Honorable Chris Paddie, Chair, House Committee on State Affairs
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2578 by Leach (Relating to the comptroller's establishment and operation of a public information Internet website.), As Introduced
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB2578, As Introduced : a negative impact of ($2,504,000) through the biennium ending August 31, 2023.
The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.
General Revenue-Related Funds, Five- Year Impact:
Fiscal Year
Probable Net Positive/(Negative) Impact to General Revenue Related Funds
2022
($2,356,000)
2023
($148,000)
2024
($148,000)
2025
($148,000)
2026
($148,000)
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
Fiscal Year
Probable (Cost) from General Revenue Fund 1
Change in Number of State Employees from FY 2021
2022
($2,356,000)
2.0
2023
($148,000)
2.0
2024
($148,000)
2.0
2025
($148,000)
2.0
2026
($148,000)
2.0
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend the Government Code by adding Chapter 561 which would require the Comptroller to establish and operate a public information website by September 1, 2022. The Comptroller would be required to coordinate with the Office of Court Administration to eliminate unnecessary duplication and ensure that, at a minimum, the website of CPA and the website of OCA include links to each other's websites.
The design of the public information website would need to allow for a governmental entity, including a state agency in any of the three branches of state government, a higher education institution, a political subdivision of the state, or the Comptroller to easily post public information upon receipt of the information from the entity. The website would also be required to have the functionality to allow the public to search and sort the public information by a specific municipality or county, name or type of governmental entity; by submission date, event date, or deadline date of the public information; and by any additional criteria approved by the Comptroller. The website must also allow a person to subscribe to email notifications, have an easy to remember website address, and be accessible by the public 24 hours a day through the Texas.gov website, and have adequate systems for information security backup and a contingency plan to address power outages, systematic failures, and electronic security.
Methodology
Based on the analysis of the Comptroller, building the website would require a one-time technology cost of $2,208,000 and annual on-going costs of $148,000 which would cover salary, benefits, payroll contribution, and operating expenses for two additional Program Specialist full-time equivalents (FTEs). The Program Specialists would be needed to handle the anticipated workload to test, manage, and provide customer support services for the new public information website.
Technology
The Comptroller indicates that there would be a one-time technology cost of $2,208,000 to build the public information website as required by the bill. The agency estimates that 14,720 programming hours would be necessary to build the functionality and reporting requirements of the website and to ensure compliance with Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act related to the safety and accessibility of websites for individuals with disabilities.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Admin, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 313 Department of Information Resources