LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                              Austin, Texas
                                     
                    FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session
  
                               May 26, 2001
  
  
          TO:  Honorable Bill Ratliff, Lieutenant Governor
               Honorable James E. "Pete" Laney, Speaker of the House
  
        FROM:  John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
  
       IN RE:  SB1128  by Bernsen (Relating to landscaping and
               billboards along highways; imposing a civil penalty.),
               Conference Committee Report
  
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*  No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.        *
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The bill would amend the Transportation Code to require the Texas
Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to consider certain factors when
developing transportation projects involving the construction,
reconstruction, rehabilitation, or resurfacing of a highway other than a
maintenance resurfacing project.  The bill would prohibit "off-premise"
signs on certain highways or portions of highways and would establish
guidelines and requirements for the re-erection, reconstruction, repair,
and rebuilding of those signs.  The bill would require TxDOT to study
current regulations affecting billboards, to study the feasibility of
adopting a scenic byways program, and to report the findings of the study
to the 78th Legislature no later than January 1, 2003.  The section of
the bill requiring TxDOT to report would expire January 2, 2003.

The bill would establish a civil penalty for violations in an amount
between $500 and $1,000 for each violation and would establish
requirements for bringing suit for a violation.  The bill would allow the
Attorney General, a district or county attorney, or a municipal attorney
to file a suit and collect a penalty.  All penalties collected by the
Attorney General would be deposited to the credit of the State Highway
Fund.

No significant fiscal impact is anticipated due to the amount of
estimated collections and because TxDOT currently allocates approximately
$6 million annually for similar purposes.

The bill would take effect September 1, 2001.
  
Local Government Impact
  
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is
anticipated.
  
  
Source Agencies:   
LBB Staff:         JK, JO, MW