Beach patrol, tourism among Galveston's state legislature successes
By MARY BETH BASSETT
One of my favorite parts of working for the park board is traveling to Austin several times a year. While there, I often take the time to roam around the state Capitol.
I imagine what the halls and chambers look like when the legislature is in session — the negotiations and the compromises that must occur to get the state’s business done.
The park board partners with an Austin-based representative, Ryan Brannan of The Brannan Firm, who negotiates and compromises for a living. He helps the park board determine and achieve its legislative priorities at the state level. Despite challenges brought about by the pandemic, including temporary hotel and beach closures, this year’s park board legislative priorities were achieved.
The Galveston Beach Patrol will benefit in several ways. Brannan negotiated a lifeguard bill with Rep. Todd Hunter and his staff. It provides for staffing at all existing lifeguard stands from Memorial Day through Labor Day during daylight hours as deemed necessary.
This version doesn’t require the organization to provide additional funds or services. According to a prior version of the bill, stands were to be placed at every jetty and staffed from February to November — a financial burden for Galveston and many, smaller coastal destinations.
Brannan worked with the Texas General Land Office to appropriate $300,000 in reimbursement funding for Galveston’s beach patrol department. The funding will be allocated to offset a decline in hotel occupancy tax collections earlier in the year — the department is funded solely through hotel occupancy taxes. For more than a month in the spring, hotels were ordered closed. At the same time, the beaches experienced an increase in visitor numbers.
The beach patrol took the lead on providing safety, security and order for large crowds of beachgoers during the height of the pandemic. It also opened and closed the beaches several times during spring and summer last year.
Brannan and his colleagues also worked with state tourism entities, including the Texas Travel Alliance and the Texas Hotel & Lodging Association, to ensure full funding for Texas Tourism’s marketing efforts and programs that include the Event Trust Fund program. These funds are allocated for marketing initiatives aimed at drawing visitors to the Lone Star State.
Tourism is big business in Texas. According to the governor’s office, prior to the pandemic, 1 in 10 Texas jobs were created by travel, and the travel industry was responsible for a $169.8 billion economic impact to the Texas economy.
The legislative session has ended, but the negotiations continue. Brannan and the park board plan to work with the land office and other state agencies on items like emergency debris removal, increasing funding from the Gulf of Mexico Economic Securities Act and developing additional revenue streams beyond hotel occupancy tax and beach user fees.
Park Board meetings are typically held at 1:30 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 601 23rd St. in Galveston.
Mary Beth Bassett is the public relations director for the Galveston Island Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Park Board of Trustees.