(a) Commission analysis. The commission will consider
all relevant information in the application together with the executive
director's findings and recommendations.
(b) Consideration of applications for preliminary and
final approval.
(1) Applications for financial assistance in the amount
of $10 million or less will be considered by the commission for final
approval without going through the preliminary approval process prescribed
in subsection (c) of this section if the financial assistance is to
be used for a project for which the department has primary responsibility,
including for the payment of:
(A) local participation in a highway improvement project
under Transportation Code, Chapter 222, Subchapter C, and Chapter
15, Subchapter E of this title; or
(B) the relocation of utilities necessary for a project
under Transportation Code, Chapter 203, Subchapter E, and Chapter
21, Subchapter P of this title.
(2) Applications for financial assistance that are
not subject to paragraph (1) of this subsection must be submitted
to the commission for consideration for preliminary and final approval
separately unless, for a particular application, the commission waives
the preliminary approval requirement for that application. In determining
whether to waive the preliminary approval requirement for an application,
the commission may consider the financial condition of the bank, the
complexity and size of the project, the type of infrastructure or
asset involved, the type and complexity of the financial assistance
requested, the financial status of the applicant, the financial feasibility
of the project, and the need to expedite the financing of the project.
(3) Applications that are submitted to the commission
for final approval without first being considered for preliminary
approval must meet all the requirements and are subject to all the
conditions applicable either to preliminary or final approval of financial
assistance, except that the negotiation process under subsection (c)(3)
of this section may be completed after final approval.
(c) Prioritization and preliminary approval. For applications
that must be considered for preliminary approval, the executive director
will establish deadlines for the submittal of complete applications
in accordance with commission policies. The executive director may
suspend a deadline if the executive director determines that the suspension
is necessary. As soon as practicable after each application deadline,
the executive director shall present all complete applications submitted
by the deadline with the executive director's analysis of the application
and the executive director's findings and recommendations, including
recommendations on prioritizing the applications.
(1) Considerations. The executive director's analysis
and recommendations to the commission must demonstrate the executive
director's consideration of:
(A) whether the project is on the state highway system;
(B) the transportation need for and anticipated public
benefit of the project;
(C) the present and projected financial condition of
the bank;
(D) conformity with the purposes of the bank;
(E) evidence of local public support;
(F) rapidity of loan repayment;
(G) plan of finance;
(H) comparison of the proposed financial assistance
to other funding alternatives;
(I) whether the project is on the department's 24-month
letting schedule; and
(J) any other relevant consideration.
(2) Project requirements. The commission may grant
preliminary approval of an application for financial assistance from
the bank if it finds that:
(A) the project is consistent with the metropolitan
transportation plan developed by an MPO, if appropriate;
(B) the project will improve the efficiency of the
state's transportation systems;
(C) the project will expand the availability of funding
for transportation projects or reduce direct state costs; and
(D) the application shows that the project and the
applicant are likely to have sufficient revenues to assure repayment
of the financial assistance.
(3) Authorized actions. By granting preliminary approval,
the commission authorizes the executive director to negotiate:
(A) the project's limits, scope, definition, design,
and any other factors that may affect the financing of the project;
(B) the amount, type, and timing of disbursements of
financial assistance;
(C) the interest rates, including subsidies;
(D) the fees;
(E) the charges;
(F) the repayment schedules;
(G) the term to maturity of any financial assistance;
(H) the collateral securing the financial assistance;
(I) the appropriate covenants applicable to the financial
assistance;
(J) the default provisions; and
(K) all other provisions necessary to complete an agreement
under Subchapter E of this chapter (relating to Financial Assistance
Agreements).
(d) Environmental review. If Chapter 2 of this title
applies to the project, as provided under §2.3 of this title
(relating to Applicability; Exceptions), construction of the project,
other than construction activities described in Title 23, United States
Code, §101(a)(4)(A), may not begin before an environmental review
under Chapter 2 is completed. The applicant will be responsible for
providing any studies, documentation, and information needed to complete
the environmental review unless the department agrees to provide those
studies, documentation, and information.
(e) Final approval. After preliminary approval under
subsection (c) of this section, if required, and the completion of
negotiations under subsection (c)(3) of this section unless excepted
under subsection (b)(3) of this section, the commission may grant
final approval if it determines that providing financial assistance
will protect the public's safety and prudently provide for the protection
of public funds, while furthering the purposes of this chapter.
(f) Postponement. The commission may postpone final
approval if it finds that the current or projected financial condition
of the bank warrants this action.
(g) Contingencies. The commission may make its preliminary
or final approval contingent on further actions by the applicant.
(h) Order of approval or disapproval. Approval or disapproval
of financial assistance, whether preliminary or final, will be by
written order of the commission and will include the rationale, findings,
and conclusions on which approval or disapproval is based. Approval
or disapproval will be in the sole discretion of the commission, and
nothing in this subchapter is intended to require approval of any
financial assistance.
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Source Note: The provisions of this §6.32 adopted to be effective January 8, 1998, 23 TexReg 151; amended to be effective October 18, 1998, 23 TexReg 10501; amended to be effective September 19, 2002, 27 TexReg 8775; amended to be effective October 21, 2010, 35 TexReg 9361; amended to be effective June 21, 2012, 37 TexReg 4433; amended to be effective July 20, 2016, 41 TexReg 5245; amended to be effective October 16, 2024, 49 TexReg 8402 |