Texas House Rep. Harris authors bill mandating annual reporting for high-speed rail projects

Passed bill authored by State Rep. Cody Harris seeks to increase transparency in high-speed rail projects by mandating annual submissions of financial and operational data to the Texas Department of Transportation, with public access provisions, according to the Texas Legislature website.

In the House, 49 Democrats and 78 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, with no opposition.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, two Democrats and 20 Republicans voted in favor, while nine Democrats voted against it.

Cody Harris introduced the bill in the Texas House on Wednesday, Jan. 22, during the 89th regular legislative session.

Harris graduated from Texas A&M University in 2006 with a BS.

Harris, a Republican, was elected to the Texas State House in 2019 to represent the state’s 8th House district, replacing previous state representative Byron Cook.

According to the Texas Legislature, the bill’s official text was summarized as follows: ‘Relating to provision to the Texas Department of Transportation of information regarding certain high-speed rail projects’.

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill mandates that any entity proposing a high-speed rail project in Texas must annually submit detailed information to the Texas Department of Transportation while the project is part of the Texas Rail Plan. Required information includes the financing method, balance sheet, full cost present value, annual construction costs, completion schedule, ridership projections, proposed route, organizational management chart, and disclosures of any foreign investment. Additionally, the department is required to make this information publicly accessible on its website. The bill is set to take effect Sept. 1, 2025.

The bill was co-authored by Rep. Will Metcalf (Republican – District 16), Rep. Eddie Morales Jr. (Democrat – District 74), and Rep. David Spiller (Republican – District 68), along with three other authors.

The bill received its final legislative approval on Monday, May 19, and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday, May 29.

Bills in Texas go through a multi-step legislative process, including committee review, debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching a final decision. Each session, there are typically thousands of bills introduced, but only a portion successfully navigate the process to become law.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.