LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 77th Regular Session
May 9, 2001
TO: Honorable Warren Chisum, Chair, House Committee on
Environmental Regulation
FROM: John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE: SB1541 by Duncan (Relating to the permanent management
of low-level radioactive waste.), As Engrossed
**************************************************************************
* Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for *
* SB1541, As Engrossed: 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 Probable Revenue Probable Change in Number of *
* Year Gain/(Loss) from Low Savings/(Cost) from State Employees from *
* Level Waste Account/ Low Level Waste FY 2001 *
* GR-Dedicated Account/ *
* 0088 GR-Dedicated *
* 0088 *
* 2002 $1,199,730 $(1,199,730) 13.0 *
* 2003 3,095,730 (3,095,730) 13.0 *
* 2004 3,095,730 (3,095,730) 13.0 *
* 2005 2,178,784 (2,178,784) 14.0 *
* 2006 2,178,784 (2,178,784) 14.0 *
**************************************************************************
Technology Impact
The bill would require personal computers and related equipment for
thirteen new positions in fiscal year 2002.
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would grant the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission
(TNRCC) power to permanently manage low-level radioactive waste. TNRCC
would oversee the issuance of a license for permanent management at a
permanent management facility. The bill requires TNRCC to propose all
necessary rules by June 1, 2002, and that a draft license be issued
within 15 months of the start of the technical review of the license
application(s). The bill would allow the facility to accept federal
facility waste at a separate facility adjacent to the permanent facility.
The bill would require an applicant to submit a nonrefundable fee of
$100,000 along with an application. An application fee for the permanent
management license, in an amount to be determined by TNRCC, also would
be levied. The bill would require that the site had not been revoked by
a referendum of each county's voters, certified by the commissioners
court of each county where the proposed facility would be located.
The successful applicant would have to convey to the state all rights,
title, and interest to the land on which the facility would be located.
Federal law would govern the transfer of the separate adjacent facility
for federal waste. TNRCC would have the right to inspect the facility,
activities at the facility, and all records related to the facility's
activities. The permanent management license would have a
nontransferable 35-year term.
The bill would require TNRCC to prepare a report for the appropriate
legislative committees as a basis for periodic oversight. The report
would include the status of interstate compacts and agreements and the
status of funds held, expended, or disbursed by the host county.
TNRCC could require the holder of the license to pay an annual amount, to
be determined by TNRCC, to oversee the facility after the activities
under the license were terminated. The bill would allow TNRCC to take
corrective action if the public health and safety and the environment
were threatened and the license holder was unable to remove that threat.
The bill would require all TNRCC expenses under the Act to be paid from
General Revenue-Dedicated Account No. 0088, Low Level Radioactive Waste,
including transfers of funds to the host county of a facility. The bill
would provide for waste disposal fees and processing and packaging fees
to be deposited in the Low Level Radioactive Waste Account No. 0088,.
Each person who delivered nonfederal radioactive waste would have to pay
a waste disposal fee to the state in the name of TNRCC. The generator of
the federal facility waste would be surcharged ten percent of the gross
receipts from fees or charges related to the disposal of federal facility
waste for transfer to the commissioners court in the host county.
The bill would create a new General Revenue-Dedicated Account, the
Permanent Management Facility Decommissioning Account. Interest earned
would be deposited to the credit of the new account. The bill would
require TNRCC to determine an amount necessary to fund the
decommissioning of the facility and to determine the portion of fees
collected necessary to fund the account. TNRCC would direct the
Comptroller to deposit into the new account that portion of fees. TNRCC
would be required to review the account balance each biennium and, upon
reaching a balance that would generate enough interest income to
decommission the facility in the time period projected, instruct the
Comptroller to discontinue directing fee revenue into the new account.
Funds in the decommissioning account could be used to decommission the
adjacent federal facility waste site. TNRCC would be required to
determine the proportional amount of money necessary to fund
decommissioning the federal site and charge the license holder a fee for
each shipment of federal facility waste accepted for disposal. The
revenue would be deposited into the decommissioning account. TNRCC would
stop charging the fee when they direct the Comptroller to discontinue
directing money into the decommissioning account.
If the licensed facility were to be designated an "assured isolation
facility," the bill would create for General Revenue-Dedicated Account,
the Assured Isolation Conversion Account. Interest earned would be
deposited to the credit of that account. The bill would require TNRCC to
determine an amount necessary to fund the conversion of the facility and
to determine the portion of fees necessary to pay those fees over time.
TNRCC would direct the Comptroller to deposit the fees into that
account. TNRCC would be required to review the account balance each
biennium and, upon reaching a balance that would generate enough interest
income to decommission the facility in the time period projected,
instruct the Comptroller to stop directing fee revenue into that account.
Fee revenue collected from waste disposal fees, processing and packaging
fees, civil penalties, payments by member states of the compact, and
other receipts would be deposited to the credit of General
Revenue-Dedicated Account No. 0088.
The bill would authorize TNRCC to issue, sell, and retire revenue bonds.
The bonds would be payable from receipts collected by TNRCC and credited
to Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Account No. 0088.
Methodology
For purposes of this analysis, the following assumptions are made:
* three license applications will be received, generating fee revenue of
$1.2 to $2.9 million, depending on when the facility opens and when
collection of disposal fees begins;
* $2.0 million in fiscal year 2003 for technical review contract
services, $1.5 million in fiscal year 2004 for technical review contract
services, and $1.0 million per fiscal year for technical review contract
services in fiscal years 2005 and 2006;
* costs and fee revenue to the Decommissioning Account are not estimated
as these costs would depend upon the type of facility licensed and the
amount of waste disposed; and
* no construction or land acquisition costs are contemplated as these
activities are the responsibility of the permanent management facility
licensee.
It is assumed for purposes of this analysis that administrative costs
until a facility opens and collection of waste disposal fees begins
would be funded by existing balances in the Low Level Radioactive Waste
Disposal Account No. 0088 and the fees charged license applicants. The
current balance in General Revenue-Dedicated Account No. 088 is $5.6
million, and the Comptroller estimates a revenue gain of $712,500 from
interest earnings and grazing lease revenue during the 2002-03 biennium.
Applicant fees will be set at a rate sufficient to fund that portion of
TNRCC administrative costs not covered by the available balance in Low
Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Account No. 0088, until the facility
opens and waste disposal fees begin being received and deposited to the
Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Account. Based on revenues
available in the Low Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Account and a
facility not opening until six months into fiscal year 2005, the license
fees charged applicants would need to total $2,869,000.
Local Government Impact
The host county where a facility is located would be eligible to receive
10% of disposal fee revenue for public projects. In addition, a 10%
surcharge on gross receipts from fees or charges for disposal of federal
facility waste would be transferred to the host county where a facility
is located. Finally, the host county would incur the cost of a voter
referendum approving the location of a disposal site in the county.
Source Agencies: 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 582 Texas
Natural Resource Conservation Commission
LBB Staff: JK, CL, ZS