Legislative Affairs
Both the Texas Legislature and the United States Congress address many important transportation issues that affect the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Transportation and air quality in the North Central Texas region are impacted by legislative decisions at the State and federal levels.
NCTCOG staff regularly update policy and technical committee members, transportation partners and others interested in monitoring legislative initiatives related to the Regional Transportation Council (RTC) legislative priorities.
In order to understand current legislative initiatives, the RTC directed the development of a Transportation Funding 101 primer so legislators and the general public can better understand funding sources for transportation as well as trends that impact the amount of funding available. A shortfall of funding has been identified and the primer also addresses potential solutions to increase funding options.
Legislative Update
May 9, 2025
FROM WASHINGTON, D.C.
The Trump Administration released a slimmed-down 44-page FY2026 budget outline. The budget reclassifies $163 billion from defense, border, Coast Guard, and FAA as part of the discretionary cap, thus reducing what appropriators may allocate by 10.1%. It also proposes a $22.5 billion cut to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) advance appropriations, although the specifics are unclear. The Department of Transportation (DOT) scores well in the proposal, with seven highlighted accounts receiving a combined $2.95 billion increase (offset slightly by a $308 million cut to Essential Air Service), resulting in a net gain of $2.64 billion. These seven accounts make up the majority of the department's anticipated $26.71 billion discretionary total, a 5.8% increase over FY2025. However, the remaining USDOT accounts (valued $8 billion in FY2025) are only allotted $6.8 billion in the new request, indicating a $1.2 billion (14%) drop in undefined cuts. While unlikely to be enacted in full, the budget sets up a potential clash with Congress ahead of the September 30th funding deadline.
FROM AUSTIN
The Senate Transportation Committee met on May 7 at 8 am to review and approve several bills. One bill of particular interest was SB 2799 (Creighton), which add new charges under the reckless driving statute, including bodily injury resulting in a state jail felony and serious bodily injury resulting in a third-degree felony. This bill was approved by the committee.
The House Transportation Committee met on May 8 at 8 am to review several bills of interest. HB 535 (Lopez) would establish a clear definition of safe passing distance of a pedestrian or cyclist by a vehicle. HB 2822 (Plesa) would prevent vehicles from parking, stopping, or idling in front of electric vehicle charging stations. HB 3544 (Martinez) would mandate TxDOT to incorporate flood control measures, including coordination with local authorities and addition of stormwater outfalls, in its highway projects. HB 4089 (Flores) would allow the use of low-speed electric bikes (e-bikes) in Texas state parks. HB 4868 (Martinez) would update traffic laws for cyclists, allowing cyclists to use stop signs as yield signs. HB 4955 (Patterson) would codify current directive from TxDPS regarding use of adaptive brake lights signaling heavy braking event. HB 5253 (Anchia) would allow local governments to reduce speed on neighborhood streets without having to complete an engineering or traffic study. SB 1919 (West) would increase TxDOT’s internal liability claim settlement limit to enhance efficiency. All bills were left pending.
MONITORED BILLS LIST
If you need information on the bills being tracked, please contact Jackie Nolasco at jnolasco@nctcog.org.
HIGHLIGHTED BILLS WITH ACTION
- HB 3187, Relating to powers of regional transportation authorities. Committee substitute voted favorably from House Transportation Committee on May 6, 2025.
- SB 305, Relating to the criminal offense of passing certain vehicles on a highway. Passed the House on May 7, 2025. Bill will be enrolled and forwarded to the governor for action.
- HB 5033, Relating to elimination of the motor vehicle emissions inspection and maintenance program. Passed the House on May 8, 2025. Received in the Senate.
UPCOMING COMMITTEE HEARINGS
TEXAS HOUSE
- The House Transportation Committee will meet on Thursday, May 15 at 8 am. The Committee will meet to consider the following bills of interest:
- SB 546 Relating to seat belts on buses that transport children
- SB 1902 Relating to the administration of the dealer-issued license plates database and to the removal and transfer of license plates
US HOUSE
- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will meet on May 15 for a hearing titled, “FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024: An Update on Implementation One Year Later.”
RECENT HEARINGS
TEXAS HOUSE
- Delivery of Government Efficiency (May 7)
- SB 1495 Relating to the establishment of an Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment Advisory Board (Pending)
- SB 1964 Relating to the regulation and use of artificial intelligence systems and the management of data by governmental entities (Pending)
- Homeland, Public Safety, Veterans (May 7)
- SB 857 Relating to the authorized removal of certain motor vehicles (Pending)
- Criminal Jurisprudence (May 8)
- SB 2320 Relating to increasing the criminal punishment for certain driving while intoxicated offenses (Pending)
- Land and Resource Management (May 8)
- SB 291 Relating to the failure to disclose certain appraisal reports by an entity with eminent domain authority in connection with an offer to acquire real property (Pending)
- SB 292 Relating to certain requirements in connection with the acquisition of real property for public use by an entity with eminent domain authority (Pending)
- Transportation (May 8)
- HB 535 Relating to the operation of a motor vehicle passing a pedestrian or a person operating a bicycle in certain municipalities; creating a criminal offense (Pending)
- HB 2822 Relating to the stopping, standing, or parking of a vehicle in a parking space designated as an electric vehicle charging station (Pending)
- HB 3544 Relating to flood control measures for Texas Department of Transportation highway projects (Pending)
- HB 4089 Relating to the regulation and operation of electric bicycles (Pending)
- HB 4192 Relating to the registration and inspection of vehicles (Pending)
- HB 4868 Relating to allowing a bicyclist to treat certain traffic-control devices as a yield sign (Pending)
- HB 4955 Relating to lighting equipment requirements for motor vehicles (Pending)
- HB 5253 Relating to the authority of a municipality to alter speed limits (Pending)
- SB 1919 Relating to the authority of the Texas Department of Transportation to settle certain claims (Pending)
- Environmental Regulation (May 8)
- SB 2321 Relating to the regulation of emissions by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality during an event affecting electric demand or grid reliability (Pending)
TEXAS SENATE
- Economic Development (May 5)
- HB 1893 Relating to the disclosure under the public information law of a motor vehicle license plate number captured in a video recording obtained or maintained by a law enforcement agency (Pending)
- Local Government (May 5)
- HB 2559 Relating to the imposition by a municipality of a moratorium on property development in certain circumstances (Approved)
- Finance (May 6)
- HJR 7 Proposing a constitutional amendment to dedicate a portion of the revenue derived from state sales and use taxes to the Texas water fund (Pending)
- Criminal Justice (May 6)
- SB 2017 Relating to the creation of a criminal offense for operating a vehicle under certain circumstances causing a tire of the vehicle to spin, lose traction, or leave the surface of a highway (Approved)
- Transportation (May 7)
- SB 2799 Relating to increasing the criminal penalty for the offense of reckless driving (Approved)
US HOUSE
- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Railroads, Pipelines, and Hazardous Materials met on May 6 for a hearing titled, “America Builds: Improving the Efficiency and Effectiveness of Federal Rail Assistance.” The hearing focused on evaluating and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of federal rail assistance programs, particularly those that support freight and passenger rail infrastructure.
- The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment met on May 7 for a hearing titled, “Cleaning up the Past, Building the Future: The Brownfields Program.” The hearing focused on evaluating and improving the EPA’s Brownfields Program, which supports the cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated or potentially contaminated properties to make them safe and usable again.
Texas Legislature - 89th Session January 14, 2025 - June 2, 2025
- Regional Transportation Council Legislative Program for the 89th Texas Legislature 
Texas Legislature - 88th Session January 10, 2023 - May 29, 2023
- Regional Transportation Council Legislative Program for the 88th Texas Legislature
- 88th Texas Legislature Summary of Bills (2023)
Other Resources
- Texas House of Representatives
Congressional Updates important to our region
In 2005 Congress passed the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) . This legislation guided surface transportation policy and funding through 2009. Nine short-term extensions passed since SAFETEA-LU expired in 2009. The final short-term extension of SAFETEA-LU extended surface transportation authorization through June 30, 2012.
On July 6, 2012, President Obama signed into law a two-year $105 billion surface transportation authorization, titled Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21). MAP-21 reauthorized the federal-aid highway, highway safety and transit programs that were last authorized by SAFETEA-LU. New programs and funding levels began on October 1, 2012, and continued through September 30, 2014. The final short-term extension of MAP-21 expired on December 4, 2015.
On December 4, 2015, President Obama signed the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act into law, which authorizes Federal highway, transit, safety and rail programs for five years at $305 billion. The FAST Act is effective October 1, 2015 through September 30, 2020.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), signed into law by President Biden on November 15, 2021, is a five-year bill that authorizes $567.5 billion for surface transportation, including roads and bridges, and an additional $550 billion for water, broadband, cybersecurity, and energy infrastructure. With a total funding amount of $1.2 trillion, the act aims to modernize infrastructure across the nation and is set to expire on September 30, 2026.
2019 RTC Principles for Federal Surface Transportation Authorization