ADVOCACY
SOUTH TEXAS MILITARY FACILITIES TASK FORCE AND UNITED CORPUS CHRISTI CHAMBER OF COMMERCE CELEBRATE PASSAGE OF MILITARY BASE PROTECTION BILL
Texas defense communities are celebrating passage of legislation to protect military bases with aviation missions from encroachments by wind turbine developments -- Senate Bill 277 by Senator Donna Campbell ( R-New Braunfels ) and Representative James Frank ( R-Wichita Falls ). On May 28 , 2017 , the Senate adopted the conference committee report to SB 277 by a 19-11 vote and the House passed it on a 97-47 vote . The bill now heads to Governor Greg Abbott for his signature .
As many as nine Texas military installations could be protected from unfettered wind farm encroachment – Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene , Laughlin Air Force Base in Del Rio , Naval Air Stations Corpus Christi and Kingsville , Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls , Joint Base San Antonio ( Randolph Air Force Base ), and Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base .
The herculean efforts of United Corpus Christi Chamber ’ s South Texas Military Facilities Task Force were successful in bringing to pass a bill that will go far to protect the missions of Naval Air Station Corpus Christi and Naval Air Station Kingsville . The timing of this legislation is critical with the announcement of a Base Realignment and Closure ( BRAC ) round to happen in 2021 .
SB 277 amends Chapters 312 and 313 of the state tax code to restrict the application of property tax exemption for any entity that installs a wind turbine on land located 25 nautical miles or less from a military aviation facility .
Encroaching development around Texas military bases can create adverse conditions that often impede operations and create safety risks for pilots . Wind turbines can cause interference with radar systems raising safety risks for pilots and impeding training activities . The height and location of turbines affect the altitude of flights and the ability of training missions to meet their goals . If installations do not successfully meet their missions , they are at risk for base reductions and / or closure during BRAC . The economic impact of NAS-CC , CCAD and NAS-K is $ 5.3 billion annually .
15 BUSINESS MATTERS JUNE 2017