LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                                   Austin, Texas
         
                                   FISCAL NOTE
                               75th Regular Session
         
                                  March 13, 1997
         
         
      TO: Honorable Kenneth Armbrister, Chair            IN RE:  Senate Bill No. 856
          Committee on State Affairs                              By: Shapleigh
          Senate
          Austin, Texas
         
         
         
         
         FROM:  John Keel, Director    
         
In response to your request for a Fiscal Note on SB856 ( Relating 
to the authority of certain municipalities to impose a local 
tax on the gross rental receipts from the rental of a motor 
vehicle.) this office has detemined the following:
         
         Biennial Net Impact to General Revenue Funds by SB856-As Introduced
         
Implementing the provisions of the bill would result in a net 
negative impact of ($490,389) 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 amend Subtitle C, Title 3 of the Tax Code to 
allow certain municipalities to impose a tax not to exceed 5 
percent on vehicle rentals and to use the tax revenues only 
to pay costs associated with a postseason intercollegiate football 
bowl game.  Under this bill, the only municipalities eligible 
to impose the tax would be those with a population of more than 
500,000 situated in a county bordering the Republic of Mexico 
in which a postseason intercollegiate football bowl game is 
held annually.   The municipality would not be able to impose 
the tax unless it was first approved by a majority of the qualified 
voters of the municipality voting at an election held for that 
purpose.  

The bill would require the Comptroller to administer, 
collect, and enforce the municipal vehicle rental tax, to adopt 
rules and prescribe forms, and to collect the municipal rental 
tax along with the state vehicle rental tax.  The Comptroller 
would be required to prepare quarterly reports to a municipality 
that had adopted the tax.  

The bill would require the Comptroller 
to deposit in the State Treasury the municipal motor vehicle 
rental taxes collected.  The Comptroller would be required to 
keep the deposits in trust in a separate Suspense Account of 
the municipality.  Interest earned on those deposits would be 
credited to the General Revenue Fund 0001.  The Comptroller 
would be required to retain 2 percent of all municipal motor 
vehicle rental taxes collected for deposit into the General 
Revenue Fund 0001 after the payment of certain expenses.
 
Methodolgy
 
The administrative cost estimate reflects the funds for staff 
and equipment that would be needed by the Comptroller's office 
to handle the anticipated increased workload for allocation 
activities.  The cost estimate for fiscal 1998 also includes 
funds to hire contract programmers that would be required to 
make enhancements to the allocation, enterprise, and tax processing 
automated systems. No significant fiscal impact to the state 
is anticipated, other than the costs incurred by the comptroller 
to administer the bill's provisions.
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           Change in Number   
            Savings/(Cost)     of State                                                                   
            to General         Employees from                                                             
            Revenue Fund       FY 1997                                                                    
            0001                                                                                           
       1998        ($456,908)               1.0                                                      
       1998          (33,481)               1.0                                                      
       2000          (33,481)               1.0                                                      
       2001          (33,481)               1.0                                                      
       2002          (33,481)               1.0                                                      
 
 
         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           ($456,908)
               1999             (33,481)
               2000             (33,481)
               2001             (33,481)
               2002             (33,481)
 
Similar annual fiscal implications would continue as long as 
the provisions of the bill are in effect.
          
Because the bill would not have statewide impact on units of 
local government of the same type or class, no comment from 
this office is required by the rules of the Senate as to its 
probable fiscal implication on units of local government. 
          
   Source:            Agencies:   302   Office of the Attorney General
                                         304   Comptroller of Public Accounts
                                         
                      LBB Staff:   JK ,JD ,SM