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Hidalgo County Local Leaders Approve Fee to Improve Mobility
In an example of local leaders working to solve local transportation and mobility problems, Hidalgo County recently approved surcharges to their annual motor vehicle registration fees.
The ability to impose this additional fee—$10 in Hidalgo County, which will take effect in January 2008—is authorized by bills HB 3437 and SB 1888 from the 80th Legislature. These bills apply only to border counties with a population of over 300,000, in which no single municipality exceeds a population of 300,000, meaning Hidalgo and Cameron counties.
Once local leaders recognized the funding limitations for transportation projects in their area, the Hidalgo Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) officials began to explore the options and solutions they could implement themselves.
One of TxDOT’s four strategies in its plan is to empower local leaders to solve local problems, which this fee accomplishes by allowing money earned locally to be invested locally into needed mobility projects through the Hidalgo County Regional Mobility Authority (RMA).
Neighboring Cameron County also took advantage of this funding tool and approved charging an additional $5 to their annual motor vehicle registration fees. The Cameron County RMA is expected to use these funds to improve mobility in and around Brownsville.
