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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the allocation and use of certain funds for public |
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transportation projects. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 456.001, Transportation Code, is amended |
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by adding Subdivision (2-a) to read as follows: |
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(2-a) "Direct recipient" means a municipality that: |
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(A) receives money from the United States or this |
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state for public transportation through the department or the |
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Federal Transit Administration or the administration's successor; |
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and |
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(B) is located in an urbanized area with a population |
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of more than 200,000, according to the 2010 federal decennial |
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census: |
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(i) that includes an urban transit district |
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eligible to participate in the formula or discretionary program |
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provided by this chapter but does not include a transit authority; |
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and |
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(ii) that is adjacent to an urbanized area with a |
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population more than 4.9 million but less than 5 million, according |
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to the 2010 federal decennial census. |
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SECTION 2. Section 456.006(a), Transportation Code, is |
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amended to read as follows: |
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(a) A designated recipient that is a rural or urban transit |
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district or municipal transit department or a direct recipient may |
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use money from the formula or discretionary program and any local |
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funds for any transit-related activity. |
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SECTION 3. Section 456.022, Transportation Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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Sec. 456.022. FORMULA ALLOCATION. (a) The commission |
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shall adopt rules establishing a formula allocating funds among |
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individual eligible public transportation providers. The formula |
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may take into account a transportation provider's performance, the |
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number of its riders, the need of residents in its service area for |
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public transportation, population, population density, land area, |
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and other factors established by the commission. |
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(b) The department may contract with a direct recipient to |
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administer a portion of the funding awarded to an urban transit |
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district. The department will divide the funding allocated by |
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formula to the urbanized area in which the urban transit district is |
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located between the urban transit district and the direct |
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recipient, in the same ratio used by the Federal Transit |
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Administration for its most recent allocation of funds to that |
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urbanized area under Section 5307, Federal Transit Act. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |