LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD

Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 83RD LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION

April 16, 2013

TO:	Honorable Larry Phillips, Chair, House Committee on Transportation
FROM:	Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:	HB777 by White (Relating to oversize or overweight vehicles transporting timber or timber products; authorizing fees and civil penalties.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

The bill would amend Chapter 621, Chapter 622, and Chapter 623 of the Transportation Code regarding vehicles transporting timber and timber products. The bill would authorize the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to issue annual permits for vehicles transporting unrefined timber, wood chips, or biomass at an annual fee of $800. The additional annual permit fee required by Section 623.0111, Transportation Code, would not apply to the new permit. The bill would require 50 percent of the fee to be deposited in the State Highway Fund (Fund 6) and the remaining 50 percent to be divided among all counties designated on the permit application according to the ratio of the total amount of timber harvested in each applicable county to the total amount of timber harvested by all counties designated on the permit. The bill would require a financially responsible party associated with the permitted vehicles to provide a notification document to the DMV indicating the roads on which the vehicles will travel and agree to reimburse a county or the state, as applicable, for damage to a road or highway caused by the transportation authorized under the permit. The bill would authorize the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) or a county to inspect and document the condition of a highway or road identified in the notification to establish a baseline condition for any assessment of damage sustained by the financially responsible party's use of the highway or road.

 

The bill would establish additional civil penalties for violations of overweight/oversize vehicle requirements regarding the transporting of timber and timber products.  The penalties would be credited to the road and bridge fund of the county in which the violation occurred.

 

Based on the information and analysis provided by the Department of Motor Vehicles, it is assumed the implementation of the new permit would result in an insignificant net revenue gain to Fund 6 and any costs associated with implementing the bill could be absorbed within the agency's existing resources. Based on the information provided by TxDOT, it is assumed any direct costs or duties associated with implementing the provisions of the bill could be absorbed within existing resources.

Local Government Impact

It is assumed the implementation of the new permit and assessment of new civial penalties would result in a revenue gain to the County Road and Bridge Funds.

Source Agencies:

304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 601 Department of Transportation, 608 Department of Motor Vehicles

LBB Staff:

UP, AG, TG