1-1 By: Ramsay (Senate Sponsor - Madla) H.B. No. 3049 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House May 11, 2001; 1-3 May 11, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on 1-4 Intergovernmental Relations; May 11, 2001, reported favorably by 1-5 the following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 11, 2001, sent to 1-6 printer.) 1-7 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-8 AN ACT 1-9 relating to the use of interest earned on motor vehicle inventory 1-10 tax escrow accounts. 1-11 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-12 SECTION 1. Section 23.122, Tax Code, is amended by amending 1-13 Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (q) to read as follows: 1-14 (c) The collector shall maintain the escrow account for each 1-15 owner in the county depository. The collector is not required to 1-16 maintain a separate account in the depository for each escrow 1-17 account created as provided by this section but shall maintain 1-18 separate records for each owner. The collector shall retain any 1-19 interest generated by the escrow account to defray the cost of 1-20 administration of the prepayment procedure established by this 1-21 section. Interest generated by an escrow account created as 1-22 provided by this section is the sole property of the collector, and 1-23 that interest may be used by no entity other than the collector. 1-24 Interest generated by an escrow account may not be used to: 1-25 (1) reduce or otherwise affect the annual 1-26 appropriation to the collector that would otherwise be made; or 1-27 (2) supplement the salary or cover any personal 1-28 expenses of the collector. 1-29 (q) At least 60 days before the first day of the county's 1-30 fiscal year, the collector shall prepare a budget for the 1-31 expenditure of interest generated by the escrow accounts during 1-32 that fiscal year and file a copy of that budget with the county 1-33 budget officer. The county budget officer shall make a copy of the 1-34 collector's budget filed with the budget officer available to the 1-35 public at all reasonable times. The collector's budget filed with 1-36 the county budget officer is not subject to approval by the 1-37 commissioners court of the county, but any member of the public is 1-38 entitled to speak for or against the collector's budget during the 1-39 county's budget process. Interest generated by the escrow accounts 1-40 under this section may be spent only in compliance with: 1-41 (1) the collector's budget filed with the county 1-42 budget officer under this subsection; and 1-43 (2) Subchapter C, Chapter 262, Local Government Code. 1-44 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives 1-45 a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as 1-46 provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this 1-47 Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this 1-48 Act takes effect September 1, 2001. 1-49 * * * * *