88R12669 AJZ-D By: Hunter H.B. No. 2894 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to the construction of a bridge crossing Laguna Madre. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Subchapter H, Chapter 201, Transportation Code, is amended by adding Section 201.625 to read as follows: Sec. 201.625. LAGUNA MADRE BRIDGE. (a) The department shall: (1) develop a plan, conduct an environmental review, and propose a design for a bridge crossing Laguna Madre in Nueces or Kleberg County in addition to the John F. Kennedy Memorial Causeway; and (2) on construction of the bridge described by Subdivision (1), designate the bridge as part of the state highway system. (b) The bridge described by Subsection (a) must provide an additional evacuation route for residents of North Padre Island in the event of a hurricane or other natural disaster. (c) The department shall include the bridge described by this section in the unified transportation program under Subchapter P. SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.