By: Darby H.B. No. 3623

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the environmental review of certain transportation projects by the Texas Department of Transportation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter H, Chapter 201, Transportation Code, is amended by adding Section 201.6042 to read as follows:

Sec. 201.6042. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW CERTIFICATION PROCESS. The commission by rule shall establish a process to certify environmental specialists, public involvement specialists, engineers, and attorneys to work on all documents related to state and federal environmental review processes. The certification process must:

(1) be available to:

(A) department employees; and

(B) private contractors and local government employees who routinely work with the department relating to state or federal environmental review processes; and

(2) require continuing education for recertification.

SECTION 2. Chapter 201, Transportation Code, is amended by adding Subchapter P to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER P. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROCESS

Sec. 201.1001. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Sponsor" means a political subdivision of the state, including a municipality or a county, a political subdivision of a county, a group of adjoining counties, a district organized or operating under Section 52, Article III, or Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, a regional tollway authority created under Chapter 366, a regional mobility authority operating under Chapter 370, or a transportation corporation created under Chapter 431 or other nonprofit corporation, that elects to participate in the planning, development, or construction of a transportation project.

(2) "Transportation project" means a highway or related improvement on the state highway system or a federal aid off-system project.

Sec. 201.1002. STANDARDS. (a) The commission by rule shall set standards for processing an environmental review document for a transportation project.

(b) Each person who prepares or submits a document for review by the department under this subchapter, whether an engineer, consultant, or attorney must hold a valid certificate issued by the department under Section 201.6042.

(c) Before the department may process an environmental review document a detailed scope of the project must be prepared.

(d) The standards adopted under this section must contain:

(1) the required process and content of a draft environmental document, with specific standards for each type of environmental documents that may be prepared;

(2) review timeframes by which the department will render an environmental decision on a project and the timeframes by which the department will make a recommendation to the federal highway administration if the transportation project is a federal project.

(e) Review timeframes are tolled during any period for which:

(1) the environmental document or related reports are being revised;

(2) the transportation project is the subject of additional work, including a change in design of the project, and during the identification and resolution of new significant issues; and

(3) legal counsel for the department has identified an issue concerning compliance with applicable law.

(f) If a sponsor prepares an environmental review document for a project under Section 201.1003, the department shall make a determination whether the documents submitted by the sponsor are administratively complete and ready for technical review not later than the 20th day after the date that the sponsor submits documents to the department for review. The review timeframes do not begin until the department concludes the documents are administratively complete.

Sec. 201.1003 PARTICIPATION BY SPONSOR. (a) A political subdivision may submit an environmental review document for a transportation project under this subchapter only if:

(1) the transportation project is contained in the approved state transportation improvement program (STIP); or

(2) the transportation project:

(A) is contained in the unified transportation program (UTP), another statewide transportation plan, the applicable metropolitan transportation plan (MTP), or an applicable rural transportation plan (RTP); and

(B) has been identified by the commission as being eligible for participation under this subchapter.

(b) The standards adopted by the commission under Section 201.1002 apply to work performed by the sponsor.

(c) On a sponsor's submitting environmental review documents to the department, legal counsel for the sponsor shall certify that the documents are administratively complete, ready for technical review, and compliant with all applicable laws.

(d) This subsection applies only to a transportation project that is not identified as fully funded in one or more of the approved state transportation improvement program (STIP), unified transportation program (UTP), any other statewide transportation plan, the applicable metropolitan transportation plan (MTP), or any applicable rural transportation plan (RTP). The sponsor that desires to develop the environmental review documents for the transportation project must submit to the department:

(1) an application that gives notice that the sponsor will prepare the environmental review document; and

(2) an application fee equal to one percent of the estimated construction costs of the transportation project.

SECTION 3. The Texas Transportation Commission shall adopt the rules to implement Subchapter P, Chapter 201, Transportation Code, as added by this Act, not later than March 1, 2012.

SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.