HBA-DMH H.B. 3204 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3204 By: Jones, Jesse County Affairs 4/1/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Internet use and access has increased tremendously in recent years. The Internet has become a convenient tool for conducting personal and business activities. House Bill 3204 authorizes a municipality or county to establish a process to collect certain fees and court costs through the Internet. 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 3204 amends the Local Government Code to authorize a county or municipality to provide or contract with a vendor to provide access to information through the Internet, to collect or contract with a vendor to collect through the Internet the payment of taxes, fines, fees, court costs, and other charges, or both. The bill requires a vendor to promptly remit all credit card or electronic payments received to the county or municipality. The bill authorizes a county, municipality, or vendor collecting credit card or electronic payments to assess and retain a reasonable fee. A fee assessed and retained by a vendor must be approved by the county or municipality. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.