BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 2293

By: Kuempel

Transportation

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

According to interested parties, electric arc furnace steel slag is an environmentally safe byproduct of the steelmaking process that has been used commercially for many decades, and it offers significant price, performance, and natural resource conservation benefits. The interested parties assert that slag outperforms natural materials in many applications and has excellent benefits in road construction and, because slag is a renewable mineral resource, its use reduces the consumption of natural resources by the construction industry and saves money. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) currently recognizes ground and granulated blast furnace slag as an established nonhazardous recycled material suitable for use in road projects but not electric arc furnace steel slag. H.B. 2293 seeks to enhance the performance of the state's roads and save tax dollars by requiring TxDOT to allow for the use of electric arc furnace steel slag in road construction.

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. 2293 amends the Transportation Code to require Texas Department of Transportation design standards, guidelines, and specifications to require that contract specifications for a road construction project allow for the use of electric arc furnace steel slag for paving, bridge construction, and other appropriate road construction unless that use is technically inappropriate according to sound engineering principles or increases the cost of that construction.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2013.