The Senate Committee on Transportation on Oct. 12 considered a slate of bills ranging from memorial highway designations to changes in vehicle title, permit and motor carrier rules, and reported a number of measures favorably to the full Senate.

The committee advanced memorial highway designations for U.S. Highway 281 in Hidalgo County to honor Border Patrol processing coordinator Jose Rodriguez Lua (Senate Bill 1351) and for a portion of U.S. Highway 83 to honor Rodolfo Valdez (Senate Bill 1931). Family members and advocates spoke in support of the designations during the public testimony portion of the hearing.

The committee also heard and moved forward bills on several transportation‑related administrative and regulatory matters. The Department of Motor Vehicles supported Senate Bill 2245, which would add a notification requirement and a 30‑day waiting period when a bonded title is sought and a recorded lienholder has gone out of business; Annette Quintero, vehicle titles and registration director at the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, confirmed the change was requested by the agency. The committee voted to report the measure favorably.

Lawmakers considered proposals affecting digital identification (Senate Bill 215), specialty license plates to fund animal sterilization programs (Senate Bill 1568), county authority to petition for annexation or convert closed county roads to nonmotorized public use in Webb County (Senate Bill 2589), relief for large retailers from site‑by‑site fingerprinting requirements for dealer general distinguishing numbers (Senate Bill 1104), exemptions from certain DMV fees for government overweight/oversize permits (Senate Bill 2707), and a narrowly framed change to ensure motor carriers can deploy safety technology and associated training without that use being treated as evidence of an employee relationship (Senate Bill 2807).

During testimony on the animal‑welfare plate bill, Susan Swift of the Texas Humane Legislative Network said, “Since 1997, the animal‑friendly funded license plate program funded more than $6,000,000 for free or low‑cost spay and neuter in Texas and prevented the future potential unwanted births of 4,000,000 cats and 1.5 million dogs.” She asked that the plate language be clarified so the public understands proceeds fund spay/neuter programs.

On the bonded‑title bill, Annette Quintero told the committee the bill targets cases where a lien on a vehicle is less than 10 years old but the lienholder went out of business and never released the lien; the change provides a process for the owner to obtain a bonded title after the DMV notifies recorded owners and lienholders and waits 30 days.

Truck industry representatives supported Senate Bill 2807, saying owner‑operators and fleets need the ability to install onboard safety technologies and to follow up with driver coaching without risking reclassification of contractors as employees. Opponents, including the Texas Trial Lawyers Association, raised concerns that wording covering “training, procedure or policies” could be read too broadly and affect worker classification. Committee members discussed a possible floor amendment to clarify the definition.

Voting and committee action: the committee adopted committee substitutes or reported multiple measures favorably by voice roll calls (most recorded votes showed 6 ayes, no nays) and sent them to the full Senate or to the local uncontested calendar as noted below.

Votes at a glance (committee action)
- SB 1351 (Jose Rodriguez Lua Memorial Highway): Committee substitute adopted; committee reported favorably (committee substitute recommended for the local uncontested calendar). Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 1423 (Bill Stout Parkway, Longview): Reported favorably to full Senate. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 1568 (Animal‑friendly / spay‑neuter specialty plates; committee substitute): Committee substitute adopted; reported favorably and recommended for the local uncontested calendar. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 1931 (Rodolfo Valdez Memorial Highway): Reported favorably to full Senate. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 2245 (bonded title notification / 30‑day waiting period): Reported favorably to full Senate. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 2589 (county road closure/annexation — Webb County; committee substitute bracketing to Webb County): Committee substitute adopted; reported favorably and recommended for the local uncontested calendar. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 2707 (DMV exemption from fees for government oversize/overweight permits): Reported favorably to full Senate. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 2807 (motor carrier safety improvements and independent contractor classification): Reported favorably to full Senate; sponsors and proponents indicated willingness to consider a clarifying floor amendment. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.
- SB 2841 (committee substitute adopted and reported favorably): Committee substitute adopted; reported favorably and recommended for the local uncontested calendar. Vote: 6 ayes, 0 nays.

What happened next
Committee members said they intended to move several of the bills through to the full Senate or place them on the local uncontested calendar. For a few measures, sponsors and stakeholders signaled they will work on narrower drafting — most notably SB 2807 where opponents sought clarification that ordinary employer‑style policies would not be read to change an owner‑operator’s classification.

Why it matters
The package includes local memorial designations that are symbolic but meaningful to the families and communities involved; administrative changes at the DMV that affect vehicle ownership titles and permit fees; and policy changes that could affect how safety technology is deployed in the trucking industry. The committee’s actions mean the bills will be considered by the full Senate or appear on the local uncontested calendar for final action.

The committee left several bills pending and moved others forward. Sponsors and stakeholders indicated follow‑up work on drafting and possible floor amendments before some measures reach final passage.