LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                                   Austin, Texas
         
                                   FISCAL NOTE
                               75th Regular Session
         
                                  April 2, 1997
         
         
      TO: Honorable Keith Oakley, Chair            IN RE:  House Bill No. 972
          Committee on Public Safety                              By: Jones, Jesse
          House
          Austin, Texas
         
         
         
         
         FROM:  John Keel, Director    
         
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on HB972 ( Relating 
to systems for providing access to driver's license record information 
held by the Department of Public Safety.) this office has detemined 
the following:
         
         Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by HB972-As Introduced
         
Implementing the provisions of the bill would result in a net 
positive impact of $8,819,000 to General Revenue Related Funds 
through the biennium ending August 31, 1999.
         
The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal 
basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions 
of the bill.
         
 
Fiscal Analysis
 
The bill would allow the Department of Public Safety to establish 
a system to provide interactive access to certain driver record 
information by entities other than law enforcement agencies 
and authorizes the Department to accept and process requests 
for information from the National Driver Register concerning 
individual drivers.  The bill would set a fee for these services 
and establish a special account in the General Revenue Fund 
for the administration of the program.
 
Methodolgy
 
The bill contains two provisions dealing with the interactive 
driver's license information system.  The first provision would 
establish different fees depending on the information requested 
and dedicate a portion to the Department in a special General 
Revenue Account for the administration of the system.  Based 
on the experience in states with a similar system and number 
of drivers, it is estimated the system would process 1 million 
requests per year.

The second provision of the bill authorizes 
the Department to process request for information from the National 
Driver Register system.  If all commercially employed drivers 
request NDR checks bi-annually, this would generate an estimated 
586,000 requests for information each year.
The probable fiscal implications of implementing the provisions 
of the bill during each of the first five years following passage 
is estimated as follows:
 
Five Year Impact:
 
Fiscal Year Probable           Probable Revenue   Probable Revenue   Change in Number   
            Savings/(Cost)     Gain/(Loss) from   Gain/(Loss) from   of State                             
            from New - GR      New - GR Dedicated General Revenue    Employees from                       
            Dedicated                             Fund               FY 1997                              
            NEW-DED            NEW-DED            0001                                                     
       1998        ($348,764)          $500,000        $4,362,000               9.0                  
       1998         (298,501)           500,000         4,457,000               9.0                  
       2000         (376,585)           500,000         4,552,000              12.0                  
       2001         (373,218)           500,000         4,647,000              12.0                  
       2002         (453,053)           500,000         4,742,000              15.0                  
 
 
         Net Impact on General Revenue Related Funds:
 
The probable fiscal implication to General Revenue related funds 
during each of the first five years is estimated as follows:
 
              Fiscal Year      Probable Net Postive/(Negative)
                               General Revenue Related Funds
                                             Funds
               1998           $4,362,000
               1999            4,457,000
               2000            4,552,000
               2001            4,647,000
               2002            4,742,000
 
Similar annual fiscal implications would continue as long as 
the provisions of the bill are in effect.
          
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government 
is anticipated.
          
   Source:            Agencies:   405   Department of Public Safety
                                         
                      LBB Staff:   JK ,CB ,RS ,RT