LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                                   Austin, Texas
         
                                   FISCAL NOTE
                               75th Regular Session
         
                                  April 15, 1997
         
         
      TO: Honorable John Whitmire, Chair            IN RE:  Senate Bill No. 367, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
          Committee on Criminal Justice                              By: Brown
          Senate
          Austin, Texas
         
         
         
         
         FROM:  John Keel, Director    
         
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on SB367 ( Relating 
to the continuation and functions of the Commission on Jail 
Standards.) this office has detemined the following:
         
         Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by SB367-Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
         
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated. 
 

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 continue the Texas Commission 
on Jail Standards for a 12-year period, setting the next Sunset 
date for the agency as September 1, 2009.  Provisions in the 
bill would expand the regulatory authority of the Texas Commission 
on Jail Standards to include regulation of private facilities 
holding inmates from other states and federal inmates.  Additionally, 
the bill would establish limitations on holding inmates from 
other states or federal inmates and set prerequisites for private 
facilities to meet in order to hold inmates from other states 
or federal inmates.

Methodology

The Texas Commission on 
Jail Standards is subject to the Texas Sunset Act and will be 
abolished September 1, 1997 unless continued by the Legislature. 
Funding for the agency is included in the General Appropriations 
bill, as introduced, and is contingent upon passage of S.B. 
367 or similar legislation.  The appropriations would be financed 
from general revenue, grants, and appropriated receipts and 
would provide $939,926 and 20 employees in fiscal year 1998 
and $939,926 and 20 employees in fiscal year 1999.  

There 
is a potential fiscal impact of the expanded regulation of private 
jail facilities holding inmates from other states.  Five private 
facilities that currently house only federal prisoners could 
begin to house inmates from states other than Texas.  If that 
were to occur, the agency would charge a fee for the cost of 
annually inspecting each facility based on the number of beds 
in each facility.  Using the current capacity of the five facilities, 
if all five facilities were to begin housing inmates from states 
other than Texas, this fee would cause an annual revenue gain 
to general revenue of $7,022. 

No fiscal implication to units 
of local government is anticipated.
          
   Source:            Agencies:   409   Commission on Jail Standards
                                         116   Sunset Advisory Commission
                                         
                      LBB Staff:   JK ,CB ,BP