HBA-MPA C.S.H.B. 1672 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 1672
By: Hill
Transportation
4444/8/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, exclusive authorization for disposal of motor vehicles is
provided to motor vehicle demolishers.  Cities are allowed to dispose of
motor vehicles by sending them to a demolisher only if the abandoned motor
vehicle is totally inoperable.  If a city has possession of an abandoned
vehicle which does not meet qualified emission standards, but is classified
as operable under the law, the city must sell it at auction.  Selling high
emission vehicles at auction runs the risk of putting these vehicles back
on the street, and thus worsening urban air quality. 

According to the North Central Texas Council of Governments, 10 percent of
the vehicles currently running cause 50 percent of vehicle-produced
pollution.  The majority of these high pollution vehicles are 1979 and
older models that do not have efficient combustion technologies developed
since 1985.  In fact, 1970-1979 model vehicles emit 5.6-10.7 more
grams/mile of Volatile Organic Compounds emissions than 1985-1987 model
vehicles.  Even vehicles manufactured after 1979 can cause significant air
pollution from emission systems that have failed.  One way to significantly
decrease vehicle pollution and increase air quality is to reduce the number
of high emission vehicles running on Texas roads.  C.S.H.B. 1672 grants
municipalities the authority to have abandoned motor vehicles that are more
than eight years old and do not meet current emissions standards
demolished. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 683.051, Transportation Code, to authorize a
person to apply to the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) for
authority to dispose of a motor vehicle to a demolisher if the abandoned
vehicle does not comply with all applicable air pollution emissions control
related requirements including a vehicle inspection certificate affixed to
the vehicle windshield, or the vehicle emissions inspection and maintenance
requirements under Chapter 548 (Compulsory Inspection of Vehicles),
Transportation Code.  

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 683.054(b), Transportation Code, to make
conforming and nonsubstantive changes. 

SECTION 3.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 4.  Emergency clause.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 1672 differs from the original bill in SECTION 1 by reinstating
existing Section 683.052(2)(A)(iii), Transportation Code, allowing a person
to apply to TxDOT for authority to dispose of a vehicle that has no motor
or is otherwise totally inoperable.  The substitute also adds the word "or"
so that either noncompliance with emissions standards as proposed in the
original bill, or inoperability are sufficient standards to justify
disposal.