1. (a) Policy. The surface estate in the coastal public lands of this state constitutes an important and valuable asset dedicated to the permanent school fund and to all people of Texas. Such estate shall be managed as follows.

   1. (1) The natural resources of the surface estate in coastal public lands shall be preserved. Such resources shall be construed to include the natural aesthetic values of those areas and the value of such areas in their natural state for the protection and nurture of all types of marine life and wildlife.
   2. (2) Uses which the public at large may enjoy and in which they may participate shall take priority over those uses which are limited to fewer individuals.
   3. (3) The public interest in navigation in the intracoastal waters shall be protected.
   4. (4) Unauthorized use of coastal public lands shall be prevented.
   5. (5) Utilization and development of the surface estate in such lands shall not be allowed unless the public interest as expressed in the act is not significantly impaired thereby.
   6. (6) The surface estate in coastal public lands shall not be alienated except by the granting of leaseholds and lesser interests therein.
   7. (7) Vested rights in land shall be protected subject to the paramount authority of the state in the exercise of such rights; and the orderly use of littoral property in a manner consistent with the public policy of this state shall not be impaired.
   8. (8) The economic benefits of leases, easements, and other grants of interests in the surface estate of coastal public lands shall be weighed against the need to protect and preserve the resources of coastal public lands.

2. (b) Scope of rules. These rules set forth the practice and procedure for administration by the board in granting a lease, easement, permit, and the registration of a structure on coastal public lands. All grants of interest are subject to these rules and regulations. The board may grant the following interest in coastal public lands for the indicated purposes:

   1. (1) leases for public purposes;
   2. (2) easements for purposes connected with ownership of littoral property:
   3. (3) permits authorizing limited continued use of heretofore unauthorized structures on coastal public lands, not connected with ownership of littoral property;
   4. (4) channel easements to the holder of any surface or mineral interests in coastal public lands, for purposes necessary or appropriate to the use of such interests.
3. (c) If a Department of the Army Corps of Engineers permit is required for a proposed project, the board may postpone a decision on the application pending receipt of comments on the work described in the Corps of Engineers public notice.

4. (d) Definitions. The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

   1. (1) Board--The School Land Board of Texas.
   2. (2) Breakwater--A structure of timber, cement, or other material, either fixed or floating, designed to protect beaches and harbor areas from wave action.
   3. (3) Bulkhead and riprap--Structures of timber, steel, concrete, rock, or similar substance erected parallel to the shoreline for erosion control purposes.
   4. (4) Coastal area--Refers to the geographic area comprising all the counties of Texas having any tidewater shoreline including that portion of the bed and waters of the Gulf of Mexico within the jurisdiction of the State of Texas.
   5. (5) Coastal public lands--All or any portion of the state-owned submerged lands, the waters overlying those lands, and all state-owned islands in coastal area.
   6. (6) Commercial structure--Any structure located on coastal public lands which is used directly for the sale of goods, wares, services on or property of any kind and includes any structure on coastal public lands adjacent to littoral property used commercially when said structure is used in conjunction with adjacent littoral commercial property.
   7. (7) Sensitive habitat--An area of submerged or emergent vegetation or reefs.
   8. (8) Commissioner--The commissioner of the General Land Office.
   9. (9) Dredged material disposal--The deposition of sand, gravel, shell, or other material generated by a dredging activity onto coastal public lands.
   10. (10) Dredging--The moving of soil, sand, gravel, shell or other materials from its natural setting and thereby artificially altering the water depth, e.g., channels, basins, etc.
   11. (11) Island--Any body of land surrounded by the waters of a salt water lake, bay, inlet, estuary, or inland body of water within the tidewater limits of this state and shall include man-made islands resulting from dredging of other operations.
   12. (12) Jetties and groins--Structures of rock, concrete, steel, or other material designed to modify or control sediment movement along a shore.
   13. (13) Fill--The deposition of soil, sand, gravel, shell, or any other materials on coastal public lands.
   14. (14) Littoral owner--The owner or leaseholder of any public or private upland bordered by or contiguous to coastal public lands.
   15. (15) Marina--A combination of docks or piers floating or constructed on pilings, extending onto or over coastal public lands, which is used for purposes of storing or docking boats, pleasure crafts, shrimp boats, and similar structures and is available to the public and charges are made for any of its services, and which do not constitute wharves, docks, or piers as hereinafter defined.
   16. (16) Mitigation sequence--The series of steps which must be taken if sensitive areas are adversely affected.
   17. (17) Person--Any individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation (public or private, profit or nonprofit), trust, or political subdivision or agency of the state.
   18. (18) Pier and dock--Structures of timber or other material built onto or over coastal public lands which are used for fishing and recreational boating purposes and which do not constitute a wharf or marina as hereinbefore defined.
   19. (19) Seaward--The direction away from the shore and toward the body of water bounded by such shore.
   20. (20) Structure--Any structure, work, or improvement constructed upon, affixed to, or worked upon coastal public lands, including but not limited to, fixed to or floating piers, wharves, docks, jetties, groins, breakwaters, artificial reefs, fences, posts, retaining walls, levees, ramps, cabins, houses, shelters, landfills, excavations, land canals, channels, and roads.
   21. (21) Submerged lands--Any land extending from the boundary between the lands of the state and littoral owners seaward to the low water mark on any salt water lake, bay, inlet, estuary, or inland water within the tidewater limits, and any land lying beneath such a body of water, but (for the purposes of these rules only) excludes beaches bordering on, and the waters of, the open Gulf of Mexico, and the lands lying beneath such waters.
   22. (22) Waste and/or garbage--Includes discarded food, refuse, and unwanted man-made degradable and non-degradable items such as containers, equipment, and other rubbish.
   23. (23) Wharf--A structure of timber, cement, masonry, earth, or other material built onto or over coastal public lands, so that vessels can receive and discharge cargo, products, goods, any paying passengers, etc. This definition applies only to structures or portions thereof which are directly connected with and used for the loading and unloading of water borne commerce but specifically excludes such structures used only for commercial fishing purposes.
5. (e) Consistency with Coastal Management Program. Except as otherwise provided in §16.1(c) of this title (relating to Definitions and Scope), an action listed in §16.1(b) of this title (relating to Definitions and Scope) taken or authorized by the GLO or SLB pursuant to this chapter that may adversely affect a coastal natural resource area, as defined in §16.1 of this title (relating to Definitions and Scope), is subject to and must be consistent with the goals and policies identified in Chapter 16 of this title (relating to Coastal Protection) in addition to any goals, policies, and procedures applicable under this chapter. If the provisions of this chapter conflict with and can not be harmonized with certain provisions of Chapter 16 of this title, such conflicting provisions of Chapter 16 of this title (relating to Coastal Protection) will control.

Source Note:The provisions of this §155.1 adopted to be effective January 1, 1976; amended to be effective May 11, 1987, 12 TexReg 1418; amended to be effective October 12, 1988, 13 TexReg 4855; amended to be effective December 1, 1995, 20 TexReg 9574; amended to be effective December 18, 1995, 20 TexReg 10282; amended to be effective August 1, 2001, 26 TexReg 5664.