The Montgomery County Precinct 5 Constable’s Office is hoping future changes to state law would allow the department to perform commercial vehicle inspections as growth boosts truck traffic in the region.
Sgt. Duane Burrell, who spent 42 working with the Texas Department of Public Safety, said while legislation has been filed, getting the law changed to certify the precinct office has been unsuccessful.
State Rep. Steve Toth, R-The Woodlands, filed House Bill 1096 in December but the legislation was left pending in committee.
Precinct 5 recently launched its commercial vehicle enforcement program to address safety violations on roadways.
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Burrell said the department enforces moving violations, such as speeding, it is unable to address other violations such as cracked frames, unlicensed drivers, bad tires and fuel leaks.
“We’ve got trucks running around overweight, we have trucks running around that aren’t safe,” Burrell said. “I’ll stop and weigh a truck and it has another violation but I can’t enforce it because I am not certified to do that. If we had the certification from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, we could shut that truck down.”
In the last six months, Precinct 5 Constables have stopped 285 commercial vehicles. Of those, 109 were over the legal weight limit.
Commercial vehicle enforcement is regulated by DPS and certifies police departments and sheriff’s offices to do the enforcement. However, state law excludes constable’s offices from being certified to do complete commercial vehicle inspections.
Bruce Berger, chief of staff for Precinct 2 Commissioner Charlie Riley, said traditionally constable’s offices have been limited to serving papers, such as subpoenas and temporary restraining orders, but that has changed over the last decade.
“Those days are long gone,” Berger said of constables being limited to serving papers. “I don’t think people understand we have moved on.”
Berger said Montgomery County’s growth is bringing hundreds of commercial trucks into communities, specifically Magnolia. The trucks, he said, have become a serious issue for the precinct.
“We are in the infrastructure business and we need something done,” Berger said. “We can’t put roads down and have them destroyed in a year because of so much construction going on and overloaded trucks on the roads.”
Riley said Precinct 5 Constable Chris Jones and his department have been successful with the truck enforcement they are permitted to do.
“I’m sure people in Precinct 2 have noticed a lot less debris falling off the back of trucks into their windshields since we started our efforts,” Riley said.
Burrell said he hopes to get more support from the public to get the law changed.
“I would like to make the public more aware of our situation here and get the public’s backing and help get a bill passed in the legislative session,” Burrell said. “The public needs to know what’s happening.”
