79R7405 KLA-D

By:  Shapleigh                                                    S.B. No. 639



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the provision of federal earned income tax credit 
materials and federal income tax preparation assistance 
information to certain health and human services and Texas 
Workforce Commission clients.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter F, Chapter 531, Government Code, is 
amended by adding Section 531.193 to read as follows:
	Sec. 531.193.  CONTRACT REQUIREMENT:  DISTRIBUTION OF 
FEDERAL INCOME TAX MATERIALS AND INFORMATION.  (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)  In each contract between the commission and a contractor 
for implementation of all or part of the plan required by Section 
531.191(a) under which the contractor will have direct contact with 
clients to determine eligibility for health and human services or 
Texas Workforce Commission services, or to provide access to those 
services, the commission must include a requirement that the 
contractor provide to each client in January of each 12-month 
period in which the contractor has contact with the client:
		(1)  educational materials relating to the federal 
earned income tax credit;
		(2)  federal income tax forms necessary to claim the 
credit;         
		(3)  an addressed envelope in which to mail the forms to 
the Internal Revenue Service; and
		(4)  a list of volunteer income tax assistance programs 
in geographic proximity to the client's residence.
	(c)  Before providing a federal income tax form to a client 
as required by Subsection (b)(2), the contractor must complete for 
the client any portion of the form for which the contractor has the 
required information.
	(d)  The contract provision under this section is required 
regardless of whether the contractor's contact with a client is in 
person, by telephone, or through another medium.
	(e)  Educational materials relating to the federal earned 
income tax credit required under Subsection (b)(1) may include 
Internal Revenue Service publications relating to that credit or 
information relating to that credit prepared by the comptroller 
under Section 403.025.
	SECTION 2.  Section 531.193, Government Code, as added by 
this Act, applies only to a contract that is entered into or renewed 
on or after the effective date of this Act.
	SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.