LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                          Austin, Texas

                           FISCAL NOTE
                       74th Regular Session

                          March 31, 1995



 TO:     Honorable David Sibley, Chair          IN RE:  Senate Bill No. 964
         Committee on Economic Development              By: Harris, Chris
         Senate
         Austin, Texas






FROM: John Keel, Director

In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on Senate Bill No.
964 (relating to the regulation of driver training; providing a
penalty) this office has determined the following:

The bill would transfer the regulation and administration of
driver education programs currently under the direction of the
Texas Education Agency to the Higher Education Coordinating
Board.  The bill would also rewrite guidelines and qualifications
for commercial drivers education and grant authority to certain
commercial driver education schools to conduct driver's license
testing and issuance of instruction permits currently granted
only by the Department of Public Safety (DPS).

All costs associated with driver education programs are paid by
fees collected from the driver education schools.  Therefore, no
cost to the state or local government is anticipated as a result
of transferring the regulatory authority of driver education. 
While granting authority to issue instruction permits to
commercial driving schools will increase the data workload of the
DPS Headquarters personnel,  DPS field Driver License Service
employees should experience a decrease of 7 percent of total
transactions processed.  The costs savings associated with an
anticipated reduction in field office work should offset cost
increases for Headquarters work.

It is anticipated, with DPS cost offsets, that the bill would
have no significant fiscal implications to the state or units of
local government.    





 

Source:   Department of Public Safety, Higher Education
Coordinating Board
          LBB Staff: JK, MK, RR