31 Tex. Admin. Code § 15.8 - Beach User Fees
(a) Eligibility. Local
governments shall not initiate or amend a beach user fee unless the governing
body of the local government with jurisdiction over the area subject to the fee
has a state approved dune protection and beach access plan.
(b) Reciprocity of fees. Within each county,
local governments are required to establish a state-approved system for
reciprocity of fees and fee privileges among the county and the different local
governments authorized to charge beach user fees. The establishment of a system
of beach user fee reciprocity shall be a condition of state approval of local
dune protection and beach access plans.
(c) Approval of beach user fees.
(1) A local government shall not impose a fee
or charge for the exercise of the public right of access to and from public
beaches. A local government may charge beach users a fee in exchange for
providing beach-related services to beach users in general.
(2) The General Land Office will only approve
a beach user fee if the fee is reasonable taking into account the cost to the
local government of providing public services and facilities directly related
to the public beach. A reasonable fee is one that recovers the cost of
providing and maintaining beach-related services. In addition, any fee
collected for off-beach parking to provide access to and from the public beach
is considered a beach user fee.
(3)
Local governments shall not impose a beach user fee which:
(A) exceeds the necessary and actual cost of
providing reasonable beach-related public facilities and services;
(B) unfairly limits public use of and access
to and from public beaches in any manner;
(C) is inconsistent with this subsection or
the Open Beaches Act; or
(D)
discriminates on the basis of residence.
(d) Beach user fee plan. A local government
that proposes a new or amended beach user fee shall first prepare and submit to
the General Land Office for review and approval a plan that includes, at a
minimum, the following information:
(1) a
description of the current beach access system within its jurisdiction
demonstrated through evidence such as photographs, surveys, and statistics
regarding the number of beach users;
(2) a listing and description of all existing
beach user fees charged by the local government and by all other local
governments in the same county;
(3)
all legal authority for charging a beach user fee, including local ordinances
that authorize the collection of existing beach user fees, and the proposed
ordinances for a new or amended beach user fee;
(4) an analysis and statement of how the
proposed user fee is or is not consistent with state standards set forth in
this subchapter for preserving and enhancing public beach access, including how
the fee is non-discriminatory and how and where adequate free access will be
maintained;
(5) a detailed
description of how the beach user fee is reasonable and how it relates to
beach-related services such as beachfront amenities, vehicular controls and
parking, and dune protection within the jurisdiction of the local
government;
(6) a report detailing
the previous five years of beach user fee revenue and expenditures on
beach-related services, if applicable;
(7) an estimate of the projected beach user
fee revenues and the expected budget for expenditures on beach-related
services, including a description of how the projections and budget were
determined, for the next five years;
(8) a description of short-term and
long-range goals relating to the collection and use of beach user fees and
beach related services that will be provided;
(9) a description of how access for persons
with disabilities will be provided or enhanced;
(10) a description of how the beach user fee
will be collected and managed by the local government and an explanation of how
the method of collection and management is consistent with the requirements of
this chapter;
(11) where
appropriate, evidence of the cost to the local government of providing existing
beach-related services and how the proposed beach user fee will maintain or
enhance those or additional beach-related services; and
(12) any other information required for the
General Land Office to determine if the fee is reasonable.
(e) General Land Office approval and
certification of beach user fees. A local government shall not impose a beach
user fee or amend an existing beach user fee that is inconsistent with the
beach user fee portion of its dune protection and beach access plan. To receive
General Land Office approval for initiating its beach user fee plan or amending
a beach user fee, a local government shall submit its beach user fee plan to
the General Land Office no later than 90 days prior to any local government
action on the beach user fee. The General Land Office shall certify whether the
initiation or amendment of a beach user fee is consistent with this subchapter
and the Open Beaches Act, as provided in §
15.3(o) of this
title (relating to Administration).
(f) Beach user fee revenues. Revenues from
beach user fees may be used only for beach-related services, as defined in §
15.2 of this title (relating to
Definitions). For each fiscal year, a local government shall not spend more
than 10% of beach user fee revenues on reasonable administrative costs.
Administrative costs must be directly related to providing support for
beach-related services, such as accounting, record keeping, some personnel
services, insurance, and office costs such as rent, utilities and
supplies.
(g) Recordkeeping and
Reporting. Each local government shall send quarterly reports to the General
Land Office on the collection and expenditures of its beach user fees.
(1) The quarterly report must state the
amount of beach user fee revenues collected and itemize itemizing how beach
user fee revenues are expended. The General Land Office, at its own discretion,
may prescribe reporting forms or methods. Reports are due no later than 60 days
after the end of each quarter of the State fiscal year. The General Land Office
may request additional information, as appropriate, to evaluate a local
government's compliance with these rules and the local government's beach user
fee plan.
(2) Documentation
sufficient to substantiate the proper collection and expenditure of beach user
fees must be maintained by the local government. Such documents may include,
but are not limited to, records of equipment use, payroll records, invoices,
contracts, and proof of payment. Substantiating documentation must be kept by
the local government for four years following the date the fees are spent.
Documentation substantiating the collection or expenditures of beach user fees
must be provided to the GLO within 10 working days of the local government's
receipt of the request.
(h) Beach user fee accounts. Local
governments shall use the following methods for administering beach user fee
accounts.
(1) Beach user fee revenues shall be
maintained and accounted for so that fee collections can be directly traced to
expenditures on beach-related services. Beach user fee revenues shall not be
commingled with any other funds. Each beach user fee revenue shall be
maintained in separate revenue accounts, or be separately tracked in the local
governments accounting system.
(2)
Beach user fee revenues shall be maintained in a separate revenue account and
documented in a separate financial statement for each beach user fee or shall
have a unique revenue code and be documented.
(3) Beach user fee revenue account balances
and expenditures shall be documented according to generally accepted accounting
principles.
(i) The
General Land Office shall suspend the local government's privilege to collect
fees and shall revoke approval of any pertinent section of a dune protection
and beach access plan if the beach user fee revenues have been spent on
services which are not beach-related services.
(j) Free beach access. Local governments that
collect a beach user fee for on-beach parking or for off-beach parking for
beach access shall maintain free public beach access by providing areas where
no fee is charged for reasonably accessible parking on or off the beach and for
pedestrian access in proximity to each area where a beach user fee is
charged.
(k) Access for persons
with disabilities. Local governments shall establish, preserve, and enhance
access for persons with disabilities as provided by law, including §
15.7(h)(5) of
this title (relating to Local Government Management of the Public Beach). The
General Land Office may provide guidance recommending additional measures to
preserve and enhance access for persons with disabilities. Provisions for
access for persons with disabilities shall be included in local government dune
protection and beach access plans.
(l) Identification of fee and non-fee areas.
For any local government collecting a beach user fee for on-beach parking, both
fee and non-fee beach areas shall be conspicuously marked with signs that
clearly indicate, at a minimum, the location of both the fee and non-fee areas
and the identity of the local government collecting the fee. In addition, maps
identifying fee and non-fee areas shall be provided to the public by any local
government collecting a beach user fee.
(m) Coordination with other beach-related
plans. The beach user fee plan shall be a part of a local government's beach
access and use plan required under the Open Beaches Act, §61.015, any vehicular
control plan required under the Open Beaches Act, §61.022, and any dune
protection program required under the Texas Natural Resources Code, Chapter 63.
The General Land Office requires local governments to combine and integrate
these various plans.
Notes
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