LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                                   Austin, Texas
         
                                   FISCAL NOTE
                               75th Regular Session
         
                                  March 13, 1997
         
         
      TO: Honorable Fred M. Bosse, Chair            IN RE:  Senate Bill No. 236, Committee Report 2nd House, as amended
          Committee on Land and Resource Management                              By: Lindsay
          House
          Austin, Texas
         
         
         
         
         FROM:  John Keel, Director    
         
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on SB236 ( Relating 
to the right of voters in a municipality to participate in municipal 
elections.) this office has detemined the following:
         
         Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by SB236-Committee Report 2nd House, as amended
         

No fiscal implication to the State is anticipated. 
         
This bill would require that any newly-annexed area be allowed 
to vote in any election held after the date of annexation.  
If the qualified voters in the annexed area are not allowed 
to vote in such an election, the results of the election would 
be void.  

No fiscal implication to units of local government 
is anticipated, except in rare instances.  

If a municipal 
election is held immediately after an annexation and insufficient 
time has elapsed to receive authorization from the U.S. Department 
of Justice (usually 90 days) to allow voters in the newly-annexed 
area to participate in municipal elections, the municipality 
will hold a previously scheduled election without the participation 
of the newly-annexed voters.  In these instances, this bill 
would require the municipality to void the results of the initial 
election and hold another election with the participation of 
the newly-annexed voters.  The median cost of such a local election 
at the county level has been calculated at $0.40 per resident, 
based on a survey conducted by the Texas Association of Counties. 
 The City of Houston reports that such an election costs that 
city approximately $1.25 million, or about $0.76 per resident. 
 
         
 
          
   Source:            Agencies:   
                                         
                      LBB Staff:   JK ,BB ,TL