LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
                              Austin, Texas
                                     
                    FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session
  
                               May 11, 2001
  
  
          TO:  Honorable Frank Madla, Chair, Senate Committee on
               Intergovernmental Relations
  
        FROM:  John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
  
       IN RE:  HB3440  by Gallego (Relating to the compensation of
               county sheriffs.), As Engrossed
  
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*  The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal      *
*  basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of    *
*  the bill.                                                             *
**************************************************************************
  
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
  
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*Fiscal    Probable Savings/(Cost) from    Probable Revenue Gain/(Loss)   *
* Year         General Revenue Fund               from Counties           *
*                      0001                                               *
*  2001                         $(47,475)                         $47,475 *
*  2002                         (522,231)                         522,231 *
*  2003                         (598,191)                         598,191 *
*  2004                         (628,100)                         628,100 *
*  2005                         (659,505)                         659,505 *
*  2006                         (692,480)                         692,480 *
***************************************************************************
  
The first table assumes an effective date of July 1, 2001.  The second
table assumes an effective date of September 1, 2001.
  
***************************************************************************
*Fiscal    Probable Savings/(Cost) from    Probable Revenue Gain/(Loss)   *
* Year         General Revenue Fund               from Counties           *
*                      0001                                               *
*  2002                        $(522,231)                        $522,231 *
*  2003                         (598,191)                         598,191 *
*  2004                         (628,100)                         628,100 *
*  2005                         (659,505)                         659,505 *
*  2006                         (692,480)                         692,480 *
***************************************************************************
  
Technology Impact
  
None.
  
  
Fiscal Analysis
  
The bill would allow the state to provide a supplemental salary for
sheriffs in counties with a population of 10,000 or less and in which the
sheriff's pay is less than one-third of the state salary for a district
judge. The supplemental salary amount is not specified, but would be that
provided in the General Appropriations Act.  If the sheriff waives the
supplemental salary, the amount provided from the General Appropriations
Act would be used for expenses of the county sheriff's office.

The bill would go into effect immediately if it receives the requisite
two-thirds vote in both houses; otherwise, it would become effective
September 1, 2001.
  
  
Methodology
  
The bill does not indicate how much supplemental pay the state would
provide, whether there would be a limit, or that the state would pay
whatever amount that would be necessary to bring the sheriff's salary up
to the level of one-third of the district judge's salary. The bill does
not specify that the supplement to the sheriff's salary would be limited
to keeping the sheriff's salary no higher than one-third the district
judge's salary; therefore, the possibility could exist that a sheriff's
salary could be supplemented in an amount that would bring the salary to
a level higher than one-third the district judge pay level, depending on
what parameters the state would determine for supplementing pay, should
the state decide to provide supplemental pay.

The state pays a district judge $101,700 annually (not including
benefits), one-third of which equals $33,900. According to the 2000
census, 90 Texas counties have a population of under 10,000.  Of those 90
counties, 70 pay the sheriff less than $33,900, according to a salary
survey of all sheriffs' departments that was conducted by the Texas
Association of Counties (TAC).  The smallest county in the state, Loving
County, pays its sheriff $32,178 annually; however, county size does not
appear to have an impact on what the sheriff is paid.  The sheriff in
Sherman County (population 3,186) is paid $33,780 and the sheriff in
McCulloch County (population 8,205) is paid $25,000.

For the purposes of this analysis, it is assumed that the state would
provide supplemental pay, that the state would supplement the pay to the
sheriffs in all 70 counties that meet the criteria, and that the
supplement would be sufficient to bring each of those sheriffs' annual
salary up to $33,900.  Based on the current pay presented in the TAC
salary survey, the sheriff's pay in each applicable county was subtracted
from $33,900. The difference between $33,900 and those sheriffs' pay was
then added together to determine that the state would be paying $522,231
in supplemental pay in the first full year of implementation.

If the bill were to go into effect immediately, a start date of July 1,
2001 is assumed, and therefore one month's supplemental pay would be
made (August 2001) in fiscal year 2001.  If the bill were to go into
effect on September 1, 2001, eleven months' supplemental pay would be
made in fiscal year 2002. An annual increase of 5 percent each year
thereafter would be assumed.
  
  
Local Government Impact
  
Under the assumption that the state would provide supplemental pay to the
sheriff in each of the 70 counties with a population of 10,000 or less
that pay their sheriff less than $33,900, the county would receive a
revenue gain equivalent to the difference between the sheriff's current
salary and $33,900 with a 5 percent increase each of the next five
years, although the gain would pass through to the sheriff.
  
  
Source Agencies:   
LBB Staff:         JK, DB