By Kubiak, et al. H.B. No. 2496
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to funding of mass transportation projects.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 2, Chapter 679, Acts of the 64th
1-5 Legislature, Regular Session, 1975 (Article 6663c, Vernon's Texas
1-6 Civil Statutes), is amended by amending Subdivisions (7) and (10)
1-7 and adding Subdivision (12) to read as follows:
1-8 (7) "Urbanized area" means an area having a population
1-9 of more than 50,000 but less than 200,000 and so designated by the
1-10 United States Bureau of the Census <or by general state law>.
1-11 (10) "Designated recipient" means an authority, a
1-12 municipality that is not included in an authority, a local
1-13 governmental body, or a nonprofit entity providing rural public
1-14 transportation services, that receives federal or state public
1-15 transportation money through the Texas <State> Department of
1-16 <Highways and Public> Transportation or the Federal Transit
1-17 <federal Urban Mass Transportation> Administration, or its
1-18 successor.
1-19 (12) "Rural area" means an area having a population of
1-20 50,000 or less and so designated by the United States Bureau of the
1-21 Census.
1-22 SECTION 2. Section 4(c), Chapter 679, Acts of the 64th
1-23 Legislature, Regular Session, 1975 (Article 6663c, Vernon's Texas
1-24 Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
2-1 (c) To participate in the discretionary program for a state
2-2 fiscal biennium, a designated recipient must deliver an application
2-3 for project funding to the commission. An application submitted
2-4 under this subsection must contain:
2-5 (1) a description of the project, including estimates
2-6 of the population that would benefit from the project and the
2-7 anticipated date of project completion;
2-8 (2) a statement of the estimated cost of the project,
2-9 including estimates of the federally financed portions of the
2-10 project costs; and
2-11 (3) a certification, as required by Section 5A(c) of
2-12 this Act, that <local> funds are available, if required under
2-13 Section 5A(b) of this Act, <for local share requirements> and that
2-14 proposed projects are consistent with comprehensive regional
2-15 transportation plans.
2-16 SECTION 3. Sections 5A(a), (b), (c), and (d), Chapter 679,
2-17 Acts of the 64th Legislature, Regular Session, 1975 (Article 6663c,
2-18 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), are amended to read as follows:
2-19 (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this section,
2-20 designated recipients may use money from the formula and
2-21 discretionary programs to provide for capital improvements,
2-22 planning activities, and operating expenses and other
2-23 administrative costs<:>
2-24 <(1) 65 percent of the local share requirement for
2-25 federally financed projects for capital improvements;>
2-26 <(2) 50 percent of the local share requirement for
2-27 projects for operating expenses and administrative costs;>
3-1 <(3) 50 percent of the total cost of a public
3-2 transportation capital improvement project, if the designated
3-3 recipient certifies that federal money is unavailable for the
3-4 proposed project and the commission finds that the proposed project
3-5 is vitally important to the development of public transportation in
3-6 the state; and>
3-7 <(4) 65 percent of the local share requirement for
3-8 federally financed planning activities>.
3-9 (b) A metropolitan or regional authority created under
3-10 Chapter 141, Acts of the 63rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1973
3-11 (Article 1118x, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), or Chapter 683,
3-12 Acts of the 66th Legislature, Regular Session, 1979 (Article 1118y,
3-13 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), <An authority> may not receive
3-14 money from the formula or discretionary program. A city transit
3-15 department created under Article 1118z, Revised Statutes, by a
3-16 municipality having a population of not more than 200,000 is
3-17 eligible to receive money from the formula and the discretionary
3-18 program with the option to provide a local share. A municipality
3-19 having a population of more than 200,000 and not otherwise
3-20 described by this subsection is eligible to receive money from the
3-21 formula and discretionary program to provide:
3-22 (1) 65 percent of the local share requirement for
3-23 federally financed projects for capital improvements;
3-24 (2) 50 percent of the local share requirement for
3-25 projects for operating expenses and other administrative costs;
3-26 (3) 50 percent of the total cost of a public
3-27 transportation capital improvement project, if the designated
4-1 recipient certifies that federal money is unavailable for the
4-2 proposed project and the commission finds that the proposed project
4-3 is vitally important to the development of public transportation in
4-4 the state; and
4-5 (4) 65 percent of the local share requirement for
4-6 federally financed planning activities.
4-7 (c) An application for money under this Act must be
4-8 certified and contain a statement by the applicant that<:>
4-9 <(1) money is available to provide:>
4-10 <(A) 35 percent of the local share requirement
4-11 of federally assisted capital improvements or planning projects and
4-12 50 percent of the local share requirement of federally financed
4-13 projects for operating expenses and administrative costs to be
4-14 financed under this Act; or>
4-15 <(B) 50 percent of the total cost of other
4-16 public transportation capital improvement projects; and>
4-17 <(2)> the proposed public transportation project is
4-18 consistent with continuing, cooperative, and comprehensive regional
4-19 transportation planning implemented in accordance with the federal
4-20 Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964 (49 U.S.C. Section 5301
4-21 <1601> et seq.) and the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973 (49 U.S.C.
4-22 Section 1602a).
4-23 (d) The state public transportation program provided by this
4-24 Act is a <matching> grant program for public transportation
4-25 projects. Federal approval of a proposed public transportation
4-26 project means that the project is consistent with the purposes of
4-27 this Act and with the continuing, cooperative, and comprehensive
5-1 regional transportation planning implemented in accordance with the
5-2 federal Urban Mass Transportation Act of 1964 (49 U.S.C. Section
5-3 5301 <1601> et seq.) and the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1973 (49
5-4 U.S.C. Section 1602a).
5-5 SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
5-6 SECTION 5. The importance of this legislation and the
5-7 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-8 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-9 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-10 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.