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79R4597 KLA-D

By:  Villarreal                                                   H.B. No. 1995



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to a grant program to encourage investment of federal 
earned income tax credit funds.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 302, Labor Code, is 
amended by adding Section 302.014 to read as follows:
	Sec. 302.014.  FEDERAL EARNED INCOME TAX CREDIT GRANT 
PROGRAM.  (a)  In this section, "volunteer income tax assistance 
program" means a program operated through a collaboration of the 
Internal Revenue Service and a local governmental entity or other 
entity under which low-income and other eligible taxpayers receive 
free assistance in preparing federal income tax returns.
	(b)  To the extent authorized by federal law, the commission 
shall distribute $1 million during each state fiscal biennium to 
the local workforce development boards from funds received under 
the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families block grant 
that are available for discretionary purposes.  If necessary to 
implement this section, the comptroller shall transfer funds 
received under the block grant that are available for discretionary 
purposes from the Health and Human Services Commission to the 
commission.
	(c)  The local workforce development boards shall administer 
a matching grant program using funds distributed under Subsection 
(b) to provide matching grants to volunteer income tax assistance 
programs or other free federal earned income tax credit assistance 
programs operated by local public or private entities.  To be 
eligible for a matching grant under this section, the program must 
provide:
		(1)  information regarding eligibility for the federal 
earned income tax credit and assistance to eligible persons with 
applying for that credit; and
		(2)  information regarding individual development 
accounts and assistance to persons who receive federal earned 
income tax credit funds with investing those funds in individual 
development accounts in which expenditures are limited to those 
related to housing or educational expenses.
	(d)  The commission shall adopt rules to implement this 
section.      
	SECTION 2.  If before implementing any provision of this Act 
a state agency determines that a waiver or authorization from a 
federal agency is necessary for implementation of that provision, 
the agency affected by the provision shall request the waiver or 
authorization and may delay implementing that provision until the 
waiver or authorization is granted.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.