Honorable Ryan Guillen, Chair, House Committee on Culture, Recreation & Tourism
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB1229 by Anderson, Rodney (Relating to a waiver of certain state park fees for United States veterans.), As Introduced
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB1229, As Introduced: an impact of $0 through the biennium ending August 31, 2017.
The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.
Fiscal Year
Probable Net Positive/(Negative) Impact to General Revenue Related Funds
2016
$0
2017
$0
2018
$0
2019
$0
2020
$0
Fiscal Year
Probable Revenue (Loss) from State Parks Acct 64
2016
($1,207,000)
2017
($1,207,000)
2018
($1,207,000)
2019
($1,207,000)
2020
($1,207,000)
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend portions of the Parks and Wildlife Code relating to certain state park fees for US military veterans. The bill would allow any veteran of the US armed services to apply for a state Parklands Passport, which waives the entrance fee at all state parks. Under current law, only veterans with certain disability designations are eligible for state Parklands Passports, in addition to individuals who meet certain other requirements not related to military service.
The bill would take effect immediately upon receiving a two-thirds majority vote in both houses; otherwise, the bill would take effect September 1, 2015.
Methodology
Based on information provided by the Comptroller of Public Accounts, approximately 18.6 million Texas residents are not eligible for a Parklands Passport under current law according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Of this group, 1.0 million, or 5.3 percent, would become eligible for Parklands Passports under the provisions of the bill. The projected revenue loss reflected in the table above represents a 5.3 percent decrease from 2014 revenue collections of $22.8 million from state park entrance fees beginning in fiscal year 2016 and continuing through fiscal year 2020.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 802 Parks and Wildlife Department