Sec. of State Watson presents $11.2 million Tidelands Trust Fund check to MDMR
The money will pay for 23 projects in the three coastal counties totaling almost $7 million.
BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - As Mississippi’s first Secretary of State who grew up on the Coast, Michael Watson is very familiar with the public good that comes from the Tidelands Trust Fund. It made Tuesday’s $11.2 million check presentation to the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (MDMR) a bit more special.
The state’s Tidelands Trust Fund is state lease money generated on the Coast and returned to the Coast for the benefit of the whole state. The money will pay for 23 projects in the three coastal counties totaling almost $7 million. The rest of the money goes to other operating expenses for MDMR.
“We’ve got projects in Diamondhead, Hancock County, Pascagoula, you name it. Moss Point, across the Coast. And I think that is the important thing. The idea here is this is for the entire Coast for all of Mississippi to enjoy,” Secretary Watson said.
Click here to view a list of public access projects.
The $11,226,497 check was the second-highest tidelands transfer since 1997. Since the program began in 1994, the Secretary of State’s Office has transferred a total of $177,175,419 to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
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