79(R) HB 848 Introduced version

TO:	Honorable Ray Allen, Chair, House Committee on County Affairs

FROM:	John S. O'Brien, Deputy Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	HB848 by Herrero (Relating to the optional county fee for the county road and bridge fund.), As Introduced

The bill would amend the Transportation Code by doubling the additional fee a commissioners' court of a county may impose on a vehicle registered in the county. The bill would take effect immediately upon receiving a two-thirds majority vote in both houses; otherwise, it would take effect September 1, 2005.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) indicates that there would be a small cost involved in implementing provisions of the bill, but it is anticipated that the agency can absorb those costs within existing resources. Under current law, the agency receives 3 percent of the optional county road and bridge fees that are imposed. It is assumed that any additional revenues generated from implementing the provisions of the bill would be used for transportation expenditures.

The revenue gain would vary by county depending on what, if any, amount is currently imposed as an additional fee for vehicle registration. According to TxDOT, there are approximately 19 million vehicles registered in the State of Texas and that approximately 18.5 million vehicle owners pay the optional county road and bridge fee at a rate of $10 each and an estimated 424,568 pay the fee at a rate of $5. Assuming each of the 217 counties that currently impose the maximum of $10 were to increase the fee to the proposed maximum of $20 and that the 22 counties that impose a $5 fee were to increase it to $10, the counties would experience an aggragate increase of $185.3 million. (There are 15 counties that do not impose an extra county road and bridge fee.)

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 79TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 18, 2005