SRC-MSY S.B. 387 78(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   S.B. 387
78R2147 JTS-FBy: Hinojosa
Finance
3/5/2003
As Filed


DIGEST AND PURPOSE 

Current Texas law does not provide for trauma centers to be funded from
vehicle registration fees.  As proposed, S.B. 387 requires each county
assessor-collector to collect an additional $5 on top of existing vehicle
registration fees and deposit the additional fee with the comptroller in
the tertiary care account under Section 46.003, Health and Safety Code,
while allowing the county to retain up to 10 percent of the additional
amount collected.  S.B. 387 will only go into effect if a constitutional
amendment allowing vehicle registration fees to  be applied to purposes
other than transportationrelated expenses is approved by the voters. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to
a state officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Chapter 502D, Transportation Code, by adding Section
502.1711, as follows: 

Sec.  502.1711.  ADDITIONAL FEE FOR TRAUMA CENTERS.  (a)  Requires a fee
of $5 to be collected in addition to the registration fee for a motor
vehicle under this chapter. 

(b)  Requires the county assessor-collector to send the fee collected
under Subsection (a) to the comptroller for deposit in the tertiary care
account under Section 46.003, Health and Safety Code, on the first Monday
of each month. 

(c)  Authorizes the county assessor-collector to retain an amount of not
more than 10 percent of each fee collected under Subsection (a).  Requires
the assessor-collector to deposit any amount retained under this
subsection to the county treasury to the credit of the general fund and to
petition the commissioners court for the amount necessary to administer
this section.  Authorizes the commissioners court to allocate money
deposited in the treasury under this subsection that is not allocated to
the assessorcollector to administer this section for general purposes of
the county. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 502.102(a), Transportation Code, to add Section
502.1711 as an exception to the application of this section. 

SECTION 3.  Effective date:  January 1, 2004.

Makes application of this Act prospective, but only if a certain
constitutional amendment is approved by the voters.  Provides that if that
amendment is not approved, this Act has no effect.