LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD Austin, Texas FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session April 26, 2001 TO: Honorable Clyde Alexander, Chair, House Committee on Transportation FROM: John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board IN RE: HB428 by Morrison (Relating to the fee for special license plates for Purple Heart recipients.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted ************************************************************************** * Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for * * HB428, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted: positive impact * * of $0 through the biennium ending August 31, 2003. * * * * 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 * * 2002 $0 * * 2003 0 * * 2004 0 * * 2005 0 * * 2006 0 * **************************************************** All Funds, Five-Year Impact: ***************************************************** * Fiscal Year Probable Revenue Gain/(Loss) from * * State Highway Fund * * 0006 * * 2002 $(570,000) * * 2003 (599,000) * * 2004 (629,000) * * 2005 (660,000) * * 2006 (693,000) * ***************************************************** Fiscal Analysis The bill would amend the Transportation Code to establish an annual fee of $3 for each set of Purple Heart license plates. The bill would remove the current requirement that Purple Heart recipients pay an annual fee of $3 for the first set of license plates and $15 plus the normal registration fee for each additional set. The bill would take effect September 1, 2001 and would only apply to a registration fee for a registration period beginning on or after the effective date. Methodology Implementing the provisions of the bill would decrease the cost of purchasing additional sets of Purple Heart plates by $12 and would also exempt additional sets of plates from the normal registration fees and the optional county road and bridge fee. Consequently, there would be losses to the State Highway Fund 6 (Fund 6) and to county road and bridge funds. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) estimates an average registration fee of $40 for the state and $20 for the county. It is also estimated that the optional county road and bridge fee would average $10 per registration. TxDOT reported that approximately 20,000 Purple Heart plates were issued in fiscal year 2000 and that 650 of these were subsequent issues. TxDOT also estimates that an additional issuance of 15,000 subsequent sets of plates would result from the implementation of the bill. It is estimated that revenue losses to Fund 6 would increase by approximately 5 percent each year and that approximately $570,000 would be realized in fiscal year 2002. Local Government Impact It is estimated that net revenue losses to counties would increase by approximately 5 percent each year with the implementation of the bill and that approximately $443,000 would be realized in fiscal year 2002. For the purposes of this estimate, it is assumed that counties would realize losses from the removal of normal registration fees and optional county road and bridge fees. It is also estimated that a small revenue gain of approximately $8,000 per year to county general funds would be realized from the increased number of subsequent plates that are anticipated to be issued. Source Agencies: 601 Texas Department of Transportation, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts LBB Staff: JK, JO, RT, MW