BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 4679

By: Perez

Transportation

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Currently, public school buses pay a toll when using a toll road, and the cumulative cost of tolls for public school buses can be significant for some public school districts in Texas. C.S.H.B. 4679 seeks to address this issue by prohibiting a toll project entity from requiring a public school bus to pay a toll for the use of a toll project in a county with a population of more than four million.

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.

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

C.S.H.B. 4679 amends the Transportation Code to prohibit a toll project entity from requiring a school bus that is exempt from registration fees under applicable state law to pay a toll for use of a toll project in a county with a population of more than four million. The bill establishes that this prohibition does not affect the ability of a toll project entity to adopt policies or rules regarding the use of a toll project or managed lane of the entity, including policies or rules prohibiting the use of the toll project or managed lane by vehicles unable to maintain minimum designated travel speeds.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.

COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 4679 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute limits the applicability of the bill's prohibition in the introduced to a toll project in a county with a population of more than four million. The substitute includes a provision that was not in the introduced establishing that the bill's prohibition does not affect a toll project entity's ability to adopt policies or rules regarding the use of a toll project or managed lane of the entity.