Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1218 Compare Versions

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1	1	S.B. No. 1218
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the collection of data by the Texas Department of
6	6	Transportation regarding bridge collapses.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Section 201.805, Transportation Code, as added
9	9	by Chapter 1407 (S.B. 766), Acts of the 80th Legislature, Regular
10	10	Session, 2007, is amended to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 201.805. ACCIDENT REPORTS. (a) The department shall:
12	12	(1) tabulate and analyze the vehicle accident reports
13	13	it receives;
14	14	(2) annually or more frequently publish statistical
15	15	information derived from the accident reports as to the number,
16	16	cause, and location of highway accidents, including information
17	17	regarding the number of:
18	18	(A) accidents involving injury to, death of, or
19	19	property damage to a bicyclist or pedestrian; and
20	20	(B) fatalities caused by a bridge collapse, as
21	21	defined by Section 550.081; and
22	22	(3) not later than December 15 of each even-numbered
23	23	year provide to the governor and the legislature:
24	24	(A) an abstract of the statistical information
25	25	for the biennium ending on the preceding August 31; and
26	26	(B) a report with the department's conclusions,
27	27	findings, and recommendations for decreasing highway accidents and
28	28	increasing highway and bridge safety.
29	29	(b) The department shall provide electronic access to the
30	30	system containing the accident reports so that the Department of
31	31	Public Safety can perform its duties, including the duty to make
32	32	timely entries on driver records.
33	33	SECTION 2. Section 550.081, Transportation Code, as amended
34	34	by Chapters 74 (H.B. 423) and 1407 (S.B. 766), Acts of the 80th
35	35	Legislature, Regular Session, 2007, is reenacted and amended to
36	36	read as follows:
37	37	Sec. 550.081. REPORT OF MEDICAL EXAMINER OR JUSTICE OF THE
38	38	PEACE. (a) In this section:
39	39	(1) "Department" means the Texas Department of
40	40	Transportation.
41	41	(2) "Bridge collapse" means the abrupt failure of the
42	42	basic structure of a bridge that impairs the ability of the bridge
43	43	to serve its intended purpose and that damages a highway located on
44	44	or under the structure.
45	45	(b) A medical examiner or justice of the peace acting as
46	46	coroner in a county that does not have a medical examiner's office
47	47	or that is not part of a medical examiner's district shall submit a
48	48	report in writing to the department [Texas Department of
49	49	Transportation] of the death of a person that was the result of a
50	50	traffic accident or bridge collapse:
51	51	(1) to which this chapter applies; and
52	52	(2) that occurred within the jurisdiction of the
53	53	medical examiner or justice of the peace in the preceding calendar
54	54	quarter.
55	55	(c) [(b)] The report must be submitted before the 11th day
56	56	of each calendar month and include:
57	57	(1) the name of the deceased and a statement as to
58	58	whether the deceased was:
59	59	(A) the operator of or a passenger in a vehicle
60	60	involved in the accident; or
61	61	(B) a pedestrian or other nonoccupant of a
62	62	vehicle;
63	63	(2) the date of the accident and the name of the county
64	64	in which the accident occurred, and, if a bridge collapse, the
65	65	location of the bridge in that county;
66	66	(3) the name of any laboratory, medical examiner's
67	67	office, or other facility that conducted toxicological testing
68	68	relative to the deceased; and
69	69	(4) the results of any toxicological testing that was
70	70	conducted.
71	71	(d) [(c)] A report required by this section shall be sent
72	72	to:
73	73	(1) the crash records bureau of the department at its
74	74	headquarters in Austin; or
75	75	(2) any other office or bureau of the department that
76	76	the department designates.
77	77	(e) [(d)] If toxicological test results are not available
78	78	to the medical examiner or justice of the peace on the date a report
79	79	must be submitted, the medical examiner or justice shall:
80	80	(1) submit a report that includes the statement
81	81	"toxicological test results unavailable"; and
82	82	(2) submit a supplement to the report that contains
83	83	the information required by Subsections (c)(3) [(b)(3)] and (4) as
84	84	soon as practicable after the toxicological test results become
85	85	available.
86	86	(f) [(e)] The department shall prepare and when requested
87	87	supply to medical examiners' offices and justices of the peace the
88	88	forms necessary to make the reports required by this section.
89	89	SECTION 3. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
90	90	over another Act of the 81st Legislature, Regular Session, 2009,
91	91	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
92	92	codes.
93	93	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
94	94	______________________________ ______________________________
95	95	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
96	96	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1218 passed the Senate on
97	97	April 9, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
98	98	______________________________
99	99	Secretary of the Senate
100	100	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1218 passed the House on
101	101	May 26, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 142, Nays 0, one
102	102	present not voting.
103	103	______________________________
104	104	Chief Clerk of the House
105	105	Approved:
106	106	______________________________
107	107	Date
108	108	______________________________
109	109	Governor