LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 76th Regular Session
May 5, 1999
TO: Honorable Bill Ratliff, Chair, Senate Committee on Finance
FROM: John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE: HB1161 by Junell (relating to the tobacco settlement
permanent trust account), Committee Report 2nd House,
Substituted
**************************************************************************
* Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Fundsfor *
* HB1161, Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted: $0 through the *
* biennium ending August 31, 2001. *
* *
* The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal *
* basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of *
* the bill. *
**************************************************************************
General Revenue-Related Funds, Five-Year Impact:
****************************************************
* Fiscal Year Probable Net Positive/(Negative) *
* Impact to General Revenue Related *
* Funds *
* 2000 $0 *
* 2001 0 *
* 2002 0 *
* 2003 0 *
* 2004 0 *
****************************************************
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
*****************************************************
* Fiscal Year Probable Revenue Gain/(Loss) to *
* Local Governments *
* 2000 $100,020,000 *
* 2001 61,923,000 *
* 2002 31,761,000 *
* 2003 52,838,000 *
* 2004 66,030,000 *
*****************************************************
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would implement a plan to distribute funds under the state's
tobacco settlement agreement. The funds would be used exclusively by
political subdivisions of the state defined in the bill with legal
responsibility for providing indigent health care services.
A new dedicated account, part of the Tobacco Settlement Political
Subdivision Trust Fund in the State Treasury, would be composed of funds
received in accordance with the state's tobacco settlement agreement's
provisions, assets purchased with that money, the earnings of the
account, and other contributions. At the direction of the Texas
Department of Health (TDH), the Comptroller would make annual
distributions of the net earnings from the account eligible political
subdivisions as defined in the bill.
Political subdivisions that receive distributions from the trust fund
would be required to reimburse state hospitals or clinics for certified
unreimbursed health care expenditures for indigent care. Qualified
public entities would include state teaching hospitals and others
governed by the University of Texas (UT) Board of Regents. The UT
Medical Branch at Galveston, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, UT Health
Science Center at Tyler, and the South Texas Hospital are specifically
included.
Two new advisory committees would be created by the bill: one would
advise the Comptroller on managing the assets; the other would advise
the Board of Health on implementing the bill's provisions. TDH would
provide administrative support and resources to the Board of Health's
advisory committee. Advisory committee members would not be compensated
and would be not be reimbursed for travel expenses.
Methodology
Most of the revenue gain in fiscal years 2000-01 is comprised of lump sum
distributions to counties and hospitals as outlined in the state's
tobacco settlement agreement ($100,000,000 in fiscal year 2000;
$50,000,000 in fiscal year 2001). Fiscal year 2000 includes $20,000 from
interest earnings.
The remaining amounts in fiscal year 2001 and subsequent years represent
earnings of the Tobacco Settlement Permanent Trust Account for
distribution to the local units of government, as estimated by the
Comptroller of Public Accounts. Tobacco company settlement payments made
after January 4, 1999 are subject to adjustment based upon the U.S.
Consumer Price Index, the domestic consumption of cigarettes, and the
tobacco companies' aggregate net operating profits for domestic cigarette
sales.
Reimbursements to public entities, such as state teaching hospitals, by
political subdivisions would increase those entities' revenue. The level
of revenue increase would depend upon the number of indigent county
residents served by each individual entity.
It is assumed that administrative costs for the Comptroller and the TDH
to implement the provisions of the bill could be absorbed within
existing resources.
Local Government Impact
The projected fiscal impact to certain local units of government is
described in the table above.
Source Agencies: 304 Comptroller Of Pub Accts, 501 Department of
Health
LBB Staff: JK, BB, KF, AZ