| |
| |
|
|
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
|
|
|
WHEREAS, The cruise operations in the home port of Galveston |
|
|
have an enormous economic impact on Texas; the city hosted |
|
|
approximately 1.5 million passenger and crew visits in 2024, and in |
|
|
2023, the industry was responsible for generating more than 4,500 |
|
|
Texas jobs, $291 million in personal income, $733 million in local |
|
|
business revenues, and $25 million in state and local taxes; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, South of Galveston, between Calhoun and Cameron |
|
|
Counties, from the tip of the Golden Crescent, along the Coastal |
|
|
Bend, to the Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas is home to several |
|
|
growing cities, robust tourism, and a wealth of natural resources; |
|
|
the area, with more than 150 miles of Gulf shoreline, also harbors a |
|
|
number of major deepwater ports, any of which might be a viable site |
|
|
for a cruise line headquarters or a port of embarkation; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, Florida and California, respectively, benefit the |
|
|
most from the North American cruise industry, and each state |
|
|
operates multiple cruise ports; and |
|
|
WHEREAS, An additional Texas cruise ship port between Calhoun |
|
|
and Cameron Counties could offer an attractive vacation option for |
|
|
a significant portion of the state's residents and be an economic |
|
|
boon to the state as a whole; now, therefore, be it |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the 89th Legislature of the State of Texas |
|
|
hereby request the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker of the House |
|
|
of Representatives to create a joint interim committee to conduct a |
|
|
study regarding the development of a cruise industry on the Texas |
|
|
coast between Calhoun and Cameron Counties, including its potential |
|
|
economic impact and options for incentives to attract the cruise |
|
|
industry to South Texas; and, be it further |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be |
|
|
governed by such general rules and policies for joint interim |
|
|
committees as the 89th Texas Legislature may adopt; and, be it |
|
|
further |
|
|
RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including |
|
|
findings and recommendations, to the 90th Texas Legislature before |
|
|
it convenes in January 2027. |