Texas Administrative Code › Title 31 - NATURAL RESOURCES AND CONSERVATION › Part 1 - GENERAL LAND OFFICE › Chapter 15 - COASTAL AREA PLANNING › Subchapter A - MANAGEMENT OF THE BEACH DUNE SYSTEM › Section 15.3 - Administration

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) Integration of
				  dune protection and beach access programs. The Dune Protection Act and the Open
				  Beaches Act require certain local governments to adopt and implement programs
				  for the preservation of dunes and the preservation and enhancement of use of
				  and access to and from public beaches. These Acts provide for regulation of
				  generally the same activities and the same geographic areas, and their
				  requirements are scientifically and legally related. Local governments required
				  to adopt dune protection and beach access programs shall integrate them into a
				  single plan consisting of procedural and substantive requirements for
				  management of the beach/dune system within their jurisdiction. The authority to
				  integrate such plans is provided pursuant to the Dune Protection Act, the Open
				  Beaches Act, and this subchapter. The local government plans shall be
				  consistent with the requirements of the Open Beaches Act, the Dune Protection
				  Act, and this subchapter, and each shall, whenever possible, incorporate the
				  local government's ordinary land use planning procedures.
(b) Boundary of the public beach. The public
				  beach is defined in the Open Beaches Act, §61.013(c), and §
										15.2 of this title (relating to
				  Definitions). The line of vegetation is defined in the Open Beaches Act,
				  §61.001(5), and §
										15.2 of this title. The line of
				  vegetation is typically used to determine the landward extent of the public
				  beach. However, there are portions of the Texas coast where there is no marked
				  vegetation line or the line is discontinuous or modified. In those portions of
				  the coast, the line of vegetation shall be determined consistent with §
										15.10(b) of this
				  title (relating to General Provisions) and the Open Beaches Act, §61.016
				  and §61.017.
(1) If there is no clearly
				  marked line of vegetation, the "line of vegetation" delineating the public
				  beach shall be the line of constant elevation connecting two clearly marked
				  lines of vegetation of equal elevation on each side, but if there are no
				  clearly marked lines of vegetation on each side, the "line of vegetation" shall
				  not extend inland further than 200 feet from the seaward line of mean low
				  tide.
(2) If there is no clearly
				  marked line of vegetation, the "line of vegetation" delineating the public
				  beach shall be the line of average elevation connecting two clearly marked
				  lines of vegetation of unequal elevation on each side, but if there are no
				  clearly marked lines of vegetation on each side, the "line of vegetation" shall
				  not extend inland further than 200 feet from the seaward line of mean low
				  tide.
(3) If the vegetation line
				  has been obliterated or is created artificially and there is a vegetation line
				  consistently following a line more than 200 feet from the seaward line of mean
				  low tide, the 200-foot line shall constitute the landward boundary of the area
				  subject to the public easement.
(4)
				  If the commissioner has issued an order under §
											15.12 of this title (relating to
				  Temporary Orders Issued by the Land Commissioner) or §
											15.13 of this title (relating to
				  Disaster Recovery Orders) the line of vegetation shall be delineated in
				  accordance with the order(s).
(5)
				  When a Beachfront Construction Certificate/Dune Protection Permit application
				  is submitted to the General Land Office for review and comment, the line of
				  vegetation depicted on any map, aerial photograph, or other documentation shall
				  be subject to verification by the General Land Office.
(6) The determination of the location of the
				  line of vegetation by the commissioner of the General Land Office as provided
				  by the Open Beaches Act, §§61.016 - 61.017 and 61.0171, constitutes
				  prima facie evidence of the landward boundary of the area subject to the public
				  easement until a court adjudication establishes the line in another
				  place.