2003 Ron Paul 117:1
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to support S. 1066, the Senate version of my
H.R. 154, which I introduced on the first day
of the 108th Congress. This legislation fixes a
mistake in the official Fish and Wildlife Services
maps by removing a 19-acre area known
as Matagorda Dunes, in Matagorda County,
Texas, from the John H. Chafee Coastal Barrier
Resources Act (COBRA). This change is
fully supported by the Fish and Wildlife Service.
In fact, a Fish and Wildlife Service created
map, dated July 12, 2002, acknowledges the
error.
2003 Ron Paul 117:2
This change will ensure property owners who had already begun developing this area
are able to obtain insurance. Congress never
intended to deny these landowners access to
insurance. Matagorda Dunes was included in
COBRA as a result of a drafting error when
the COBRA maps were revised in the early
eighties. Unless this mistake is fixed, the result
could be catastrophic for these property
owners who invested in developing Matagorda
Dunes under the belief that the land was excluded
from COBRA. A failure to fix this mistake
could also be quite costly to the American
taxpayers.
2003 Ron Paul 117:3
Fixing this mistake is also quite important to the people of Matagorda County, which is why
a county official traveled to Washington to testify
at a hearing on this bill in September. In
conclusion, I thank Chairman POMBO and my
colleague from Texas, Senator HUTCHISON, for
their work on this issue and I urge my colleagues
to support this important bill.