H.C.R. No. 82
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, An integrated, safe, and adequately financed
transportation system is a critical component of the economic,
social, and environmental well-being of both the United States and
Texas; and
WHEREAS, The Highway Trust Fund was established by the
Highway Revenue Act of 1956 as a mechanism to finance an accelerated
highway program, including the Interstate Highway System; the
revenues used to finance the trust fund are derived from federal
excise taxes on highway motor fuel and certain truck-related taxes
collected from motorists in all 50 states and paid into the federal
Highway Trust Fund; and
WHEREAS, Federal law requires that the money paid into the
trust fund be returned to the states in accordance with
legislatively established formulas that are recalculated every six
years in reauthorization legislation; most recently the
Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) was passed
in 1998; and
WHEREAS, Due to funding disparities, 26 states, known as
highway program donor states, receive less than their fair share of
the federal fuel taxes that their citizens have paid into the
highway account of the trust fund; from 1956 to 2001, Texas received
only an average highway program rate of return of 78 percent on the
funds sent to Washington; and
WHEREAS, Currently, the United States Congress is drafting
legislation to reauthorize TEA-21, which guaranteed a minimum rate
of return of 90.5 percent on federal highway programs; a coalition
of the donor states seeks a guaranteed rate of return of 95 percent
of their share of contributions to the federal Highway Trust Fund,
calculated against all dollars being distributed to the 50 states;
and
WHEREAS, A 95 percent rate of return would allow Texas to
better address its highway construction, repair, and maintenance
needs; highway projects enhance mobility, improve air quality,
foster economic development, and support thousands of jobs in
Texas; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 78th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby respectfully request the Congress of the United States to
provide equity funding to Texas by increasing the state's highway
program rate of return from the Highway Trust Fund to 95 percent of
Texas' contributions to the fund; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the
senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the
Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this
resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.
Campbell Baxter
Berman Bohac
Bonnen Brown of Kaufman
Callegari Casteel
Chisum Christian
Cook of Navarro Cook of Colorado
Corte Crownover
Davis of Harris Dawson
Eissler Flynn
Gattis Geren
Griggs Hamilton
Hardcastle Harper-Brown
Heflin Hilderbran
Homer Hope
Howard Hughes
Hunter Isett
Jones of Bexar Keffer of Dallas
Keffer of Eastland King
Kuempel Laubenberg
Mercer Merritt
Miller Morrison
Paxton Phillips
Pitts Puente
Rose Seaman
Smith of Harris Smithee
Stick Swinford
Taylor Van Arsdale
West Wohlgemuth
Wong Zedler
Craddick Geren Mercer
Allen Giddings Merritt
Alonzo Goodman Miller
Bailey Goolsby Moreno of Harris
Baxter Griggs Moreno of El Paso
Berman Grusendorf Morrison
Bohac Guillen Mowery
Bonnen Gutierrez Naishtat
Branch Haggerty Nixon
Brown of Kaufman Hamilton Noriega
Brown of Brazos Hamric Oliveira
Burnam Hardcastle Olivo
Callegari Harper-Brown Paxton
Campbell Hartnett Pena
Canales Heflin Phillips
Capelo Hegar Pickett
Casteel Hilderbran Pitts
Castro Hill Puente
Chavez Hochberg Quintanilla
Chisum Hodge Raymond
Christian Homer Reyna
Coleman Hope Riddle
Cook of Navarro Hopson Ritter
Cook of Colorado Howard Rodriguez
Corte Hughes Rose
Crabb Hunter Seaman
Crownover Hupp Smith of Tarrant
Davis of Harris Isett Smith of Harris
Davis of Dallas Jones of Lubbock Smithee
Dawson Jones of Bexar Solis
Delisi Jones of Dallas Solomons
Denny Keel Stick
Deshotel Keffer of Dallas Swinford
Driver Keffer of Eastland Talton
Dukes King Taylor
Dunnam Kolkhorst Telford
Dutton Krusee Thompson
Edwards Kuempel Truitt
Eiland Laney Turner
Eissler Laubenberg Uresti
Elkins Lewis Van Arsdale
Ellis Luna Villarreal
Escobar Mabry West
Farabee Madden Wilson
Farrar Marchant Wise
Flores Martinez Fischer Wohlgemuth
Flynn McCall Wolens
Gallego McClendon Wong
Garza McReynolds Woolley
Gattis Menendez Zedler
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.C.R. No. 82 was adopted by the House on April
9, 2003, by a non-record vote; and that the House concurred in
Senate amendments to H.C.R. No. 82 on May 23, 2003, by a non-record
vote.
_____________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.C.R. No. 82 was adopted by the Senate, as
amended, on May 21, 2003, by a viva-voce vote.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor