A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to REESTABLISH the HIGHWAY trust fund study committee.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.(a)  Study Committee Established. – There is established a Highway Trust Fund Study Committee to report to the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee.
SECTION 1.(b)  Membership. – The Study Committee shall be composed of 18 members as follows:
(1)	The Chairs of the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee.
(2)	Four Representatives and four public members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(3)	Four Senators and four public members appointed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. 
The appointing authorities shall make their appointments to reflect the urban‑rural diversity of the population of the State.
SECTION 1.(c)  Duties of the Study Committee. – The Committee may study all aspects of the Highway Trust Fund. The study shall include the examination of all the following:
(1)	The current status, cost estimates, and feasibility of Highway Trust Fund projects currently listed in Article 14 of Chapter 136 of the General Statutes.
(2)	Unanticipated problems with the structure of the Highway Trust Fund.
(3)	The gap between transportation funding structures and the actual transportation needs of the State.
(4)	Allocation issues raised by the structure of the transportation funding equity distribution formula in G.S. 136‑17.2A.
(5)	The feasibility of altering the project eligibility requirements of the Highway Trust Fund, including permitting the Department of Transportation to add projects as long as adding those projects does not delay projects already to be funded by the Highway Trust Fund, projects scheduled under the 2002‑2008 Transportation Improvement Program, and does not impair the cash‑flow provisions of G.S. 136‑176(a1).
(6)	The feasibility of altering the funding allocation structure of the Highway Trust Fund, including the possible use of the Highway Trust Fund to provide the State match for available federal aid highway funds as long as using the funds in this manner does not delay projects already funded by the Highway Trust Fund, projects scheduled under the 2002‑2008 Transportation Improvement Program, and does not impair the cash‑flow provisions of G.S. 136‑176(a1).
(7)	Any other issue related to the Highway Trust Fund or transportation funding.
SECTION 1.(d)  Vacancies. – The appointing authority shall fill any vacancy on the Study Committee.
SECTION 1.(e)  Cochairs. – Cochairs of the Study Committee shall be the cochairs of the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee. The Study Committee shall meet upon the call of the Chairs. A quorum of the Study Committee shall be nine members.
SECTION 1.(f)  Expenses of Members. – Members of the Study Committee shall receive per diem, subsistence, and travel allowances in accordance with G.S. 120‑3.1, 138‑5, or 138‑6, as appropriate.
SECTION 1.(g)  Staff. – The Legislative Services Office shall assign professional and clerical staff to the assist the Study Committee in its work.
SECTION 1.(h)  Consultants. – The Study Committee may hire consultants to examine specific issues and subjects related to the study, in accordance with G.S. 120‑32.02.
SECTION 1.(i)  Meetings During Legislative Session. – The Study Committee may meet during a regular or extra session of the General Assembly.
SECTION 1.(j)  Meeting Location. – The Study Committee may meet at various locations around the State in order to promote greater public participation in its deliberations. The Legislative Services Commission shall grant adequate meeting space to the Study Committee in the State Legislative Building or the Legislative Office Building.
SECTION 1.(k)  Report. – The Committee may make interim reports, and shall make a final report to the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee no later than November 1, 2004. Regardless of whether it has filed an interim or final report, the Committee shall terminate on November 1, 2004.
SECTION 1.(l)  Funding. – The Study Committee shall be funded from funds available to the Joint Legislative Transportation Oversight Committee, in accordance with G.S. 120‑70.52.
SECTION 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law.