SRC-SEW S.B. 1486 77(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   S.B. 1486
77R2039 YDB-DBy: Haywood
Finance
4/25/2001
As Filed


DIGEST AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the total cost of a state agency's budget is not apparent in the
state's budgeting process. Due to this lack of visibility, the state may
not be fully recovering employee benefits and other allocated costs from
federal and other funding sources, and the General Revenue Fund may be
bearing more than its proportional share of these costs.  The state's
methodology for appropriating benefit costs makes it difficult to track
compliance with state laws concerning the proportional payment of employee
benefits by fund source.  Moreover, the state has no formal methodology for
tracking the recovery of allocated statewide costs.  As proposed, S.B. 1486
bills state agencies for all statewide allocated costs, including the
proportion funded by general revenue, in order to ensure that the total
costs of agencies' programs are recorded on their books.  This bill also
requires that certain payments be made by agencies directly to the state in
order to make them more visible in the state's budgeting and appropriation
process.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

Rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the comptroller in SECTION 2
(Section 2106.006, Government Code), of this bill. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 2106.002(b), Government Code, to require the
statewide cost allocation plan to allocate to each state agency an
appropriate portion of the total costs of statewide support services,
including costs identified under Subdivision (1), and develop and prescribe
a billing procedure that ensures each state agency is billed for all costs
allocated to the agency under Subdivision (2) for which the agency is not
obligated to pay another state agency under other law. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 2106.006, Government Code, as follows:

(a) Requires a state agency, subject to Subsection (c), to send to the
comptroller certain stated monies for deposit to the credit of the general
revenue fund.  Deletes text limiting this section to state agencies that
receive federal money for federally reimbursable direct costs.  Deletes
text regarding sending the lesser of several amounts. Makes a conforming
change regarding the statewide cost allocation plan. 

(b) Requires the comptroller, subject to Subsection (c), to the extent the
amount billed under Section 2106.002(b) is not totally paid under
Subsections (a)(1) and (a)(2), to transfer to the general revenue fund the
appropriate amount charged against items of appropriation in connection
with which the remaining unpaid statewide allocated costs were incurred.
Deletes text regarding this section not being applicable to certain monies.

(c) Authorizes the legislature to provide in the General Appropriations Act
that payment of the amount billed under Section 2106.002(b) is waived to
the extent payment would be made from a state agency's general revenue
appropriation. 

 (d) Requires a state agency to send to the comptroller information the
comptroller requires to transfer amounts under Subsection (b). 

  (e) Requires the comptroller to adopt certain necessary rules.

SECTION 3.  Effective date: September 1, 2001.