HBA-NRS H.B. 2667 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2667
By: Carter
Transportation
4/3/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, placement and maintenance of traffic-control devices on state
highways in municipalities with populations of 50,000 or less is provided
by a rule of the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). The placement
and maintenance of traffic-control devices by TxDOT is a benefit to
municipalities of this size that bear other expenses related to highway
maintenance. However, some of these municipalities have had their
population increase as indicated by the 2000 census and therefore are not
eligible for financial assistance from TxDOT relating to traffic-control
devices. House Bill 2667 requires TxDOT to place and maintain
traffic-control devices on state highways in a municipality with a
population of 60,000 or less that has within its boundaries parts of three
or more state highways.   

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. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2667 amends the Transportation Code to require the Texas
Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to place and maintain traffic-control
devices on a state highway in a municipality with a population of less than
60,000 that has within its boundaries parts of three or more state
highways, if the governing body of the municipality makes a request to
TxDOT and enters into an agreement with TxDOT providing for the location,
relocation, improvement, control, supervision, and regulation of a
designated state highway in the municipality and establishing the
respective liabilities and responsibilities of TxDOT and the municipality.
The bill provides that the placement and maintenance of such traffic
control devices is to be based on the manual and specifications for a
uniform system of traffic-control devices that correlate with and conform
to American Association of State Highway and Transportation Association
standards. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.