TITLE 43. TRANSPORTATION
PART 1. TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
CHAPTER 4. EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES
SUBCHAPTER
C.
The Texas Department of Transportation (department) adopts the amendments to §4.21 and §4.25, concerning Employment and Education Programs. The amendments to §4.21 and §4.25 are adopted without changes to the proposed text as published in the April 10, 2026 issue of the Texas Register (51 TexReg 2347) and will not be republished.
EXPLANATION OF ADOPTED AMENDMENTS
This rulemaking makes changes to the department's conditional grant program, which provides financial assistance to eligible economically disadvantaged students who intend to work for the department in civil engineering or another profession for which there is a critical need, to increase flexibility for both applicants and administrators of the program and to provide greater outreach opportunities for the program and increase yearly applications. Overall, the changes to the program will continue to promote educational opportunities in the transportation industry to underprivileged communities.
Amendments to §4.21, Definitions, change the term "academic school year" to "academic year" to provide clarity concerning the use of this term used in the subchapter. The amendments delete the definitions of "available grants" and "student intern program performance evaluation" because they are not used in the rules and delete "Texas resident" as being unnecessary. In the definition of "economically disadvantaged student" the Federal Poverty Guideline limit is increased from 225% to 250% to account for fluctuations of poverty levels and rising costs for education.
Amendments to §4.25, Conditional Grant Program, make several changes to the program. In subsection (d)(3), the application period is changed from an annual to a bi-annual period to allow for greater application flexibility and earlier program entry for students actively obtaining a bachelor's degree. In subsection (e)(1) the word "applicable" is added to provide clearer scoring guidelines since not all criteria set out in subparagraphs (A) - (F) will be required. In subsection (e)(1)(D) "vocational education" is changed to "career and technical education," which is the currently used term. In subsection (g)(3) the total grant amount is increased from $4,000 to $5,000 per semester to account for increasing tuition costs.
The substance of current §4.25(j)(1) is moved into new subsection (i)(2) because it directly relates to the default of the grant agreement. Subsection (i)(2) also provides that college credit hours received while attending high school, will not be considered in determining whether the repayment of grant funds is required if there is a default. This provision is added to clarify that participants who came into the program with dual credit college hours while attending high school will not be held to a different repayment requirement than a person who enters the program as a first-year college student.
COMMENTS
No comments on the proposed amendments were received.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY
The amendments are adopted under Transportation Code, §201.101, which provides the Texas Transportation Commission (commission) with the authority to establish rules for the conduct of the work of the department, and more specifically, Education Code, §56.144, which requires the department to adopt rules for the selection for grants under the conditional grant program, and Education Code, §56.145, which authorizes the department to adopt rules to establish conditions under which all or part of a conditional grant is required to be repaid.
CROSS REFERENCE TO STATUTES IMPLEMENTED BY THIS RULEMAKING - Education Code, Chapter 56, Subchapter I.
The agency certifies that legal counsel has reviewed the adoption and found it to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on June 24, 2026.
TRD-202602603
Becky Blewett
Deputy General Counsel
Texas Department of Transportation
Effective date: July 14, 2026
Proposal publication date: April 10, 2026
For further information, please call: (512) 486-5300
CHAPTER 12. PUBLIC DONATION AND PARTICIPATION PROGRAM
The Texas Department of Transportation (department) adopts amendments to §12.2 concerning Definitions and repeal of §12.5 concerning the Landscape Cost Sharing Program. The amendments to §12.2 and repeal of §12.5 are adopted without changes to the proposed text as published in the April 10, 2026, issue of the Texas Register (51 TexReg 2351) and will not be republished.
EXPLANATION OF ADOPTED AMENDMENTS AND REPEAL
This rulemaking repeals §12.5, Landscape Cost Sharing Program, because the program is no longer funded.
The history of the Landscape Cost Sharing Program (program) is not fully documented, but available records indicate that it has been in place since 1985 and was historically funded through an allocation from the Texas Transportation Commission (commission).
The purpose of the program is to allow individuals, private businesses, organizations, and local governments an opportunity to support the aesthetic improvement of the state highway system by sharing the project development, establishment, and maintenance costs of landscaping the state highway system. Section 12.5 sets forth policies and procedures governing the program.
Although no funding has been allocated to the program since approximately 2008, several other programs and mechanisms remain available for individuals, private businesses, and local governments to participate in landscaping projects. These include Advanced Funding Agreements under Chapter 15, Subchapter E, the Adopt-a-Highway for Landscaping Program (§12.4), and the Landscape Partnership Program (§12.7).
Amendments to §12.2, Definitions, delete the definition of "pedestrian landscaping" because the term was used only in the §12.5 program that is being repealed.
Section 12.5, Landscape Cost Sharing Program, is repealed.
COMMENTS
No comments on the proposed amendment and repeal were received.
SUBCHAPTER
A.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY
The amendment is adopted under Transportation Code, §201.101, which provides the Texas Transportation Commission (commission) with the authority to establish rules for the conduct of the work of the department, and more specifically, Transportation Code, §392.003, which authorizes the commission to establish rules concerning donations for landscape installation and maintenance.
CROSS REFERENCE TO STATUTES IMPLEMENTED BY THIS RULEMAKING
Transportation Code, §392.003.
The agency certifies that legal counsel has reviewed the adoption and found it to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on June 24, 2026.
TRD-202602604
Becky Blewett
Deputy General Counsel
Texas Department of Transportation
Effective date: July 14, 2026
Proposal publication date: April 10, 2026
For further information, please call: (512) 416-2653
43 TAC §12.5
STATUTORY AUTHORITY
The repeal is adopted under Transportation Code, §201.101, which provides the Texas Transportation Commission (commission) with the authority to establish rules for the conduct of the work of the department, and more specifically, Transportation Code, §392.003, which authorizes the commission to establish rules concerning donations for landscape installation and maintenance.
CROSS REFERENCE TO STATUTES IMPLEMENTED BY THIS RULEMAKING
Transportation Code, §392.003.
The agency certifies that legal counsel has reviewed the adoption and found it to be a valid exercise of the agency's legal authority.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State on June 24, 2026.
TRD-202602605
Becky Blewett
Deputy General Counsel
Texas Department of Transportation
Effective date: July 14, 2026
Proposal publication date: April 10, 2026
For further information, please call: (512) 416-2653