Monday, August 31
Committee Resources
The committee has requested written submissions on the following topics. Below are resources related to those topics.
House Committee on Transportation
Charge 1: Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee's jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 86th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:
- Charge 1A: HB 803 and SB 198, which relate to toll project financial reporting and use payments. Monitor the effectiveness of the tools available to Texas toll project entities for enforcing unpaid tolls while protecting customer rights.
- Report on Toll Projects for Fiscal Year 2019: Pursuant to HB 803, 86th Texas Legislature, Texas Department of Transportation, February 27, 2020
- Building Bridges to Tomorrow: Summary of Enacted Legislation, 86th Legislature (2019) (HB 803: Tolls & Toll Operations, SB 198: Tolls & Toll Operations), Texas Department of Transportation
- Charge 1B: SB 282 and SB 962, which relate to the funding for the State Highway Fund. Study the current mix of user fee-based funding for the state highway system, including registration fees, tolls, and fuel tax, and determine if current funding generated is sufficient to maintain cost demands. Examine whether current legislative appropriations, including projections for Proposition 1 (severance tax) and Proposition 7 (sales tax) funds, are keeping pace with Texas' highway funding needs to accommodate population and economic development growth. Make recommendations for additional methods of funding or innovative tools that the state could utilize to deliver road infrastructure projects.
- Fiscal Size-Up: 2020-21 Biennium (Texas Department of Transportation), Legislative Budget Board, May 2020
- Texas Transportation Funding for Fiscal Years 2020-2021, Texas Department of Transportation, December 2019
- Building Bridges to Tomorrow: Summary of Enacted Legislation, 86th Legislature (2019) (SB 962: Appropriations & Transportation Funding, SB 282: Highway Construction Contracting & Delivery), Texas Department of Transportation
- Charge 1C: SB 357, which relates to outdoor advertising signs. Monitor the Texas Department of Transportation's implementation of the new statutory requirements set forth in the legislation, including any related rulemaking.
- Building Bridges to Tomorrow: Summary of Enacted Legislation, 86th Legislature (2019) (SB 357: Right of Way), Texas Department of Transportation
Charge 2: Study the state's transportation and road safety efforts in support of the Texas Transportation Commission's goal of ending traffic deaths in the state by 2050. Identify the most dangerous roads and transportation corridors in the state and determine opportunities to reduce high rates of traffic accidents and fatalities in these areas. Make recommendations to improve policies, funding strategies, program development, and agency coordination to ensure continuous improvements to road safety.
- Highway Safety Improvement Program Guidelines, Texas Department of Transportation, Traffic Safety Division, June 2020
- Why an All-of-the-Above Transportation Strategy Doesn't Work, Center for American Progress, November 13, 2019
- 2019 Urban Mobility Report, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, August 2019
- Minute Order, Road to Zero (Presentation), Video Stream, Agenda Item #4, Texas Transportation Commission, May 30, 2019
- Texas Strategic Highway Safety Plan: Strategies, Countermeasures, and Action Plans (Resources), Texas Strategic Highway Safety Plan, published March 2019
- Zero Deaths – Saving Lives Through a Safety Culture and a Safe System, State Strategic Highway Safety Plans, SHSP Database, Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation
Charge 3: Study the technology and safety aspects of autonomous and semi-autonomous vehicles, including predictive capabilities and the potential for dedicated freeway and surface lanes for public transportation, autonomous vehicles, and semi-autonomous vehicles. Make recommendations for optimizing state policy to prepare for varying vehicle technologies to ensure safety and traffic reliability on Texas roadways.
- "U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao Announces First Participants in New Automated Vehicle Initiative Web Pilot to Improve Safety, Testing, Public Engagement" (Press release about the AV Test Initiative web pilot), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, June 15, 2020
- "TTI Helps Coordinate the CAV Task Force: Connected-Automated Vehicles Are Becoming a Reality," Texas Transportation Researcher, Texas A&M Transportation Institute, March 2020
- Autonomous Vehicles | Self-Driving Vehicles Enacted Legislation, National Conference of State Legislatures, February 18, 2020
- US 67 Corridor Master Plan (Appendix H – Connected and Autonomous Vehicles Technical Memorandum), Texas Department of Transportation, February 2020
- Interim Report to the 86th Texas Legislature (Charge 6 – Autonomous vehicles), House Committee on Transportation, November 2018
- Interim Report to the 85th Texas Legislature (Charge 8 – Autonomous vehicles), House Committee on Transportation, January 2017
- Connected and Automated Transportation, Texas A&M Transportation Institute
- Automated Vehicles for Safety, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation
- USDOT Automated Vehicles Activities, U.S. Department of Transportation
- Texas Transportation Code §§ 545.451-545.456, Operation of Automated Motor Vehicles
Charge 4: Study the state's seaport infrastructure and the infrastructure at land ports of entry to facilitate international trade and economic growth. Examine seaport infrastructure and the auxiliary rail and roadway needs connected to each port as well as the port's ability to keep pace with oil and gas production. Make recommendations to maximize the economic flow of goods and products to and from seaports and study the feasibility and economic impact of dredging and widening Texas ports in order to remain competitive in international trade. Examine the infrastructure at international border ports of entry in Texas and identify transportation-related impediments to international trade that negatively impact the state. Make recommendations to reduce border wait times, facilitate economic growth, and expedite trade. (Joint charge with the House Committee on International Relations & Economic Development)
- House Committee Resources: International Relations & Economic Development (Blog), Legislative Reference Library, August 14, 2020
Charge 5: Monitor the State Auditor's review of agencies and programs under the Committee's jurisdiction. The Chair shall seek input and periodic briefings on completed audits for the 2019 and 2020 fiscal years and bring forth pertinent issues for full committee consideration.
