BILL ANALYSIS |
C.S.H.B. 354 |
By: Raney |
Transportation |
Committee Report (Substituted) |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
Interested parties contend that there is a lack of recourse on the denial of a school's request for a city, a county, or the state to consider prima facie speed limits on a highway or road near the school. C.S.H.B. 354 seeks to address this issue by providing for an appeals process for these denied requests.
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
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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.
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ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 354 amends the Transportation Code to expand the applicability of statutory provisions requiring the governing body of a municipality, the commissioners court of a county, or the Texas Transportation Commission on request to hold a public hearing at least once each calendar year to consider prima facie speed limits on certain highways or county roads near a public or private elementary or secondary school or an institution of higher education located in the municipality or county, as applicable, to include such highways and roads near an open‑enrollment charter school located in the municipality or county. The bill clarifies that the request to hold such a hearing is made by the governing body of the applicable school or institution of higher education. The bill sets at 15 miles per hour the minimum speed limit that the commissioners court of a county may declare on a county road or highway located within 500 feet of an elementary, secondary, or open-enrollment charter school or an institution of higher education, if approved after such a hearing.
C.S.H.B. 354 prohibits the municipal governing body, commissioners court, or the Texas Transportation Commission, as applicable, from rejecting a request for a prima facie speed limit by such a school or institution of higher education without first making a written finding stating a reasonable basis for the rejection. The bill authorizes the governing body of the school or institution of higher education, not later than the 90th day after the date the written finding is made, to appeal a rejection of such a request to the district court of the county in which the school or institution is located and authorizes the court to grant the requested prima facie speed limit if the governing body shows by clear and convincing evidence that the rejection of the request was not based on accepted traffic management principles. The bill authorizes the governing body of a school or institution of higher education to consult with the Texas Department of Transportation, the commission, and local transportation authorities on the feasibility of a prima facie speed limit during the acquisition and design of property for a public or private elementary or secondary school, an open-enrollment charter school, or an institution of higher education.
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EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2017.
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COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 354 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following comparison is organized and formatted in a manner that indicates the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
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