Texas counties still have a window of opportunity to legally clarify the public interest in long-maintained roads, a measure that could save counties hundreds of thousands of dollars in litigation costs. House Bill 1117, passed by the 78th Texas Legislature, went into effect Sept. 1, 2003, and expires Sept. 1, 2009.
Implementation of the bill, a discretionary measure found in Chapter 258 of the Transportation Code, allows counties to prepare and adopt an official county road map. This map serves as conclusive, legal evidence of a county’s claim to a road and the county’s right to spend public money on the road.
“If there’s any way that you can take advantage of this, then I encourage you to do so,” said Eastland County Judge Brad Stephenson.
Throughout the years Eastland County has expended countless man hours and litigation dollars trying to determine on a case-by-case basis “what is a county road,” Stephenson said. In fact, the county spent $20,000 to $30,000 on one road-related lawsuit.
Eastland County spent approximately $20,000 using an outside consultant to develop its county road map, which is now complete. That cost should be compared to what a county could spend
