LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session
April 30, 2001
TO: Honorable Kenneth Armbrister, Chair, Senate Committee on
Criminal Justice
FROM: John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE: HB772 by Haggerty (relating to the eligibility of
certain offenders for medically recommended intensive
supervision and the provision of facilities for those
offenders.), Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted
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* Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for *
* HB772, Committee Report 2nd House, Substituted: positive impact *
* of $1,612,000 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. *
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General Revenue-Related Funds, Five-Year Impact:
****************************************************
* Fiscal Year Probable Net Positive/(Negative) *
* Impact to General Revenue Related *
* Funds *
* 2002 $533,000 *
* 2003 1,079,000 *
* 2004 1,439,000 *
* 2005 1,799,000 *
* 2006 2,159,000 *
****************************************************
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
*****************************************************
* Fiscal Year Probable Savings/(Cost) from *
* General Revenue Fund *
* 0001 *
* 2002 $533,000 *
* 2003 1,079,000 *
* 2004 1,439,000 *
* 2005 1,799,000 *
* 2006 2,159,000 *
*****************************************************
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend the Government Code to include inmates significantly
ill with a chronic disease in the eligible pool of inmates for special
needs parole. The bill would require the Texas Council on Offenders with
Mental Impairments (TCOMI) and the Texas Department of Human Services
(DHS) to issue a request for proposal for a skilled nursing facility
located in an urban area for offenders released from prison on special
needs parole. The bill would partially implement PSC-4 of the
Comptroller's e-Texas report.
The bill would take effect September 1, 2001.
Methodology
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) estimates that there are
currently over 600 inmates with a chronic disease that would be eligible
for special needs parole consideration. The majority of special needs
offenders would be released to alternative care in nursing home
facilities. Medicaid funding for this population would be provided by
the federal government (60.6 percent) and the state (39.4 percent).
For the 2002-03 biennium, the Comptroller's Office assumes 150 additional
inmates would be released under the special needs parole program and
that this number would increase by 50 each year starting in fiscal year
2004. The current average daily cost for a special needs inmate is
$53.50. To realize the savings shown above, the appropriations to TDCJ
would have to be reduced by the estimated costs for housing the special
needs inmates ($1,444,500 in fiscal 2002 and $2,929,125 in fiscal 2003).
The estimated savings in 2002 are reduced to reflect a six-month
implementation lag. The current cost of nursing home care averages $86
per day and would be covered under Medicaid. The appropriations to DHS
would have to be increased to qualify for the Medicaid match by $912,330
in fiscal 2002 and $1,850,003 in fiscal 2003. The estimated increases in
expended Federal Funds are $1,401,000 in fiscal 2002, $2,842,000 in
fiscal 2003, $3,789,000 in fiscal 2004, $4,736,000 in fiscal 2005, and
$5,683,000 in fiscal 2006.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is
anticipated.
Local governments would only be impacted if they were awarded a contract
to provide services for inmates released on special needs parole.
Source Agencies: 324 Texas Department of Human Services, 304
Comptroller of Public Accounts, 696 Texas
Department of Criminal Justice
LBB Staff: JK, JC, JN, VS, RK, DB