Sec. 228.011. TOLL PROJECTS IN CERTAIN COUNTIES.

(a) This section applies only to a county acting under Chapter 284 for:

(1) the widening, expansion, reconstruction, and continued operation of existing toll projects of the county; or

(2) the development, construction, and operation of all or a portion of any of the following toll projects, a component of that project, or the functional equivalent of that project:

(A) Beltway 8 Tollway East, between US 59 North and US 90 East;

(B) Hardy Downtown Connector, consisting of the proposed direct connection from the Hardy Toll Road southern terminus at Loop 610 to downtown Houston;

(C) State Highway 288, between US 59 and Grand Parkway South (State Highway 99);

(D) US 290 Toll Lanes, between IH 610 West and the Grand Parkway Northwest (State Highway 99);

(E) Fairmont Parkway East, between Beltway 8 East and Grand Parkway East (State Highway 99);

(F) South Post Oak Road Extension, between IH 610 South and near the intersection of Beltway 8 and Hillcroft in the vicinity of the Fort Bend Parkway Tollway;

(G) Westpark Toll Road Phase II, between Grand Parkway (State Highway 99) and FM 1463;

(H) Fort Bend Parkway, between State Highway 6 and the Brazos River; and

(I) Montgomery County Parkway, between State Highway 242 and the Grand Parkway (State Highway 99), and if the Grand Parkway project has not begun construction, a nontolled extension of the Montgomery County Parkway to allow a connection to Interstate Highway 45.

(b) The county is the entity with the primary responsibility for the financing, construction, and operation of a toll project located in the county. A county may develop, construct, and operate a project described in Subsection (a) at any time, regardless of whether it receives a first option notice from the commission or the department under Subsection (e).

(b-1) Consistent with federal law, the department shall assist the county in the financing, construction, and operation of a toll project in the county by allowing the county to use state highway right-of-way owned by the department and to access the state highway system. The commission or the department may not require the county to pay for the use of the right-of-way or access, except to reimburse the department as provided by this subsection. The county shall pay an amount to reimburse the department for the department's actual costs to acquire the right-of-way. If the department cannot determine that amount, the amount shall be determined based on the average historical right-of-way acquisition values for right-of-way located in proximity to the project on the date of original acquisition of the right-of-way. Money received by the department under this subsection shall be deposited in the state highway fund and used in the department district in which the project is located.

(c) The department and the county must enter into an agreement that includes reasonable terms to accommodate the use of the right-of-way by the county and to protect the interests of the commission and the department in the use of the right-of-way for operations of the department, including public safety and congestion mitigation on the right-of-way.

(d) Subsection (b) does not limit the authority of the commission or the department to participate in the cost of acquiring, constructing, maintaining, or operating a project of the county under Chapter 284.

(e) Before the department may enter into a contract for the financing, construction, or operation of a proposed or existing toll project any part of which is located in the county, the commission or department shall provide the county the first option to finance, construct, or operate, as applicable, the portion of the toll project located in the county:

(1) on terms agreeable to the county; and

(2) in a manner determined by the county to be consistent with the practices and procedures by which the county finances, constructs, or operates a project.

(f) A county's right to exercise the first option under Subsection (e) is effective for six months after the date of the receipt by the county of written notice from the commission or the department meeting the requirements of Subsection (e) and describing in reasonable detail the location of the toll project, a projected cost estimate, sources and uses of funds, and a construction schedule. If a county exercises the first option with respect to a toll project, the county must enter into one or more contracts for the financing, construction, or operation of the toll project within two years after the date on which all environmental requirements necessary for the development of the project are secured and all legal challenges to development are concluded. A contract may include agreements for design of the project, acquisition of right-of-way, and utility relocation. If the county does not enter into a contract during the two-year period, the commission or the department may enter into a contract for the financing, construction, or operation of the toll project with a different entity.

(g) An agreement entered into by the county and the department in connection with a project under Chapter 284 that is financed, constructed, or operated by the county and that is on or directly connected to a highway in the state highway system does not create a joint enterprise for liability purposes.

(h) If the county approves, the commission may remove any right-of-way to be used by a county under this section from the state highway system. If the right-of-way used by a county under this section remains part of the state highway system, the county must comply with department design and construction standards.

(i) Notwithstanding an action of a county taken under this section, the commission or department may take any action that is necessary in its reasonable judgment to comply with any federal requirement to enable this state to receive federal-aid highway funds.

(j) Notwithstanding any other law, the commission and the department are not liable for any damages that result from a county's use of state highway right-of-way or access to the state highway system under this section, regardless of the legal theory, statute, or cause of action under which liability is asserted.

Added by Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 264 (S.B. 792), Sec. 7.01, eff. June 11, 2007.

Amended by:

Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1196 (S.B. 19), Sec. 3, eff. June 17, 2011.