In August of that year (1946), the 79th Congress, 2nd session, passed H.R. 2033 and it 

 became PubUc Law 727, entitled, "An Act Authorizing Federal participation in the cost of 

 protecting the shores of publicly-owned property." In the October 1946 issue oi Shore and 

 Beach, its official publication, the ASBPA commented as follows concerning passage of this 

 new legislation: 



"The goal it has sought for almost two decades was achieved by the American 

 Shore and Beach Preservation Association on August 13, . . . when President 

 Truman signed Public Law No. 727, of the 79th Congress, 2d Session, which 

 authorizes federal financial assistance for as much as one-third of the cost of new 

 beach development and shore erosion prevention projects affecting public 

 property."^ ^^ 



This quotation substantiates the ASBPA 's interpretation of the role of the Federal 

 Government in matters of shore protection at public beaches, an interpretation that was 

 slow to win advocates within the Federal Government itself. 



For many years, one of the major restraints concerning the possibility of Federal 

 financial assistance for shore protection projects on non-Federal property had been that it 

 would allow private property owners to reap large benefits from the expenditure of Federal 

 funds. In the eyes of Congress, shore protection carried this stigma far more than did flood 

 control or irrigation. Under these latter two programs. Federal expenditure, often for the 

 "total" cost of projects (and not just one-third as authorized in 1946 for shore protection) 

 commonly resulted in major benefits to owners of private property. But the inclusion in 

 Public Law 727 of the provision that "the plan of protection shall have been specifically 

 adopted and authorized by Congress after investigation and study by the Beach Erosion 

 Board . . . ,"^^2 could be interpreted as an additional precautionary measure to prevent the 

 accrual of private benefits from Federal shore protection projects.^ 



The passage of these two pieces of legislation marked an important turning point in the 

 history of the BEB. For the agency as a whole, Public Law 166, the "research" law, in the 

 long run had the greater effect. 



b. The Research Program and its Implementation. In the planning of the actual research 

 program and the test facilities which would be needed, Martin Mason, Gen. Kingman, 

 Thorndike Saville, and Morrough O'Brien were the main guiding forces. As early as October 

 1944, Kingman had discussed with the seven-member Board the need for the BEB to acquire 

 a larger wave tank.^*'* It was realized that the existing 85-foot-long tank with a maximum 

 workable wave height of 8 inches, although a useful facility, was not able to meet tlie 

 agency's needs. This was especially true if the BEB was to increase its research capacity. 

 Thus, plans were made to design and construct a large outdoor, prototype wave tank to be 

 located near the BEB's office on the Dalecarlia Reservation. It was the desire of the Chief of 

 Engineers that this new prototype wave tank also be utilized for the study of riprap 



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