HBA-SEP H.B. 2552 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2552
By: Uher
State Affairs
3/28/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The electric utility restructuring bill passed by the 76th Legislature
posed concerns for the residents of Matagorda County which is home to one
of the two operational nuclear power plants in Texas.  The South Texas
Project (STP) nuclear power plant provides a substantial portion of the tax
base for Matagorda County.  As part of the electric utility restructuring
legislation, a nuclear safety fee was established to prevent the loss of
revenue for the county and was required to be paid in fiscal years 2000 and
2001 by the STP to the taxing units that levied ad valorem taxes on the
nuclear facility in 1999.  The amount of the fee is equal to the difference
between the amount of ad valorem taxes imposed in 1999 and the amount of ad
valorem taxes imposed by the taxing unit in the year the fee is due.  House
Bill 2552 extends the collection of the nuclear safety fee to the years
2002 and 2003.    

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2552 amends the Utilities Code to extend the time period to the
years 2002 and 2003 during which the nuclear safety fee is required to be
paid by the electric utility that operates a nuclear safety asset located
in a county on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico to each taxing unit in which
a nuclear asset is located.   
EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.