83R31392 JXC-D
By: Phillips H.R. No. 3011
R E S O L U T I O N
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State of
Texas, 83rd Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, That House Rule 13,
Section 9(a), be suspended in part as provided by House Rule 13,
Section 9(f), to enable the conference committee appointed to
resolve the differences on House Bill 2741 (the regulation of motor
vehicles by counties and the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles;
authorizing a fee; creating an offense) to consider and take action
on the following matters:
(1) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
house or senate version of the bill by adding proposed SECTION 104
to the bill, amending Section 622.012(b), Transportation Code, to
read as follows:
SECTION 104. Section 622.012(b), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) A truck may be operated at a weight that exceeds the
maximum single axle or tandem axle weight limitation by not more
than 10 percent if the gross weight is not heavier than 69,000
pounds and the department has issued a permit that authorizes the
operation of the vehicle under Section 623.0171.
Explanation: The addition of text is necessary to require
ready-mixed concrete trucks with three axles to be permitted to
operate at certain weight.
(2) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
house or senate version of the bill by adding proposed SECTION 108
to the bill, amending Sections 623.012(a) and (b), Transportation
Code, to read as follows:
SECTION 108. Sections 623.012(a) and (b), Transportation
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) An applicant for a permit under Section 623.011, other
than a permit under that section to operate a vehicle loaded with
timber or pulp wood, wood chips, cotton, or agricultural products
in their natural state, and an applicant for a permit under Section
623.321 shall file with the department:
(1) a blanket bond; or
(2) an irrevocable letter of credit issued by a
financial institution the deposits of which are guaranteed by the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
(b) The bond or letter of credit must:
(1) be in the amount of $15,000 payable to the Texas
Department of Transportation and the counties of this state;
(2) be conditioned that the applicant will pay the
Texas Department of Transportation for any damage to a state
highway, and a county for any damage to a road or bridge of the
county, caused by the operation of the vehicle:
(A) for which the permit is issued at a heavier
weight than the maximum weights authorized by Subchapter B of
Chapter 621 or Section 621.301 or 623.321; or
(B) that is in violation of Section 623.323; and
(3) provide that the issuer is to notify the Texas
Department of Transportation and the applicant in writing promptly
after a payment is made by the issuer on the bond or letter of
credit.
Explanation: The addition of text is necessary to require a
person to file a bond or letter of credit to obtain a permit to
operate a vehicle or combination of vehicles to transport unrefined
timber, wood chips, or woody biomass in certain counties.
(3) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
house or senate version of the bill by adding proposed SECTION 110
to the bill, adding Section 623.0171, Transportation Code, to read
as follows:
SECTION 110. Subchapter B, Chapter 623, Transportation
Code, is amended by adding Section 623.0171 to read as follows:
Sec. 623.0171. PERMIT FOR READY-MIXED CONCRETE TRUCKS. (a)
In this section, "ready-mixed concrete truck" has the meaning
assigned by Section 622.011.
(b) The department may issue a permit that authorizes the
operation of a ready-mixed concrete truck with three axles.
(c) To qualify for a permit under this section, a base
permit fee of $1,000 must be paid, except as provided by Subsection
(g).
(d) A permit issued under this section:
(1) is valid for one year, except as provided by
Subsection (g); and
(2) must be carried in the vehicle for which it is
issued.
(e) When the department issues a permit under this section,
the department shall issue a sticker to be placed on the front
windshield of the vehicle above the inspection certificate issued
to the vehicle. The department shall design the form of the sticker
to aid in the enforcement of weight limits for vehicles.
(f) The sticker must:
(1) indicate the expiration date of the permit; and
(2) be removed from the vehicle when:
(A) the permit for operation of the vehicle
expires;
(B) a lease of the vehicle expires; or
(C) the vehicle is sold.
(g) The department may issue a permit under this section
that is valid for a period of less than one year. The department
shall prorate the applicable fee required by Subsection (c) for a
permit issued under this subsection as necessary to reflect the
term of the permit.
(h) Unless otherwise provided by state or federal law, a
county or municipality may not require a permit, fee, or license for
the operation of a ready-mixed concrete truck in addition to a
permit, fee, or license required by state law.
(i) Section 622.015 does not apply to an owner of a
ready-mixed concrete truck who holds a permit under this section
for the truck.
(j) Unless otherwise provided by state or federal law, a
ready-mixed concrete truck may operate on a state, county, or
municipal road, including a load-zoned county road or a frontage
road adjacent to a federal interstate highway, if the truck
displays a sticker required by Subsection (e) and does not exceed
the maximum gross weight authorized under Section 622.012.
(k) For the purposes of Subsection (l), the department by
rule shall require an applicant to designate in the permit
application the counties in which the applicant intends to operate.
(l) Of the fee collected under this section for a permit:
(1) 50 percent of the amount collected shall be
deposited to the credit of the state highway fund; and
(2) the other 50 percent shall be divided among and
distributed to the counties designated in permit applications under
Subsection (k) according to department rule.
(m) At least once each fiscal year, the comptroller shall
send the amount due each county under Subsection (l) to the county
treasurer or officer performing the function of that office for
deposit to the credit of the county road and bridge fund.
Explanation: The addition of text is necessary to provide for
a permitting process to authorize the operation of a ready-mixed
concrete truck with three axles.
(4) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
house or senate version of the bill by adding proposed SECTION 119
to the bill, adding Section Subchapter Q, Chapter 623,
Transportation Code, to read as follows:
SECTION 119. Chapter 623, Transportation Code, is amended
by adding Subchapter Q to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER Q. VEHICLES TRANSPORTING TIMBER
Sec. 623.321. PERMIT. (a) The department may issue a
permit under this subchapter, as an alternative to a permit issued
under Section 623.011, authorizing a person to operate a vehicle or
combination of vehicles that is being used to transport unrefined
timber, wood chips, or woody biomass in a county identified as a
timber producing county in the most recent edition of the Texas A&M
Forest Service's Harvest Trends Report as of May 15, 2013, at the
weight limits prescribed by Subsection (b).
(b) A person may operate over a road or highway a vehicle or
combination of vehicles issued a permit under this section at a
gross weight that is not heavier than 84,000 pounds, if the gross
load carried on any tandem axle of the vehicle or combination of
vehicles does not exceed 44,000 pounds.
(c) Section 621.508 does not apply to a vehicle or
combination of vehicles operated under this section.
(d) The department shall annually update the number of
timber producing counties described by Subsection (a) based on the
most recent edition of the Texas A&M Forest Service's Harvest
Trends Report.
Sec. 623.322. QUALIFICATION; REQUIREMENTS. (a) To qualify
for a permit under this subchapter for a vehicle or combination of
vehicles, a person must:
(1) pay a permit fee of $1,500;
(2) designate in the permit application the timber
producing counties described by Section 623.321(a) in which the
vehicle or combination of vehicles will be operated; and
(3) satisfy the security requirement of Section
623.012.
(b) A permit issued under this subchapter:
(1) is valid for one year; and
(2) must be carried in the vehicle for which it is
issued.
Sec. 623.323. NOTIFICATION. (a) For purposes of this
section, "financially responsible party" means the owner of the
vehicle or combination of vehicles, the party operating the vehicle
or combination of vehicles, or a person that hires, leases, rents,
or subcontracts the vehicle or combination of vehicles for use on a
road maintained by a county or a state highway.
(b) Before a vehicle or combination of vehicles for which a
permit is issued under this subchapter may be operated on a road
maintained by a county or a state highway, the financially
responsible party shall execute a notification document and agree
to reimburse the county or the state, as applicable, for damage to a
road or highway sustained as a consequence of the transportation
authorized by the permit. At a minimum, the notification document
must include:
(1) the name and address of the financially
responsible party;
(2) a description of each permit issued for the
vehicle or combination of vehicles;
(3) a description of the method of compliance by the
financially responsible party with Sections 601.051 and 623.012;
(4) the address or location of the geographic area in
which the financially responsible party wishes to operate a vehicle
or combination of vehicles and a designation of the specific route
of travel anticipated by the financially responsible party,
including the name or number of each road maintained by a county or
state highway;
(5) a calendar or schedule of duration that includes
the days and hours of operation during which the financially
responsible party reasonably anticipates using the county road or
state highway identified in Subdivision (4); and
(6) a list of each vehicle or combination of vehicles
by license plate number or other registration information, and a
description of the means by which financial responsibility is
established for each vehicle or combination of vehicles if each
vehicle or combination of vehicles is not covered by a single
insurance policy, surety bond, deposit, or other means of financial
assurance.
(c) A financially responsible party shall electronically
file the notification document described by Subsection (b) with the
department under rules adopted by the department not later than the
second business day before the first business day listed by the
financially responsible party under Subsection (b)(5). The
department shall immediately send an electronic copy of the
notification document to each county identified in the notification
document and the Texas Department of Transportation and an
electronic receipt for the notification document to the financially
responsible party. Not later than the first business day listed by
the financially responsible party under Subsection (b)(5), a county
or the Texas Department of Transportation may inspect a road or
highway identified in the notification document. If an inspection
is conducted under this subsection, a county or the Texas
Department of Transportation shall:
(1) document the condition of the roads or highways
and take photographs of the roads or highways as necessary to
establish a baseline for any subsequent assessment of damage
sustained by the financially responsible party's use of the roads
or highways; and
(2) provide a copy of the documentation to the
financially responsible party.
(d) If an inspection has been conducted under Subsection
(c), a county or the Texas Department of Transportation, as
applicable, shall, not later than the fifth business day after the
expiration of the calendar or schedule of duration described by
Subsection (b)(5):
(1) conduct an inspection described by Subsection
(c)(1) to determine any damage sustained by the financially
responsible party's use of the roads or highways; and
(2) provide a copy of the inspection documentation to
the financially responsible party.
(e) The state or a county required to be notified under this
section may assert a claim against any security posted under
Section 623.012 or insurance filed under Section 643.103 for damage
to a road or highway sustained as a consequence of the
transportation authorized by the permit.
(f) This section does not apply to a vehicle or combination
of vehicles that are being used to transport unrefined timber, wood
chips, or woody biomass from:
(1) a storage yard to the place of first processing; or
(2) outside this state to a place of first processing
in this state.
Sec. 623.324. DISPOSITION OF FEE. (a) Of the fee collected
under Section 623.322 for a permit:
(1) 50 percent of the amount collected shall be
deposited to the credit of the state highway fund; and
(2) the other 50 percent shall be divided equally
among all counties designated in the permit application under
Section 623.322(a)(2).
(b) At least once each fiscal year, the comptroller shall
send the amount due each county under Subsection (a) to the county
treasurer or officer performing the function of that office for
deposit to the credit of the county road and bridge fund.
Sec. 623.325. INTERSTATE AND DEFENSE HIGHWAYS. (a) This
subchapter does not authorize the operation on the national system
of interstate and defense highways in this state of a vehicle of a
size or weight greater than those permitted under 23 U.S.C. Section
127.
(b) If the United States authorizes the operation on the
national system of interstate and defense highways of a vehicle of a
size or weight greater than those permitted under 23 U.S.C. Section
127 on September 1, 2013, the new limit automatically takes effect
on the national system of interstate and defense highways in this
state.
Explanation: The addition of text is necessary to provide
for a permitting process to authorize a person to operate a vehicle
or combination of vehicles to transport unrefined timber, wood
chips, or woody biomass in certain counties.
(5) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
house or senate version of the bill in proposed SECTION 140(2) of
the bill by adding Sections 622.013, 622.017, and 622.018,
Transportation Code, to the list of repealed sections in the bill:
(2) Sections 502.252(b), 503.009(b), 503.029(b),
503.030(b), 503.066(b), 520.008, 520.009, 520.0091, 520.0092,
622.013, 622.017, 622.018, 623.0711(k), and 623.093(f),
Transportation Code;
Explanation: The addition of text is necessary to eliminate a
surety bond requirement applicable to owners of ready-mixed
concrete trucks and penalties related to the requirement.