For the purposes of this subchapter the following definitions
shall apply.
(1) Allocated funds--Funds budgeted through the State
Board for cost-share assistance.
(2) Applicant--An eligible person who applies for cost-share
assistance.
(3) Area--A sub-basin or other portion of land within
a project.
(4) Available funds--Allocated funds that have not
been obligated.
(5) Average costs--The constructed cost, which is based
on actual costs and current cost estimates, considered necessary to
carry out a conservation practice.
(6) Brush control--The selective control, removal,
or reduction of noxious brush such as mesquite, juniper, salt cedar,
or other phreatophytes that, as determined by the State Board, consumes
water to a degree that is detrimental to water conservation; and the
revegetation of land on which this brush has been controlled.
(7) Water supply enhancement plan--A site-specific
plan for implementation of brush control, sound range management practices,
and other soil and water conservation land improvement measures. It
includes a record of the eligible person's decisions made during planning
and the resource information needed for implementation and maintenance
of the plan that has been reviewed and approved by the SWCD.
(8) Cost-share assistance--An award of money made to
an eligible person for brush control pursuant to the purpose(s) for
which the funds were appropriated.
(9) Cost-share rate--The percent of the cost of brush
control to be awarded an eligible person based on actual cost not
to exceed average cost.
(10) Eligible land--Those lands within a designated
critical area that are eligible for application of water supply enhancement
program cost-share assistance.
(11) Eligible person--Any individual, partnership,
administrator for a trust or estate, family-owned corporation, or
other legal entity who as an owner, lessee, tenant, or sharecropper
participates in an agricultural or wildlife operation within a water
supply enhancement project watershed shall be eligible for cost-share
assistance.
(12) Field Office Technical Guide, herein referred
to as FOTG--The official NRCS guidelines, criteria, and standards
for planning and applying conservation practices, management measures,
and works of improvement that have the purpose of solving or reducing
the severity of natural resource use problems or taking advantage
of resource opportunities.
(13) Natural Resources Conservation Service, herein
referred to as NRCS--An agency of the United States Department of
Agriculture.
(14) Operator--Any person(s), firm, or corporation
with a contractual arrangement with the owner of the land that grants
operational control of an agricultural enterprise.
(15) Obligated funds--Monies from a critical area's
allocated funds that have been committed to an applicant after final
approval of the water supply enhancement contract by the State Board.
(16) Performance agreement--A component of the water
supply enhancement contract whereby the eligible person receiving
the benefit of cost-share assistance provides written agreement to
the SWCD to perform brush control in accordance with standards established
by the State Board and the terms of the water supply enhancement contract.
(17) Practice standard--A technical specification for
a conservation practice within the NRCS FOTG that contains information
on why and where the practice should be applied, and sets forth the
minimum quality criteria that must be met during the application of
that practice in order for it to achieve its intended purpose(s).
(18) Priority system--The system devised under guidelines
of the State Board, for ranking water supply enhancement project applications
and for facilitating the disbursement of allocated funds in line with
the project watershed's priorities.
(19) Program year--The period from September 1 through
August 31.
(20) Project Area--An area of critical need designated
by the State Board according to the criteria established in §517.25
of this subchapter.
(21) Project--A watershed or portion of a watershed
in which water supply enhancement activities are performed.
(22) Proposal--A request submitted by a SWCD or other
political subdivision of the State for state funds to be used in a
watershed or portion of a watershed for water supply enhancement activities.
(23) Soil and Water Conservation District, herein referred
to as SWCD--A government subdivision of this State and a public body
corporate and politic, organized pursuant to the Agriculture Code,
Chapter 201.
(24) State Board--The Texas State Soil and Water Conservation
Board organized pursuant to the provisions of the Agriculture Code,
Chapter 201.
(25) Water Conservation--The process of reducing water
consumption and/or preventing future increases in water consumption.
As related to brush control, the process of reducing water-consuming
brush and subsequently, the enhancement of available water resources.
(26) Water Supply Enhancement Contract--A legally binding
10-year agreement between the applicant and the State Board whereby
the applicant agrees to implement all brush control practice(s) for
which cost-share is to be provided in accordance with standards established
by the State Board. Only practice(s) that the State Board has approved
and are included in an approved water supply enhancement plan are
eligible for inclusion in the water supply enhancement contract.
(27) Water Supply Enhancement--The enhancement of available
water resources through brush control.
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| Source Note: The provisions of this §517.23 adopted to be effective February 13, 2003, 28 TexReg 1209; amended to be effective March 21, 2004, 29 TexReg 2651; amended to be effective April 16, 2012, 37 TexReg 2679; amended to be effective September 8, 2014, 39 TexReg 7173 |
