Investments in Non-federal Physical Property

Non-federal physical property investments are expenses included in the Department’s Net Cost of Operations for the purchase, construction, or major renovation of physical property owned by state and local governments. Based on a review of the Department’s programs, NOAA and EDA have significant investments in non-federal physical property.

NOAA:

National Estuarine Research Reserves (NERR): The NERR system consists of 27 estuarine reserves protected by federal, state, and local partnerships that work to preserve and protect the nation’s estuaries. The NERR system helps to fulfill NOAA’s stewardship mission to sustain healthy coasts by improving the nation’s understanding and stewardship of estuaries. Estuarine reserves are the areas where freshwater from rivers meet the ocean. These areas are known as bays, swamps, sloughs, and sounds. These important coastal habitats are used as spawning grounds and nurseries for the nation’s commercial fish and shellfish. Estuaries filter much of the polluted runoff from rivers and streams that would otherwise contaminate oceans. The reserves were created with the passage of the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, and, as of September 30, 2006, encompassed approximately 1.3 million acres of estuarine waters, wetlands, and uplands. The newest reserve, Mission-Aransas, TX, was designated on May 3, 2006. NERRs are state-operated and managed in cooperation with NOAA. The NOAA’s investments in non-federal physical property are for the acquisition of lands and development or construction of facilities, auxiliary structures, and public access routes for any NERR site.

Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program: This program was established under the Commerce, Justice, and State Appropriations Act of 2002, “for the purpose of protecting important coastal and estuarine areas that have significant conservation, recreation, ecological, historical, or aesthetic values, or that are threatened by conversion from their natural or recreational state to other uses.” The investments in non-federal physical property include matching grants awarded to state and local governments for land acquisition in coastal and estuarine areas. Since FY 2002, matching grants have been directed to 133 such projects.

Coastal Zone Management Fund: The Coastal Zone Management Program is authorized by the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, and administered at the federal level by NOAA’s Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management. The investments in non-federal physical property include incidental expenses of land acquisition, and low-cost construction on behalf of various state and local governments, for the purpose of preservation or restoration of coastal resources and habitats. The NOAA’s financing supports various coastal states in their redevelopment of deteriorating and urbanized waterfronts and ports, as well as providing for public access to beaches and coastal areas. The state and local governments receive funding for these investments through NOAA grant expenditures, and these grant expenditures also include funding for purposes other than the investments in non-federal physical property. There is currently not in place a mechanism for the state and local governments to determine and report to NOAA the amount of monies they expend for the investments in non-federal physical property. The Department, accordingly, cannot report the amount of investments in non-federal physical property for the Coastal Zone Management Fund.

The NOAA’s investments in non-federal physical property for FY 2002 through FY 2006 were as follows:

Economic Development Administration (EDA):

Public Works: The Public Works program promotes long-range economic development in distressed areas by providing investments for vital public infrastructure and development facilities. These critical investments enable communities to attract new, or support existing, businesses that will generate new jobs and income for unemployed and underemployed residents. Among the types of projects funded are water, sewer, fiber optics, access roads, and facilities such as industrial and business parks, business incubator and skill training facilities, and port improvements.

Economic and Defense Adjustments: The Economic and Defense Adjustments program provides flexible investments for communities facing sudden or severe economic distress to diversify and stabilize its economy. Factors that seriously threaten the economic survival of local communities include essential plant closures, military base closures or realignments, defense laboratory or contractor downsizings, natural resource depletion, out-migration, under-employment, and destructive impacts of foreign trade.

Disaster Recovery: The Disaster Recovery program awards grants for the repair of infrastructure and economic development related facilities damaged by floods and other natural disasters. Funding for the Disaster Recovery program is generally through supplemental funding from Congress for recovery efforts to save, sustain, and preserve private enterprise and job creation in economically distressed communities.

EDA’s investments in non-federal physical property for FY 2002 through FY 2006 were as follows: