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Secretary/Treasurer: (512) 567-5143sue.lilly@lowerbrushycreekwcid.org
TAWSTexas Association of
Watershed Sponsors
Aerial view of a newly rebuilt concrete stepped spillway between two arms of a reservoir.

Legislative & Funding

Legislative & Funding

TAWS works alongside the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board to keep the Flood Control Program funded. This page gives sponsors what they need to make that case at the Capitol — no expertise required.

The funding picture

Where the money comes from, what is being asked for in the 2027 session, and why it matters.

The Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board is the state partner with USDA in funding the operation, maintenance, repair, rehabilitation and upgrade of Texas flood control dams. The Legislature created its Flood Control Program in 2010.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality regulates every dam in the state and sets its hazard classification — high hazard where lives are at risk, significant where property or a bus route is, and low where the risk is limited. That classification drives what a sponsor must do and what funding it can reach.

763

Texas dams classified high hazard

617

of those needing upgrades

$4 billion

rehabilitation backlog statewide

That is the gap. The Legislature currently provides the Flood Control Program about $50 million per two-year funding cycle, against a $4 billion backlog of rehabilitation and upgrade needs — and roughly 20 more dams are reclassified as high hazard each year as development spreads downstream of structures that were built in open country.

Aerial view of Upper Brushy Creek WCID Site 29, an earthen flood control embankment holding back its reservoir, with houses and farmland immediately downstream.
Upper Brushy Creek Site 29. The houses immediately below the embankment are the reason structures like this keep getting reclassified as high hazard.

What TAWS is supporting in the 2027 session

1.Exemption from water rights permitting

A bill to be proposed by Senator Zaffirini creating an exemption from the requirement to obtain a TCEQ permit for certain dams or reservoirs operated for erosion, floodwater and sediment control. A prior version passed the Legislature in the second special session last year but was vetoed by the Governor.

2.Emergency Action Plans for high and significant hazard dams

$5 million

TSSWCB Exceptional Item 2 — to help local governments and dam sponsors develop and implement the Emergency Action Plans they are required to hold.

3.Continued elimination of the rehabilitation backlog

$150 million

TSSWCB Exceptional Item 3 — to accelerate work against the $4 billion backlog of rehabilitation needs. Many dams have been redesignated high hazard because of downstream development and must be brought up to current design and construction standards. Where 65% federal rehabilitation funding is available, this provides the 35% state share.

4.Enhanced technical assistance for operation and maintenance

$1 million

TSSWCB Exceptional Item 4 — to administer a Technical Assistance Program giving local Soil and Water Conservation Districts the resources to handle O&M, repairs, rehabilitation and upgrades, pursue grant funding, develop EAPs and carry out annual inspections.

Legislative priorities (PDF)Programme background (PDF)

Dams by Senate district

Find your district, see how many flood control structures sit in it, and take the map with you.

2,039

flood control structures statewide

20

of 31 Senate districts have them

22

district maps to download

Sort by:

20 districts shown · 2,039 structures

DistrictSenatorDamsMap
SD 1Bryan Hughes99Download PDF
SD 2Bob Hall278Download PDF
SD 3Robert Nichols18Download PDF
SD 5Charles Schwertner81Download PDF
SD 8Angela Paxton119Download PDF
SD 10Phil King122Download PDF
SD 12Tan Parker103Download PDF
SD 18Lois Kolkhorst28Download PDF
SD 19Roland Gutierrez27Download PDF
SD 20Juan Hinojosa7Download PDF
SD 21Judith Zaffirini85Download PDF
SD 22Brian Birdwell291Download PDF
SD 23Royce West1Download PDF
SD 24Pete Flores73Download PDF
SD 25Donna Campbell31Download PDF
SD 26José Menéndez1Download PDF
SD 28Charles Perry267Download PDF
SD 29César Blanco16Download PDF
SD 30Drew Springer314Download PDF
SD 31Kevin Sparks78Download PDF

Counts supplied by TAWS, 2024. Maps produced January 2023, reflecting the current district boundaries. Confirm the sitting senator on the Texas Senate directory before a meeting — seats change between elections.

District maps

One map per Senate district, showing every flood control structure inside it.

Each map plots the individual structures against county lines and the district boundary, so a legislator can see at a glance what sits in the area they represent. Print it and take it in.

Maps download from the table above — find your district and use the link in the last column. Every district that has structures has a map.

Sample letters & handouts

Grab a template, put your district's details in it, and go.

Step 1

Find your districts

Look up the House and Senate districts your structures sit in, and how many of those are classified high hazard.

Step 2

Take the map

Print the map for that district. It shows every flood control structure your legislator is responsible for.

Step 3

Adapt a letter

Start from the sample letter, put your district's name and numbers in it, and send it ahead of the meeting.

Step 4

Bring the handout

Leave a one-page summary behind. Staff read the leave-behind more often than they read the letter.

Sample letters and handouts are being prepared by TAWS and will be posted here when they are ready.