LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD Austin, Texas FISCAL NOTE 74th Regular Session March 29, 1995 TO: Honorable Bill Ratliff, Chair IN RE: Senate Bill No. 979 Committee on Education By: Sibley Senate Austin, Texas FROM: John Keel, Director In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on Senate Bill No. 979 (Relating to relief programs, family practice residency training pilot programs, the repayment of certain physician education loans, the medical school tuition set aside for certain loan payments, and increasing the number of primary care physicians in medically underserved areas of this state through the creation of the Medically Underserved Community-State Matching Incentive Program.) this office has determined the following: The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill. H.B. 979 would add a new program and make changes to existing programs to increase the availability of health care in medically underserved areas of the state. Major provisions of the bill include: * expanding the responsibilities of the Center for Rural Health Initiatives to include developing relief service programs for practice coverage; * transferring oversight of the family residency pilot programs from the Department of Health to the Higher Education Coordinating Board; * establishing a goal that no more than 20 percent of physicians receiving repayment assistance should be employed by certain state agencies; * adding clinical faculty and second or third year residents in an approved family practice residency training program to the eligibility list for the Physician Education Loan Repayment Program; and * developing a medically underserved community-state matching incentive program administered by the Department of Health which would provide a maximum of $25,000 in matching state funds to no more than 10 eligible communities who sponsor a primary care physician. The probable fiscal implication of implementing the provisions of the bill during each of the first five years following passage is estimated as follows: Fiscal Probable Cost Out Year of General Revenue Fund 001 1996 $250,000 1997 250,000 1998 250,000 1999 250,000 2000 250,000 Similar annual fiscal implications would continue as long as the provisions of the bill are in effect. No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated. Source: Department of Health, Higher Education Coordinating Board LBB Staff: JK, DB, DF