Enrolled Bill Summary

House Bill 2470 amends the Parks and Wildlife Code to require the Parks and Wildlife Department to increase funding allocated to commercial license buyback programs for finfish, shrimp, and crabs by $2 million if the money is available from donations, grants, legislative appropriations, or other sources. This requirement is abolished September 1, 2005. The bill also expands the oyster program at the Texas Department of Agriculture to include shrimp and establishes the Texas shrimp marketing assistance program to promote and advertise the Texas shrimp industry by taking certain actions. The bill requires the commissioner of agriculture to appoint a 10-member shrimp advisory committee to assist in implementing the program and funds the program at a minimum level of $250,000 per fiscal year from a new surcharge on the annual license fee for shrimp-producing aquaculture facilities and from a 10 percent increase in certain other shrimp-related license fees deposited into the newly created shrimp marketing account. The bill prohibits the fees, with the exception of the wholesale truck dealer's fish license fee, from being increased by more than 10 percent of the September 1, 2002 levels, until September 1, 2005.