78R5059 JTS-F
By: Wentworth S.B. No. 645
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the permissible size of certain recreational vehicles
operated on a public highway.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter Y, Chapter 622, Transportation Code,
is amended by amending Section 622.901 and adding Section 622.903
to read as follows:
Sec. 622.901. WIDTH EXCEPTIONS. The width limitation
provided by Section 621.201 does not apply to:
(1) highway building or maintenance machinery that is
traveling:
(A) during daylight on a public highway other
than a highway that is part of the national system of interstate and
defense highways; or
(B) for not more than 50 miles on a highway that
is part of the national system of interstate and defense highways;
(2) a vehicle traveling during daylight on a public
highway other than a highway that is part of the national system of
interstate and defense highways or traveling for not more than 50
miles on a highway that is part of the national system of interstate
and defense highways if the vehicle is:
(A) a farm tractor or implement of husbandry; or
(B) a vehicle on which a farm tractor or
implement of husbandry, other than a tractor or implement being
transported from one dealer to another, is being moved by the owner
of the tractor or implement or by an agent or employee of the owner:
(i) to deliver the tractor or implement to a
new owner;
(ii) to transport the tractor or implement
to or from a mechanic for maintenance or repair; or
(iii) in the course of an agricultural
operation;
(3) machinery that is used solely for drilling water
wells, including machinery that is a unit or a unit mounted on a
conventional vehicle or chassis, and that is traveling:
(A) during daylight on a public highway other
than a highway that is part of the national system of interstate and
defense highways; or
(B) for not more than 50 miles on a highway that
is part of the national system of interstate and defense highways;
(4) a vehicle owned or operated by a public, private,
or volunteer fire department; [or]
(5) a vehicle registered under Section 502.164; or
(6) a recreational vehicle to which Section 622.903
applies.
Sec. 622.903. WIDTH LIMITATION ON CERTAIN RECREATIONAL
VEHICLES. (a) In this section:
(1) "Appurtenance" includes an awning, a grab handle,
lighting equipment, or a vent. The term does not include a
load-carrying device.
(2) "Recreational vehicle" has the meaning assigned by
Section 522.004.
(b) A recreational vehicle may exceed a width limitation
established by Section 621.201 or 621.202 if the excess width is
attributable to an appurtenance that extends six inches or less
beyond a fender on one or both sides of the vehicle.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.