AUSTIN, TX - Today, the City of Corpus Christi was awarded two grants totaling $6 million for a new water supply line for Naval Air Station Corpus Christi (NASCC) and perimeter fencing and access control gates for Army helicopter repair facilities at the Corpus Christi Army Depot (CCAD). Governor Abbott's Texas Military Preparedness Commission selected NASCC and CCAD for military grants from the Defense Economic Adjustment Assistance Grant (DEAAG) program. This is the first time ever Corpus Christi was selected for both grants.

The program is designed to aid communities negatively affected by federal Base Realignments and Closures (BRACs) as well as to assist defense communities to stay militarily valuable.Last session in 2015, Senator Hinojosa authored and passed Senate Bill 318 that raised the cap for grants that are awarded through the DEAAG program from $2 million to $5 million.

As Vice Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Senator Hinojosa was instrumental this session in the legislature's decision to appropriate $20 million to the DEAAG program in the state budget. Senator Hinojosa issued the following statement:

“It’s great news for the Coastal Bend that over $6 million in grant funding was awarded to the Corpus Christi Army Depot and Naval Air Station Corpus Christi through the DEAAG program. These grants are critical for our military installations to allow them to build up their infrastructure to increase the military value of their base and help avoid a potential BRAC closure. As Vice Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, I am honored to have helped secure $20 million in state funding for the DEAAG program this past legislative session and pleased that the City of Corpus Christi was awarded two grants.

I thank Governor Abbott for his leadership and his Texas Military Preparedness Commission members for their hard work in protecting our military communities."

###