking alternatives is the registration of private boat docks on the Highland Lakes. A number of lake residents voiced concerns that the registration process could be burdensome to the majority of dock owners when only a small minority of dock owners were creating the problems. Although the proposed standards did not include fees for registering docks, some lake residents were concerned that registration could lead to the imposition of fees to pay for the program.

 During the 1999 session of the Texas legislature, a bill was passed (HB1437) that allowed the LCRA to sell water to Round Rock, Georgetown and other fast growing cities of Williamson County, even though Williamson County is outside the water service area of the LCRA and within the boundries of the Brazos River Authority. The object, as stated in HB1437, was that the Colorado River basin should not be required to suffer a "net loss of water" as a result of this inter-basin transfer. Also, the bill allowed the LCRA to add to the price of the water a surcharge to be used for the development of new water sources within the Colorado basin. It was not and still is not clear if "no net loss" meant that the water was to be replaced immediately, a year later or even five years later.

The bill created an advisory group, made up of rice farmers, who were to advise the LCRA board of directors how to spend the mitigation fund and get the water back into the Colorado basin. Although the Highland lakes are a major stockholder in the program, they were not represented on this advisory group. So, Highland Lakes Political Action Committee proposed an amendment to HB1437 in 2001 designed to correct several of the perceived weaknesses in the bill. The amendment would have returned 1.33 gallons of water to the Colorado basin for each gallon transferred to Williamson County. Also, the amendment gave representation for the lakes on the advisory group and provided for accountability on the part of LCRA for the book-keeping involved in the water in, water out equation.

The bills were introduced in both Natural Resources committees but both bills died in committee.

Earlier this year, the chair of the HB1437 advisory group, a rice farmer named Haskel Simon, generously invited a representative of the lakes to sit in on the advisory group meetings as a full participant. Since March 2002, Cole Rowland of Highland Lakes Group has been an active member or the HB1437 advisory group.

Recently, the advisory group recommended to the LCRA board a definition of "no net loss" to mean a positive balance in the water-in, water-out "bank account" from the start and at all times during the life of the water sales contract.

It's time for the annual election of directors to the PLTA board. The PLTA Board of Directors consists of up to nine (9) members who serve one (1) year terms and are volunteers. The top nine (9) vote getters will be the new board. Write-ins are acceptable as long as the person being nominated is willing to serve on this volunteer board and is a paid-up member of PLTA. To vote on the directors you must be a member in good standing - a dues paid member.

Here is the ballot for FY '02 -'03. Vote for 9 only and return by September 1, 2002.

Mary Anne Krohn______ Ken Fossler ______ Bill Sauber ________
John Strickland________ Becky Bell________ Lonnie Moore______
Write-in __________________ Write-in________________Write-in________________

( )Enclosed is my annual dues of $10 ( )Enclosed is my donation of $________

Your name _____________________________________
Addrress_______________________________________
City, State, Zip__________________________________
Home Phone_____________________Work Phone_____________________________
FAX Number______________________e-mail Address__________________________

Please mail to: Protect Lake Travis Association
12016 Carmel Park Lane
Austin, Texas 78727