| 1 | 1 | | By: Morales Shaw H.B. No. 5154 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to design considerations of transportation projects by the |
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| 7 | 7 | | Texas Department of Transportation. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Section 201.615, Transportation Code, is amended |
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| 10 | 10 | | by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to read as |
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| 11 | 11 | | follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (a) The department shall consider, in accordance with the |
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| 13 | 13 | | NEPA requirements for studying design alternatives, the following |
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| 14 | 14 | | factors when developing transportation projects that involve the |
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| 15 | 15 | | construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or resurfacing of a |
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| 16 | 16 | | highway, other than a maintenance resurfacing project: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) the extent to which the project promotes safety; |
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| 18 | 18 | | (2) the durability of the project; |
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| 19 | 19 | | (3) the economy of maintenance of the project; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (4) the impact of the project on: |
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| 21 | 21 | | (A) the natural and artificial environment; |
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| 22 | 22 | | (B) the scenic and aesthetic character of the |
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| 23 | 23 | | area in which the project is located; |
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| 24 | 24 | | (C) preservation efforts; and |
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| 25 | 25 | | (D) each affected local community and its |
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| 26 | 26 | | economy; |
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| 27 | 27 | | (5) the access for other modes of transportation, |
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| 28 | 28 | | including those that promote physically active communities; [and] |
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| 29 | 29 | | (6) except as provided by Subsection (c), the |
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| 30 | 30 | | aesthetic character of the project, including input from each |
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| 31 | 31 | | affected local community; |
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| 32 | 32 | | (7) except as provided by Subsection (d), an |
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| 33 | 33 | | alternative design for the project that has been approved by a vote |
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| 34 | 34 | | of the governing body of a municipality or county that represents an |
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| 35 | 35 | | affected local community; and |
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| 36 | 36 | | (8) the negative impacts to an affected local |
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| 37 | 37 | | community from previous transportation projects. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (d) Subsection (a)(7) does not apply to a transportation |
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| 39 | 39 | | project if the department finds that an alternative design for a |
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| 40 | 40 | | transportation project approved by the governing body of a |
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| 41 | 41 | | municipality or county is frivolous, unreasonable, or intended to |
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| 42 | 42 | | delay a transportation project. |
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| 43 | 43 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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