SRC-SEW H.B. 299 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research Center H.B. 299 By: Gallego (Shapleigh) State Affairs 5/11/2001 Engrossed DIGEST AND PURPOSE Current law provides a maximum lawful speed of 70 miles per hour in daytime for a vehicle on a highway numbered by the state or the United States outside an urban district. Ten western states with landscapes and population densities similar to the western part of Texas, including New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Arizona, allow for a maximum speed limit of 75 miles per hour. H.B. 299 allows the Texas Transportation Commission to establish a speed limit of 75 miles per hour on a part of the highway system located in a county with a population density of less than 10 persons per square mile. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 545.353, Transportation Code, by amending Subsection (d) and by adding Subsection (h), as follows: (d) Adds a reference to Subsection (h). (h) Authorizes the Texas Transportation Commission (commission), notwithstanding Section 545.352(b), to establish a speed limit of 75 miles per hour on a part of the highway system under certain conditions. SECTION 2. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2001.