LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                                   Austin, Texas
         
                                   FISCAL NOTE
                               75th Regular Session
         
                                  May 6, 1997
         
         
      TO: Honorable Fred Hill, Chair            IN RE:  Senate Bill No. 657, Committee Report 2nd House, as amended
          Committee on Urban Affairs                              By: Barrientos
          House
          Austin, Texas
         
         
         
         
         FROM:  John Keel, Director    
         
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on SB657 ( Relating 
to the creation of intermunicipal commuter rail districts; authorizing 
a tax; granting the authority to issue bonds and power of eminent 
domain.) this office has detemined the following:
         
         Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by SB657-Committee Report 2nd House, as amended
         
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
         

         
 
          
This bill would allow a commuter rail district to be created 
between Austin and San Antonio.  Any county adjacent to either 
Bexar or Travis Counties would be eligible to join the district, 
as well as any municipalities with populations over 18,000 located 
within such eligible counties.  A board would be appointed to 
manage and operate the district, and the district would have 
the authority to issue bonds and collect user fees.

There 
could be some cost to municipalities and counties which opt 
to join a commuter rail district.  Those costs would be dependent 
on preliminary studies, negotiations, and acquisitions required 
to create the district.  Once a district is created, a local 
government could incur costs associated with the financing of 
transportation infrastructure constructed within the territory 
of the local government, if the local government agrees to such 
expenses.

There could be a nominal loss in property tax revenues 
to local governments which levy property taxes as a result of 
this bill's passage, since property acquired by such districts 
would be exempt from such taxes.  A local government, other 
than a school district, could agree to forego up to 30 percent 
of increased ad valorem tax collections that are attributable 
to increased value of property resulting from an infrastructure 
project.  Such revenues would be transferred to the commuter 
rail district, but would be designated for use within the territory 
of the local government.  

A local government could be required 
to forego local sales and use taxes generated from items sold 
on district property, since such taxes would be remitted by 
the Comptroller to the district.   However, no existing sales 
and use tax revenues are anticipated to be affected.

          
   Source:            Agencies:   
                                         
                      LBB Staff:   JK ,TL