BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 1517

By: Isaac

Transportation

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Many smaller municipalities with few revenue sources count on revenue from the disposition of state traffic fines to support maintaining roads and bridges and enforcing highway safety laws.  To prevent the municipalities from operating speed traps, the amount of revenue a municipality may retain from the fines is based on the municipality's other sources of revenue for the preceding fiscal year.  This restriction has a negative impact on municipalities that are effectively deterring motorists who drive at speeds significantly over the speed limit.  H.B. 1517 seeks to allow certain municipalities to count additional revenue as other revenue to ensure that a municipality is not forced to choose between fulfilling its responsibility to keep roads safe or its financial well-being.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 1517 amends the Transportation Code to authorize a municipality with a population of more than 1,000 but less than 1,200 for which part of the municipal boundary is a river that forms part of the boundary between two counties to include the revenue of a utility company operating within the municipality as municipal revenue for a fiscal year for purposes of the law authorizing a municipality with a population of less than 5,000 to retain from fines and special expenses collected for violations of state highway laws an amount equal to 30 percent of the municipality's revenue for the preceding fiscal year.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2011.