HB83INTRODUCED
Page 0
80TG22-1
By Representative Pringle
RFD: Transportation, Utilities and Infrastructure
First Read: 07-Mar-23
1
2
3
4
5 80TG22-1 02/22/2023 FC (L) ma 2023-437
Page 1
SYNOPSIS:
Under existing law, the Department of
Transportation is under the direction of the director
who is appointed by the Governor.
This bill would create the State Transportation
Commission composed of five members appointed by the
Governor from the five regions of the Department of
Transportation to coordinate and develop the activities
of the department.
This bill would provide for the appointment of
the Director of the Department of Transportation by the
commission and for the duties of the director.
This bill would also provide that the department
would not be subject to the Budget Management Act.
A BILL
TO BE ENACTED
AN ACT
Relating to the Department of Transportation; to
establish the State Transportation Commission; to provide for
the members, duties, responsibilities, and compensation and
expenses of the commission; to prohibit a person serving on
the State Transportation Commission from benefiting by
entering employment with or contracting with companies that do
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 2
business with the Department of Transportation while he or she
serves on the commission or for a period of two years
thereafter; to provide for the appointment and duties of the
Director of the Department of Transportation; and for this
purpose to amend Sections 23-1-21 and 23-1-21.2, Code of
Alabama 1975, relating to the appointment and authority of the
Director of the Department of Transportation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1.(a) There shall be a State Transportation
Commission which shall consist of five members appointed by
the Governor. One member shall be appointed from each region
of the Department of Transportation as set out in Section 2.
(b)(1) The members appointed from the Regions One and
Four shall serve an initial term of two years. The members
appointed from the Regions Two and Five shall serve an initial
term of four years. The member appointed from the Region Three
shall serve an initial term of six years. After the initial
appointments, the term of the members shall be six years
except that a member shall serve until a successor is
appointed and qualified. A member of the commission may not
serve consecutive terms. The membership of the commission
shall be inclusive and shall reflect the racial, gender,
geographic, urban, rural, and economic diversity of the state.
(2) The commission shall report to the Legislature by
the second legislative day of each regular session the extent
to which the membership of the commission has met the
diversity requirements of this section.
(c) If any one or more of the commission members dies,
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 3
resigns, or is removed from office, the Governor shall fill
the vacancy by appointment for the unexpired term within 30
days of the vacancy.
(d) The commission shall elect from its members a
chair. Three members of the board shall constitute a quorum
for the transaction of the official business of the
commission.
(e)(1) The members of the commission shall serve
part-time in the performance of their official duties, but
shall hold no other office of profit during their incumbency.
In addition, the members shall not be employed in the road
building or any affiliated industry or as a lobbyist.
(2) The members of the commission shall be subject to
the Alabama Ethics Law.
(f) The compensation of the members of the commission
shall be 25 percent of the compensation of the cabinet members
of the Governor pursuant to Section 36-6-6, Code of Alabama
1975, and the compensation shall be paid in installments from
the State Treasury in the same manner that salaries of other
state officers are paid.
(g) Before entering upon the duties of the office, each
commission member shall execute to the state a bond, to be
approved by the Governor in an amount fixed by the Governor,
for the faithful performance of his or her duties.
(h) The necessary office, supplies, stationery, and
equipment shall be provided for the commission by the State
Department of Transportation. Each member of the commission
shall maintain an office in the region headquarters in the
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 4
region where the member resides.
(i) Meetings of the commission shall be held at the
call of the chair or as may be determined by a quorum of the
commission.
(j) The State Transportation Commission shall be
responsible for and have the authority to assume all duties of
the Director of the Department of Transportation unless the
commission by resolution delegates the duties to the director.
(k) No person who serves on the State Transportation
Commission shall enter employment with or contract with a
company or organization or enter employment with or contract
with a company or organization that contracts with a company
or organization that benefited from work approved by the
commission during the time the person was on the commission.
If a person who has served on the State Transportation
Commission becomes employed or contracts with a company or
organization, that company or organization is prohibited from
entering into contracts with the Department of Transportation,
either directly or indirectly, for a period of two years after
the completion of their term of service as a member of the
commission.
Section 2. The five regions of the Department of
Transportation established by the department on the effective
date of this act shall be the regions for the purpose of the
appointment of members of the State Transportation Commission.
The regions are as follows:
(1) Region One: The North Region composed of Madison,
Jackson, DeKalb, Marshall, Cullman, Etowah, Cherokee, Colbert,
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 5
Lauderdale, Lawrence, Franklin, Limestone, and Morgan
Counties.
(2) Region Two: The East Central Region composed of
Jefferson, Blount, St. Clair, Shelby, Coosa, Tallapoosa,
Calhoun, Chambers, Clay, Cleburne, Randolph, and Talladega
Counties and a portion of Lee County.
(3) Region Three: The West Central Region composed of
Tuscaloosa, Bibb, Chilton, Hale, Perry, Sumter, Fayette,
Lamar, Pickens, Greene, Walker, Marion, and Winston Counties.
(4) Region Four: The Southeast Region composed of
Elmore, Autauga, Bullock, Macon, Montgomery, Butler, Lowndes,
Dallas, Russell, Houston, Henry, Coffee, Geneva, Convington,
Crenshaw, Dale, Pike, and Barbour Counties and a portion of
Lee County.
(5) Region Five: The Southwest Region composed of
Mobile, Baldwin, Conecuh, Escambia, Clarke, Marengo, Choctaw,
Wilcox, Monroe, and Washington Counties.
Section 3. Sections 23-1-21 and 23-1-21.2 of the Code
of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
"§23-1-21
(a)(1) The chief executive officer of the State
Department of Transportation shall be known as the Director of
Transportation, who shall be appointed by the Governor State
Transportation Commission and shall hold office at the
pleasure of the Governor. All the powers, authority, and
duties vested in the State Department of Transportation shall
be exercised by the Director of Transportation commission. The
Director of Transportation shall have the authority and duties
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 6
delegated to him or her by the State Transportation
Commission.
(2) Before entering upon the duties of office, the
Director of Transportation shall execute to the State of
Alabama a bond, to be approved by the Governor State
Transportation Commission , in an amount to be fixed by the
Governor commission, for the faithful performance of his or
her duties.
(b) The Director of Transportation shall have the
following minimum qualifications:
(1) Possess a wide knowledge of the transportation
system and needs of Alabama.
(2) Possess a wide knowledge of the principles of
transportation organization and administration.
(3) Possess selected training or expertise in the field
of transportation.
(c) No person who is a member of the State
Transportation Commission within two years next preceding his
or her service on the commission shall be eligible to be
chosen as director of the department. The director shall give
his or her entire time to the duties of the office.
(d) In the event of a vacancy in the office of the
director, the chief engineer of the department shall serve as
acting director until the commission selects a replacement.
The commission shall name a new director within 90 days of a
vacancy."
"§23-1-21.2
(a) The director, acting alone or through, and in
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 7
cooperation with local entities, is hereby delegated the
authority to:
(1) Enter into agreements with local entities to
provide public transportation and to administer any program or
programs, whether rural or urban, relative to public
transportation resulting from federal transportation
legislation. This shall include, but not be limited to,
applying for, accepting, and expending federal public
transportation funds in accordance with applicable federal
laws and regulations.
(2) Enter into agreements with the United States for
federal assistance for public transportation.
(3) Enter into agreements with local entities to
perform and/or and cooperate in the performance of
transportation planning for public transportation
improvements. However, the director shall not perform such
planning until such time as the local entities affected enter
into agreement with the director to carry out a planning
process.
(4) Provide any available technical assistance to local
entities for formulating a program of public transportation
projects to assure that said projects are in accordance with
the comprehensive transportation planning process where such
process is established and is a prerequisite for federal
assistance.
(5) Administer any state funds authorized from time to
time by the Legislature for the purpose of public
transportation.
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 8
(6) Develop and promulgate adopt such rules and
regulations as are determined necessary to insure ensure
compliance with federal laws and regulations.
(b) In addition to the duties listed in subsection (a),
the director shall do all of the following:
(1) Administer the policies promulgated by the
commission.
(2) Supervise and direct all administrative and
technical activities of the department.
(3) Organize the offices of the department.
(4) Coordinate the activities of the various offices of
the department.
(5) Recommend studies and investigations subject to
commission approval as he or she may deem appropriate and
carry out the approved recommendations in conjunction with the
various offices.
(6) Prepare and deliver to the Legislature and the
Governor on or before January 1 of each year, and at other
times as may be required by the Legislature or Governor, a
full report of the work of the department and the office
thereof, including a detailed statement of expenditures of the
department, a detailed construction update, information
concerning the status of roads, mass transit, and aviation,
and any recommendations the department may have.
(7) Have general supervision over all matters relating
to the construction or maintenance of the state highways,
letting of contracts, and the selection of materials to be
used in the construction of state highways and the employment,
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224 HB83 INTRODUCEDHB83 INTRODUCED
Page 9
promotion, demotion, reprimand, suspension, termination,
reassignment, transfer, moving, or relocation of all personnel
not specifically authorized by statute to be employed by the
commission. The director may authorize the payment of expenses
of any personnel reassigned, transferred, moved, or relocated
in accordance with rules adopted by the commission.
(8) Sign all contracts and agreements in the name of
the state.
Section 4. The provisions of this act shall be
operative only after the Attorney General gives an opinion in
writing that this act does not materially affect the case
styled, Johnny Reynolds v. Alabama Department of
Transportation, 85-T-665-N Middle District of Alabama.
Section 5. Notwithstanding the provisions of the Budget
Management Act, neither the Governor nor the Finance Director
shall have any authority to withhold funds, deny transfer of
funds, or redirect specific projects contrary to either the
five-year plan of the commission or the annual revenue and
expenditure plan of the commission.
Section 6. This act shall become effective on the first
day of the third month following its passage and approval by
the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246