Overall Vote Recommendation

Yes

Principle Criteria

Free Enterprise

Property Rights

Personal Responsibility

Limited Government

Individual Liberty

Digest

HB 3679 would establish temporary regulatory flexibility to facilitate the transportation of agricultural commodities during declared disasters. The bill authorizes the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), with approval from the Department of Public Safety (DPS), to issue special permits allowing certain divisible overweight or oversize vehicles to transport agricultural commodities to or from disaster-affected areas during a presidential major disaster declaration or a state disaster declaration. The permits would expire when the disaster declaration ends, or earlier if a federal waiver allowing the use of dyed diesel fuel on public highways expires. The bill also authorizes TxDOT to adopt implementing rules and impose permit conditions related to routing, weight limits, operating hours, lighting, and escort vehicle requirements to protect roadway safety and infrastructure.

The bill also amends the Tax Code to permit qualified end users to operate motor vehicles on public highways using dyed diesel fuel during periods in which the Internal Revenue Service has suspended federal penalties for that fuel's highway use in designated disaster areas. Additionally, it updates cross-references in the Transportation Code so that vehicles operating under the new agricultural disaster permit are treated consistently with other permitted overweight or oversize vehicles when traveling on roads subject to state or county weight restrictions. The legislation expressly preserves federal size and weight limitations on the Interstate Highway System and Federal-Aid Primary Highway System unless federal law is subsequently amended to authorize heavier loads.

The Committee Substitute for HB 3679 significantly narrows the scope of the originally filed bill by limiting the disaster-related flexibilities to agricultural commodity transportation occurring during an active disaster, rather than before, during, and after a disaster. The introduced bill authorized special overweight and oversize permits before a forecasted disaster with approval from the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM), during an active disaster, and for up to 120 days afterward. The Committee Substitute eliminates the pre-disaster permitting authority entirely, removes TDEM's role in authorizing permits before anticipated events, and instead limits permit issuance to periods covered by a presidential major disaster declaration or a state disaster declaration, with authorization from the Department of Public Safety (DPS). It also restricts permits to deliveries to or from sites directly affected by the declared disaster, rather than allowing unrestricted delivery of agricultural commodities.

The Committee Substitute also substantially revises the dyed fuel provisions. As originally filed, the bill allowed qualified users to operate vehicles on public highways using dyed motor fuel beginning with a state disaster declaration and continuing until 30 days after the declaration ended. It applied broadly to declared disaster areas and, in some circumstances, to vehicles operating outside the disaster area if they had been fueled within it. The substitute instead limits the exemption to dyed diesel fuel used only during periods in which the Internal Revenue Service has suspended federal penalties for highway use of dyed diesel, tying state law directly to existing federal emergency waivers. The substitute also removes the automatic 30-day post-disaster extension contained in the introduced version.

Finally, the Committee Substitute shortens the duration of the new agricultural transport permits and simplifies the administrative framework. The introduced bill allowed permits to remain valid for up to 120 days after either a disaster declaration or pre-disaster authorization by TDEM. Under the Committee Substitute, permits expire when the applicable disaster declaration ends, or earlier if the federal dyed diesel waiver expires for vehicles operating under that provision. The substitute also removes the statutory definition of "Division," eliminates the application process through TDEM, and transfers operational oversight to DPS in coordination with TxDOT. The remaining provisions governing permit conditions, roadway protections, updates to weight-limit cross-references, and compliance with federal interstate weight restrictions remain substantially unchanged.

Author (3)

Carl Tepper Janie Lopez Terri Leo-Wilson

Contact the Author

Rep. Carl Tepper

Capitol Phone:

(512) 463-0676

Capitol Office:

EXT E1.316

E-Mail:

[email protected]

Visit Official Website

Fiscal Notes

According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), HB 3679 is not expected to have a significant fiscal impact on state government. The LBB assumes that any administrative costs associated with implementing the bill, including issuing permits, coordinating with the Department of Public Safety, and administering the new disaster-related transportation provisions, can be absorbed within existing agency resources.

The fiscal note also concludes that the bill is not expected to have a fiscal impact on local governments. Counties, municipalities, and other local governmental entities are not anticipated to incur additional costs or realize savings as a result of the legislation's provisions governing disaster-related vehicle permits or the temporary use of dyed diesel fuel during qualifying disaster declarations.

Overall, the LBB projects that implementation of the bill would not require additional appropriations or create a measurable impact on state or local budgets. The agencies consulted, including the Comptroller of Public Accounts, Texas Division of Emergency Management, Texas Department of Transportation, Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, and the Texas A&M University System, did not identify any significant fiscal implications resulting from the committee substitute.

Vote Recommendation Notes

HB 3679 provides narrowly tailored regulatory relief to facilitate agricultural transportation during declared disasters while maintaining meaningful safeguards on public safety and highway infrastructure. Although the bill does expand government authority in a limited sense by creating a new emergency permitting process and granting rulemaking authority to the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, that expansion is temporary, narrowly defined, and constrained by declared disaster conditions, Department of Public Safety authorization, and existing federal size and weight limitations. The Committee Substitute further limits government discretion compared to the introduced bill by eliminating pre-disaster permitting authority, removing the Texas Division of Emergency Management from the approval process, and tying the use of dyed diesel fuel to existing Internal Revenue Service emergency waivers rather than creating an independent state exemption.

The bill does not materially increase the burden on taxpayers. According to the LBB, implementation is expected to have no significant fiscal implication for either the state or local governments, and any administrative costs can be absorbed using existing agency resources. As a result, the legislation does not require additional appropriations, establish a new ongoing program requiring dedicated funding, or create significant long-term fiscal obligations.

Likewise, the bill does not increase the regulatory burden on individuals or businesses. Instead, it creates a limited exception to existing transportation and fuel-use restrictions for agricultural producers and commercial carriers responding to disasters. While participants seeking to use the new authority must obtain a permit and comply with conditions established by TxDMV, these requirements accompany a reduction in existing regulatory constraints by allowing temporary oversize or overweight movements and the limited use of dyed diesel fuel under federally recognized emergency conditions. The substitute also ensures these flexibilities automatically expire when the applicable disaster declaration or federal waiver ends, reducing the risk of long-term regulatory expansion.

On balance, the bill represents a modest, carefully constrained increase in administrative authority that is outweighed by its temporary nature, minimal fiscal impact, and reduction of regulatory barriers during emergencies. Because it provides targeted disaster-response flexibility without imposing meaningful new costs on taxpayers or creating a significant expansion of government, the legislation merits a Vote Yes.

Individual Liberty: The bill provides additional flexibility by temporarily exempting certain agricultural operators from existing restrictions on dyed diesel fuel use and by allowing temporary oversize or overweight permits during declared disasters. These provisions reduce government-imposed restrictions under narrowly defined emergency circumstances without creating new mandates, prohibitions, or penalties. Because the exemptions are limited in duration and tied to declared disasters and federal waivers, the impact on individual liberty is modest but positive.
Personal Responsibility: The bill neither shifts responsibilities from individuals to the state nor creates new government benefits or dependency. It simply provides regulated flexibility for individuals and businesses responding to disaster conditions while continuing to require permit holders to comply with safety requirements established by TxDMV.
Free Enterprise: The bill reduces regulatory barriers that could impede agricultural producers, transporters, and related businesses during emergencies. By allowing temporary use of dyed diesel fuel under federally authorized conditions and permitting larger loads when transporting agricultural commodities to or from disaster-affected areas, the legislation helps maintain commercial activity and supply chains during disasters. The committee substitute also narrows these exceptions to genuine emergency situations, limiting market distortions while facilitating commerce.
Private Property Rights: The bill does not affect ownership, use, transfer, or regulation of private real property, nor does it create new authority for takings, easements, inspections, or land-use restrictions. Its provisions relate solely to temporary transportation and fuel-use regulations during disasters. Accordingly, the bill has no meaningful impact on private property rights.
Limited Government: The bill creates a new emergency permitting authority and grants rulemaking authority to TxDMV, representing a modest expansion of administrative authority. However, the committee substitute significantly narrows that authority by eliminating pre-disaster permitting, removing the Texas Division of Emergency Management from the process, requiring Department of Public Safety authorization, and limiting permits to active disaster declarations. The Legislative Budget Board also projects no significant fiscal impact and no need for additional appropriations. On balance, the bill creates a limited, temporary government function rather than a meaningful expansion of government, making its impact on limited government best characterized as neutral.

Related Legislation

SB 497 (Same As)

View Bill Text and Status