HBA-ALS, PDH, MAJ C.S.H.B. 385 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 385 By: Walker Transportation 3/24/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, a school bus cannot legally exceed 50 miles per hour, except on interstate highways, where they can travel 55 miles per hour. This limitation includes school buses used for extracurricular activities. C.S.H.B. 385 applies the same speed limit applicable to a passenger car to a school bus carrying students and personnel on extracurricular activities or to a school bus on an interstate highway outside an urban district. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Sections 545.352(b) and (c), Transportation Code, as follows: (b) Provides an exception under Subsection (c) to the list of speed limits that are lawful outside an urban district if the vehicle is a school bus on an interstate highway. Makes a conforming change. (c) Adds a school bus that transports students and necessary personnel on extracurricular activities to the list of vehicles that are subject to the same speed limit as a passenger car at the same time and location. Requires a school board, with the board of trustees' approval, to establish a speed limit which does not exceed the maximum prima facie speed limit under this section for each type of bus that is used by the school district to safely transport students. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute modifies the original in SECTION 1 (545.352(c), Transportation Code) by adding a provision requiring a school district to establish a speed limit for school buses transporting students, with the approval of the board of trustees and within certain prescribed limits.