Legislative Matter

Miami-Dade Legislative Item
File Number: 110237

Printable PDF Format

Clerk's Official Copy

File Number: 110237

File Type: Resolution

Status: Adopted

Version: 0

Reference: R-121-11

Control: Board of County Commissioners

File Name: PORT OF MIAMI DEEP DREDGE PROJECT

Introduced: 2/1/2011

Requester: NONE

Cost:

Final Action: 2/15/2011

Agenda Date: 2/15/2011

Agenda Item Number: 11A9

Notes:

Title:

RESOLUTION URGING THE PRESIDENT AND THE U.S. CONGRESS TO BUDGET AND APPROPRIATE $75 MILLION IN FEDERAL CONSTRUCTION FUNDING FOR THE DEEP DREDGE PROJECT AT THE PORT OF MIAMI; URGING THE GOVERNOR AND FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO IDENTIFY STATE FUNDING SOURCES TO ASSIST IN THE TIMELY COMPLETION OF THE DEEP DREDGE PROJECT

Indexes:	PORT OF MIAMI
	DREDGING PROJECT

Sponsors:	Rebeca Sosa, Prime Sponsor
	Sally A. Heyman, Co-Sponsor
	Jose "Pepe" Diaz, Co-Sponsor
	Audrey M. Edmonson, Co-Sponsor
	Carlos A. Gimenez, Co-Sponsor
	Bruno A. Barreiro, Co-Sponsor
	Lynda Bell, Co-Sponsor
	Barbara J. Jordan, Co-Sponsor
	Joe A. Martinez, Co-Sponsor
	Jean Monestime, Co-Sponsor
	Dennis C. Moss, Co-Sponsor
	Sen. Javier D. Souto, Co-Sponsor

Sunset Provision: No

Effective Date:

Expiration Date:

Registered Lobbyist:

None Listed

Legislative History
Acting Body	Date	Agenda Item	Action	Sent To	Due Date	Returned	Pass/Fail

Board of County Commissioners	2/15/2011	11A9	Adopted				P
REPORT:	Commissioner Gimenez asked Mr. Bill Johnson, Port of Miami Director, to provide a report indicating the projections for additional activity generated by the 50 foot Deep Dredge Project (Dredge Project) including the number of jobs and the amount of revenue to be realized by the Port. County Manager George Burgess explained that the County was not pursuing the $75 million being requested for the Dredge Project from the federal government. He said that they wanted to have a dollar amount included in the budget in order to be creative in securing State or other funding to begin the project and to obtain reimbursement later. County Manager Burgess noted the Dredge Project was so important to the region that creative local options would be considered if necessary. He emphasized that the involvement of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was essential to the project’s success. Mr. Juan Kuryla, Deputy Director, Port of Miami, noted a preliminary analysis to fund and obtain subsequent reimbursement had already been compiled and this report data would be provided to the Board. He said that it was the Port of Miami’s goal to be the first Port south of Virginia with a 50 foot depth. Chairman Martinez stressed that the Port of Miami’s Dredge Project should remain a priority and work should begin on this port before any other port. Mr. Kuryla noted that the Port of Miami remained ahead of Savannah, GA; Charleston, SC; and Jacksonville, FL as Miami was currently the only port authorized to dredge to 50 feet. Commissioner Sosa requested that the County Attorney’s Office draft an Item urging the Governor and Florida Legislature to identify funding that was freed up as a result of reductions in other projects throughout the State, and then to appropriate those funds to the Dredge Project. She recommended that Chairman Martinez invite the Dade Delegation to attend the March 1, 2011, County Commission meeting. All commissioners asked to be listed as co-sponsors to this proposed resolution, with the exception of Commissioner Seijas. Commissioner Diaz asked County Attorney Robert Cuevas to prepare an emergency resolution urging the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force to support the Deep Dredge Project at the Port of Miami, particularly the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which were a part of that Task Force. There being no further questions or comments, the Commission proceeded to vote.

County Attorney	2/1/2011		Assigned	Jess M. McCarty		2/3/2011

Legislative Text

TITLE
RESOLUTION URGING THE PRESIDENT AND THE U.S. CONGRESS TO BUDGET AND APPROPRIATE $75 MILLION IN FEDERAL CONSTRUCTION FUNDING FOR THE DEEP DREDGE PROJECT AT THE PORT OF MIAMI; URGING THE GOVERNOR AND FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO IDENTIFY STATE FUNDING SOURCES TO ASSIST IN THE TIMELY COMPLETION OF THE DEEP DREDGE PROJECT

BODY

WHEREAS, the deep dredge project at the Port of Miami is one of the most important infrastructure projects in Florida and has nationwide significance in support of international trade, commerce, and job creation; and
WHEREAS, the deep dredge project, now in the planning, engineering, and design stage, entails dredging the Port of Miami channel to minus 50 feet from its current depth of minus 42 feet; and
WHEREAS, the Army Corp of Engineers is scheduled to complete the design work in 2011 and with federal construction dollars appropriated bids would be let in 2012 with a projected completion date in 2014; and
WHEREAS, this timetable would coincide with the scheduled opening of the expanded Panama Canal in 2014; and
WHEREAS, beginning in 2014, large numbers of Super Post-Panamax megaships that previously offloaded cargo on the West Coast of the U.S. will instead be able to traverse the expanded Panama Canal, presenting an unprecedented, one-time opportunity for the Port of Miami to significantly expand its cargo business; and
WHEREAS, three East Coast ports, New York, Baltimore and Norfolk, already have deepened their waters to meet the necessary 50-foot depth; and
WHEREAS, the Port of Miami has received authorization to dredge to the minus 50-foot level and has the ability to complete the project by 2014; and
WHEREAS, without additional East Coast deep draft capacity in place by 2014, the U.S. is at risk of losing jobs to other seaports overseas, as the larger Super Post-Panamax ships have the option of calling at nearby foreign ports such as Freeport, Bahamas; and
WHEREAS, the Port of Miami has approximately 6,200 lineal feet of berth space, supported by Super Post-Panamax cranes capable of servicing the largest ships in the world; and
WHEREAS, the first and third largest cargo lines in the world currently make the Port of Miami their southernmost point of operation in the U.S., and have joined with the Port of Miami in an aggressive landside infrastructure program to improve and expand facilities to accommodate additional cargo business; and
WHEREAS, the deep dredge project provides a high return on the investment, with the scope of the dredge at the Port of Miami being only 2.5 nautical miles, a relatively short distance compared to other potential ports, and the Port of Miami�s harbor only requiring maintenance dredging every 10 years rather than river ports that require annual maintenance; and
WHEREAS, it is estimated that the deep dredge project would enable the Port of Miami to double its cargo business over the next 10 years and create more than 30,000 new, high paying, permanent jobs; and
WHEREAS, the deep dredge project will pay dividends not only for Miami-Dade County, but throughout the state and nation for decades to come; and
WHEREAS, the deep dredge project has received Congressional approval, but the Port of Miami must secure a federal construction funds to keep the project on track,

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Urges the President and Congress to budget and appropriate $75 million in construction funds for the Port of Miami deep dredge project.
Section 2. Urges Florida�s Governor and the Florida Legislature to identify state funding sources to assist in the timely completion of the deep dredge project to promote job growth in the State of Florida.
Section 3. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit a certified copy of this resolution to the President, the members of the Florida Congressional Delegation, the Governor of Florida, Florida Senate President, Florida House Speaker and the Chair and Members of the Miami-Dade State Legislative Delegation.
Section 4. Directs the County's federal and state lobbyists to advocate for the passage of the legislation as set forth in Sections 1 and 2 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to include this item in the 2011 Federal and State Legislative Packages.