Texas drivers nabbed for cruising 25 mph or more above the speed limit could be hit with a $500 fine under legislation approved by the state Senate on March 26.

Under SB660, people going 25 mph over the limit could be hit with a fine ranging from $200 to $500. The fine for exceeding that limit now is capped at $200.

Texas leads the nation in traffic fatalities with 38 percent of those deaths being the result of excessive speeding, bill sponsor Sen. Steve Ogden, R-College Station, told KTRK television.

Ogden said statistics show a greater chance of accident and injury in cases where people are going 25 mph more than the speed limit.

Under the new legislation, a municipality or county would be required to send $200 of each fine collected for these excessive speeding violations to the state for a Texas Department of Transportation safety program.

The bill now heads to the House for consideration.