Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.

      Line and page numbers may not match official copy.

      By Alexander                                    H.B. No. 2882

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the collection and use of the gasoline tax.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Article 153.503, Tax Code is amended to read as

 1-5     follows:

 1-6           Sec. 153.503  Allocation of Gasoline Tax.  On or before the

 1-7     fifth workday after the end of each month, the comptroller, after

 1-8     making all deductions for refund purposes and for the amounts

 1-9     allocated under Sections 153.502 and 153.5025, shall allocate the

1-10     net remainder of the taxes collected under Subchapter B  as

1-11     follows:

1-12                 (1)  one-fourth of the tax shall be deposited to the

1-13     credit of the available school fund;

1-14                 (2)  one-half of the tax shall be deposited to the

1-15     credit of the state highway fund for the construction and

1-16     maintenance of the state road system under existing law; [and]

1-17                 (3)  [from the remaining one-fourth of the tax the

1-18     comptroller shall:] one-tenth of the tax shall be deposited to the

1-19     credit of the county and road district highway fund; and

1-20                       [(A)  deposit to the credit of the county and

1-21     road district highway fund all the remaining tax receipts until a

1-22     total of $7,300,000 has been credited to the fund each fiscal year;

1-23     and]

1-24                 (4)  [after the amount required to be deposited to the

 2-1     county and road district highway funds has been deposited,] deposit

 2-2     to the credit of the state highway fund the remainder of the

 2-3     [one-fourth of the] tax, the amount to be provided on the basis of

 2-4     allocations made each month of the fiscal year, which sum shall be

 2-5     used by the State Department of Highways and Public Transportation

 2-6     for the construction, improvement, and maintenance of

 2-7     farm-to-market roads.

 2-8           SECTION 2.  Article 256.002(b), Transportation Code is

 2-9     amended to read as follows:

2-10           Sec. 256.002.  Distribution of County and Road District

2-11     Highway Fund.  (b)  The money appropriated under Subsection(a)

2-12     shall be allocated among the counties as follows:

2-13                 (1)  [one-fifth according to area determined by the

2-14     ratio of the area of the county to the area of the state,] one-half

2-15     according to population determined by the ratio of the population

2-16     of the county to the population of the state; and,

2-17                 [(2)  two-fifths according to rural population,

2-18     determined by the ratio of the rural population of the county to

2-19     the rural population of the state; and,]

2-20                 [(3)  two-fifths] (2)  one-half according to lateral

2-21     road mileage, determined by the ratio of the mileage of lateral

2-22     roads in the county to the mileage of lateral roads in the state as

2-23     of January 1 of the year of the allocation as shown by the records

2-24     of the State-Federal Highway Planning Survey and the department.

2-25           SECTION 3.  Article 256.003(a), Transportation Code is

2-26     amended to read as follows:

2-27           Sec. 256.003.  Use of Revenues From County and Road District

2-28     Highway Fund.  (a)  A county may use the money it receives under

2-29     Section 256.002 only for:

2-30                 (1)  purchasing right-of-way for lateral roads,

 3-1     farm-to-market roads, or state highways:

 3-2                 (2)  funding contracts for constructing and maintaining

 3-3     lateral roads, as provided by Chapter 262, Local Government Code

 3-4     [including the hiring of labor and the purchase of materials,

 3-5     supplies, and equipment]; or

 3-6                 (3)  paying the principal, interest, and sinking fund

 3-7     requirements maturing during the fiscal year on bonds, warrants, or

 3-8     other legal obligations incurred to finance activities described in

 3-9     Subdivisions (1) and (2).

3-10           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect on September 1, 1997.

3-11           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the

3-12     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

3-13     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

3-14     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

3-15     days is each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.