BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center                                                                                                        S.B. 970

81R8236 JD-F                                                                                                                   By: Seliger

Transportation & Homeland Security

3/27/2009

As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

Due to the amount of funding that the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) handles and the number of people it employs, the need for the executive director to be an engineer should be secondary to the need for organizational management skills.  As the duties of the executive director are managerial in nature, it is not necessary for him or her to be an engineer.

As proposed, S.B. 970 removes the requirement that the executive director of TxDOT be a registered professional engineer and adds the requirement that he or she have organizational management experience and skills. 

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 201.301(a), Transportation Code, to require the executive director (director) of the Texas Department of Transportation to be experienced and skilled in transportation planning and development and in organizational management.  Deletes existing text requiring the director to be a registered professional engineer in this state and experienced and skilled in transportation planning, development, construction, and maintenance. 

SECTION 2.  Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 3.  Effective date:  upon passage or September 1, 2009.