LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                              Austin, Texas
                                     
                    FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session
  
                            February 26, 2001
  
  
          TO:  Honorable Gary Walker, Chair, House Committee on Land &
               Resource Management
  
        FROM:  John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
  
       IN RE:  HB1412  by Flores (Relating to the use and management of
               real property owned by the Texas Department of
               Transportation.), As Introduced
  
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*  No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.        *
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The bill would amend the Transportation Code to create a system of
capital charges for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) and
would require TxDOT  to pay the state a capital charge equal to seven
percent of the appraised value of all real property it owns, not
including rights-of-way.  The bill would allow a legislative
appropriation to be made to reimburse TxDOT for a portion of the capital
charges in an amount equal to the appraised value of property recommended
for retention by the General Land Office (GLO) divided by the appraised
value of all TxDOT property, not including rights-of-way.  The bill would
require TxDOT to submit information regarding all of the real property
owned by the department to the GLO and would allow TxDOT to contract with
the GLO to perform appraisals or estimates.

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated as any
payments from TxDOT for capital charges would be made to the State
Highway Fund.  The General Appropriations Act currently appropriates any
money available in the State Highway fund above amounts appropriated in
the Act to TxDOT for the purposes of highway construction.  Factors
impacting future capital charges would include GLO recommendations,
TxDOT's purchasing and selling of properties, and fluctuations in the
appraisal values.

This bill would take effect September 1, 2001.  The bill would require
TxDOT to submit its first report to the GLO by December 1, 2001, and
determine the appraised or estimated market value of any real property
it owned by September 1, 2003.  The bill would also allow TxDOT to
postpone any capital charge payments prior to September 1, 2003.
  
Local Government Impact
  
No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
  
  
Source Agencies:   305   General Land Office, 304   Comptroller of
                   Public Accounts, 601   Texas Department of
                   Transportation
LBB Staff:         JK, CL, RT, MW