| TO: | Honorable Jaime Capelo, Chair, House Committee on Public Health |
| FROM: | John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB1353 by Uresti (Relating to a fee for preserving vital statistics records.), As Introduced |
The bill would amend the Health and Safety Code to authorize a local registrar to collect a fee not to exceed $1 for the preservation of vital statistics records maintained by the registrar, including birth, death, fetal death, marriage, divorce, and annulment records. The bill would take effect September 1, 2003.
Although the provisions of the bill would not have a fiscal impact on the Texas Department of Health, the agency notes that it would create a disparity between fees charged by local registrars compared to what is charged by the agency for preservation of vital statistics records.
Local registrars would experience a positive fiscal impact that would vary by county depending on the number of vital statistics records maintained; however, the amount would not be significant. If the full $1 is imposed, for example, Williamson County reports the county would experience a $7,855 annual revenue gain; Fort Bend County would experience a similar revenue gain ($7,000, not including divorce and annulment records); and Midland County also reports an annual revenue gain of approximately $7,000 if the provisions of the bill were to be implemented.
| Source Agencies: | 501 Department of Health
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| LBB Staff: | JK, DLBa, EB
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