The Texas Legislature House OKs bill giving 300 million to UTMB
Houston Chronicle—April 17th, 2009
State lawmakers agreed Thursday to spend $300 million to help the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston recover from Hurricane Ike.
The spending is part of an overall $3 billion plan approved on a 141-5 vote by the Texas House that relies heavily on federal stimulus funds to pay for unexpected costs since lawmakers approved the last state budget in 2007.
The money for UTMB, which still needs formal approval by the House and later the Senate, is the first step in a broader plan to get the massive hospital and research center back to pre-storm performance.
“They’re coming back full strength, and better,” said state Rep. Craig Eiland, D-Galveston, who chairs a committee assigned to hurricane-recovery spending. “That will lift the spirits of Galveston and Galveston County.”
University of Texas regents recently approved a roughly $1 billion restoration plan for the facility that also relies on the Federal Emergency Management Agency and philanthropic sources.
The disaster recovery funds included millions of dollars in spending for other higher education institutions that sustained damage or disruptions from storms.
Lawmakers also approved devoting about $50 million to a state agency to prioritize and purchase backup generators for Texas nursing homes, under an amendment offered by state Rep. Kristi Thibaut, D-Houston.