LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                              Austin, Texas
                                     
                    FISCAL NOTE, 76th Regular Session
  
                              April 21, 1999
  
  
          TO:  Honorable Clyde Alexander, Chair, House Committee on
               Transportation
  
        FROM:  John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
  
       IN RE:  HB2814  by Seaman (Relating to funding for certain
               causeways or bridges.), As Introduced
  
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*  Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for    *
*  HB2814, As Introduced:  positive impact of $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:
  
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*Fiscal      Probable Cost from State     Probable Revenue Gain to Local  *
* Year             Highway Fund                    Governments            *
*                      0006                                               *
*  2000                        $(102,223)                      $6,592,908 *
*  2001                                 0                       6,687,186 *
*  2002                                 0                       6,782,812 *
*  2003                                 0                       6,879,806 *
*  2004                                 0                       6,879,806 *
***************************************************************************
  
Fiscal Analysis
  
The bill would give counties which border the Gulf of Mexico the option
of charging an additional fee of up to $2 for registration. The bill
would require the extra fee to be deposited in a special fund in the
county treasury and used only to pay for the construction, improvement,
or maintenance of a bridge or causeway between the mainland and a
barrier island.
  
  
Methodology
  
The Texas Department of Transportation, TxDot, assumed that eight of the
sixteen eligible counties would opt to charge the additional fee in the
amount of $2.00. TxDot also assumed that the revenue gain would increase
proportionately with the increase in vehicle registrations, 1.43 percent
annually. Costs to revise the registration and titling system to track
the optional county fee were included in the TxDot estimates.
  
  
Local Government Impact
  
The department estimated there could be revenue implications to the
eligible counties choosing to implement the provisions of the bill
authorizing the additional fee.
  
  
Source Agencies:   601   Department of Transportation
LBB Staff:         JK, PE, ML