1-1 By: Shapleigh S.C.R. No. 7 1-2 (In the Senate - Filed January 11, 2001; January 16, 2001, 1-3 read first time and referred to Committee on Business and Commerce; 1-4 March 29, 2001, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 5, 1-5 Nays 0; March 29, 2001, sent to printer.) 1-6 SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-7 WHEREAS, The governments of Texas and Mexico are facing a 1-8 serious challenge in reducing the costly delays of commercial 1-9 vehicle congestion occurring at international border crossings as a 1-10 result of record-breaking trade activity under the North American 1-11 Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA); and 1-12 WHEREAS, Because of the mutual benefits derived from this 1-13 international trade, there is a need for a cooperative approach to 1-14 alleviating such delays on both sides of the border and thus 1-15 expediting commercial traffic, and the development of technology 1-16 represents one of the most feasible and promising avenues for a 1-17 joint venture in this regard; and 1-18 WHEREAS, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) 1-19 technologies are now being used at border crossings on the north 1-20 side of the Rio Grande to automate the regulatory processes that 1-21 govern trade under NAFTA, such as vehicle, driver, and cargo 1-22 certification requirements; and 1-23 WHEREAS, The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is 1-24 guiding the implementation of ITS technology to screen this data 1-25 electronically as trucks approach border checkpoints, thus 1-26 eliminating the need to halt the flow of trans-border commerce and 1-27 reducing the miles of idling, gas-guzzling, freight-bearing trucks 1-28 waiting to be inspected by border officials; and 1-29 WHEREAS, ITS technologies have been successfully demonstrated 1-30 under the Texas Regional International Border Crossing (TRIBEX) 1-31 operational test; the TRIBEX system was implemented in 1998 at the 1-32 Ysleta-Zaragosa Bridge between El Paso, Texas, and Juarez, Mexico, 1-33 and at the Columbia-Solidarity and Lincoln-Juarez bridges between 1-34 Laredo, Texas, and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico; and 1-35 WHEREAS, The TRIBEX system uses weigh-in motion technology, 1-36 other electronic sensors, and communications equipment to support 1-37 an initiative called the North American Trade Automation Prototype 1-38 (NATAP); the system electronically collects vehicle and cargo data 1-39 and transmits the data to officers of the Texas Department of 1-40 Public Safety and United States Customs officials, who then inform 1-41 truck drivers whether to continue or stop for an inspection; and 1-42 WHEREAS, NAFTA provisions require participating countries to 1-43 cooperate in efforts to standardize data elements, set an 1-44 international data syntax, facilitate the exchange of information, 1-45 and generally harmonize customs processes; and 1-46 WHEREAS, The concept of a "seamless" border crossing to 1-47 expedite the processing of commercial vehicles and people can only 1-48 be realized through the binational planning of infrastructure 1-49 projects that complement the coordinated use of ITS technologies; 1-50 and 1-51 WHEREAS, The creation of a complementary ITS environment on 1-52 both sides of the border is an imperative that also addresses the 1-53 issue of road safety for Texas and the nation because Mexican 1-54 trucks, which will soon have access to travel beyond the border 1-55 region, are far too heavy for our roads to support; and 1-56 WHEREAS, Based on its leadership role in formulating 1-57 strategies to develop and implement ITS projects, TxDOT has 1-58 acquired the qualifications to work with the Mexican government and 1-59 the Mexican business sector to establish complementary technologies 1-60 for their respective border clearance stations; now, therefore, be 1-61 it 1-62 RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas 1-63 hereby request the Texas Department of Transportation to 1-64 collaborate with Mexico to develop and implement an electronic 2-1 check and clearance system at border crossings in Mexico using 2-2 state-of-the-art Intelligent Transportation System technologies, 2-3 including weigh-in motion technology; and, be it further 2-4 RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official 2-5 copy of this resolution to the executive director of the Texas 2-6 Department of Transportation and to the chair of the Texas 2-7 Transportation Commission. 2-8 * * * * *