PHA Commission Approves Sale of Tax Refunding Bonds
HOUSTON, Dec. 15, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Port Commission of The Port of Houston Authority (PHA) authorized the sale of $235 million in unlimited tax refunding bonds and approved the 2010 operating budget on Tuesday, December 15, in the boardroom of the PHA Executive Building, 111 East Loop North (Exit 29 off Loop 610) in Houston. Chairman Jim Edmonds presided over the regular public meeting with Commissioner Steve Phelps, Commissioner Jim Fonteno, Commissioner Kase Lawal, Commissioner Jimmy Burke, Commissioner Janiece Longoria, and Commissioner Elyse Lanier.
ENGINEERING & REAL ESTATE MATTERS
(Agenda I9) Commissioners approved advertising and receipt of competitive sealed proposals for dust suppression at Industrial Park East at the Turning Basin terminals. Application of the dust suppression material meets Texas Commission of Environmental Quality regulations in a cost effective manner.
FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION MATTERS
(Agenda J3) Commissioners approved awarding a two-year contract to Verint for purchase of software support for the intelligent video system used for security at the Turning Basin, Woodhouse, Manchester, Care, Jacintoport, Barbours Cut and Bayport terminals for $86,777. Verint, which manufactured the system, is the only authorized maintenance provider for the software.
(Agenda J4) Commissioners approved advertising and receipt of proposals for AMAG Technology, Inc. server parts necessary to maintain the access control system in accordance with United States Coast Guard requirements.
LEGAL MATTERS
(Agenda L1) Commissioners approved authorizing the sale of Port of Houston Authority of Harris County, Texas, unlimited tax refunding bonds, Series 2010, in a principal amount not to exceed $234,630,000 in an effort to realize savings on behalf of Harris County taxpayers who approved issuance of the bonds in 1993 and 1999.
OPERATIONS MATTERS
(Agenda M1) The commission approved awarding a contract to Republic Services/BFI Waste Systems to provide trash disposal and recycling services for the Turning Basin, Barbours Cut and Woodhouse terminals and the Fireboat barracks for a two-year term beginning January 1, 2010, for $2.2 million.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS MATTERS
(Agenda O3) Commissioners approved a one-year, $100,000 subscription service agreement with the Houston International Seafarers Center to provide humanitarian services to seafarers calling at the Port of Houston. The agreement is set to begin on February 1, 2010, and expire on January 31, 2011.
STRATEGIC PLANNING MATTERS
(Agenda Q7) Commissioners approved renewal of a service agreement with the Greater Houston Port Bureau to provide vessel traffic movement data (real time and historical) and support the Port of Houston Authority in regulatory and economic development matters for a one-year period for $179,500.
The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 25-mile-long complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo. Each year, there are more than 8,000 vessel calls at the port, which ranks first in the U.S. in foreign waterborne tonnage and second in overall total tonnage. The port authority plays a vital role in ensuring navigational safety along the Houston Ship Channel, which has been instrumental in Houston's development as a center of international trade. The Barbours Cut Container Terminal and Central Maintenance Facility are the first of any U.S. port facilities to develop and implement an innovative Environmental Management System that meets the rigorous standards of ISO 14001. The second recertification of those facilities in 2009 included an extension for the state-of-the-art Bayport Container Terminal. PHA is the first port authority in the world to receive ISO 28000:2007 certification for Port Police and the perimeter security operations at both the Barbours Cut and Bayport Terminals. Additionally, the port is an approved delivery point for Coffee C futures contracts traded on the New York Board of Trade's Coffee, Sugar & Cocoa Exchange. For more information, please visit www.portofhouston.com
To access the port's Web site photo gallery, please visit http://www.portofhouston.com/publicrelations/publicrelations.html and click the link for PHA Photo Gallery.
The Port of Houston Authority logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=720
CONTACT: Port of Houston Authority
Lisa Ashley-Whitlock, Communications Manager
(713) 670-2644
Cell: (832) 247-8179
Argentina M. James, Director of Public Affairs
(713) 670-2568
Cell: (713) 306-6822