Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 711 transfers the authority for designating routes for the transportation of non-radioactive hazardous materials from the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to the Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT). The act requires the Texas Transportation Commission to adopt rules for routing such materials and allows rules regarding procedural requirements, public participation, and signage to be more stringent than federal regulations. The commission is required to consult with a political subdivision when a route is being proposed within its jurisdiction. A political subdivision or state agency can designate a route with approval by TXDOT. The commission can designate a route over any public road or highway in the state and may include a road that is not part of the state highway system only on approval of the political subdivision that maintains the road. The act requires TXDOT to provide signage for routes on roads that are not part of the state highway system, while installation and maintenance of the signage is to be paid for by the political subdivision that maintains the road.

            Provisions authorizing the transition of authority from DPS to TXDOT took effect on May 20, 1997. The remaining provisions take effect on January 1, 1998.