LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD

Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 78TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION

May 13, 2003

TO:	Honorable Leticia Van de Putte, Chair, Senate Committee on Veteran Affairs & Military Installations
FROM:	John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:	HB2251 by Flores (Relating to allowing supplemental pay for members of the Texas National Guard who are called to active duty when active duty service imposes an economic hardship.), As Engrossed

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

The bill would amend the Government Code to establish the Texas National Guard Members' Supplemental Active Duty Pay Account within the General Revenue Fund to provide supplemental active duty pay to guardsmen who suffer an economic hardship as a result of serving on active duty. The bill would provide that the comptroller, governor and adjutant general may accept gifts and grants for deposit to the credit of the account and that the legislature may transfer or appropriate funds to the account for the implementation of supplemental active duty pay.   

The bill does not specify the level of supplemental active duty pay.  The adjutant general would be responsible for setting supplemental active duty pay based on the level of available funds and probable need for supplemental active duty pay.  The amount of available funds would depend on gifts, grants and appropriations. To the extent that supplemental active duty pay is limited to gifts and grants, the bill is not anticipated to have a significant fiscal impact.

The bill specifies that supplemental active duty pay may not exceed the lesser of: 1) the amount necessary to alleviate the economic hardship suffered as a result of serving on active duty; or 2) the difference between the amount of income lost from civilian employment as a result of serving on active duty and the amount of active duty pay.

The Adjutant General's Department indicates that current available data for state employees demonstrates that active duty pay is greater than state employee pay; therefore, these employees would not be eligible for supplemental active duty pay.  The department has no data to compare other guardsmen's private sector pay with active duty pay.  

Local Government Impact

No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.

Source Agencies:

304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 401 Adjutant General's Department

LBB Staff:

JK, WK, VDS, AB