LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                                   Austin, Texas
         
                                   FISCAL NOTE
                               75th Regular Session
         
                                  March 14, 1997
         
         
      TO: Honorable Tom Craddick, Chair            IN RE:  Senate Bill No. 501, 
As Engrossed
          Committee on Ways & Means                              By: Zaffirini
          House
          Austin, Texas
         
         
         
         
         FROM:  John Keel, Director    
         
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on SB501 ( relating 
to authorizing the comptroller to provide assistance to local 
governments in obtaining funds from the federal government) 
this office has detemined the following:
         
         Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by SB501-As Engrossed
         
Providing services to Texas' 20 most populated counties would 
result in administrative costs of $935,000 per year.  The actual 
cost and statewide charge to local governments would vary depending 
on the amount of assistance provided by the Comptroller.  To 
the extent that all administrative costs are recovered by the 
Comptroller, the net cost to the state would be minimized.  
However, the bill does not require the Comptroller to recover 
local government assistance costs, so these costs could be paid 
solely by the General Revenue Fund.
         
The bill would authorize the Comptroller, at the request of 
a political subdivision, to provide assistance and technical 
support in obtaining the maximum amount of funding from the 
federal government to which the political subdivision is entitled. 
 The Comptroller would be authorized to charge the political 
subdivision a fee not to exceed 20 percent of the additional 
funds received because of the assistance provided by the Comptroller.

The 
bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal 
basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions 
of the bill.
         
 
          
Implementation of the bill would have a beneficial fiscal impact 
for those local governments that experience an increase in federal 
funds as a result of assistance from the Comptroller.  For example, 
the Comptroller estimates that its assistance to political subdivisions 
would generate an additional $7 million in federal funds per 
year for Texas  20 largest counties.  Assuming that these counties 
would reimburse the Comptroller for estimated costs, then the 
net gain to these counties would be approximately $6.1 million 
per year.  The actual increase in federal funds would depend 
on the extent to which assistance from the Comptroller results 
in additional federal revenue, and the extent to which local 
governments seek this assistance.
          
   Source:            Agencies:   304   Comptroller of Public Accounts
                                         
                      LBB Staff:   JK ,RR ,TL ,RN