Honorable Ryan Guillen, Chair, House Committee on Culture, Recreation & Tourism
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB3649 by Smith (relating to a lifetime hunting license for certain nonresidents; authorizing a fee.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB3649, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted: 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 Gain from Lifetime Lic Endow Acct 544
Probable Revenue (Loss) from Game,Fish,Water Safety Ac 9
2016
$1,440,000
($453,600)
2017
$0
($453,600)
2018
$0
($453,600)
2019
$0
($453,600)
2020
$0
($453,600)
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend portions of the Parks and Wildlife Code to allow a non-resident landowner to purchase a lifetime hunting license if the landowner has a first-degree relative who has owned land in Texas for at least 15 years. Lifetime hunting licenses are currently only available to Texas residents.
The bill would take effect September 1, 2015.
Methodology
This analysis was provided by the Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) and is based on the current costs of a lifetime hunting license (one-time fee of $1,000) and a non-resident hunting license ($315 per year). It is also based on information provided by TPWD estimating that 5.8 percent of non-resident hunters own land in Texas and have a qualifying relative. For this analysis, the percentage provided by TPWD was applied to the reported number of non-resident general hunting licenses issued in 2014 (24,834 licenses) to estimate that 1,440 non-resident hunters owned property in Texas in 2014.
Currently, fees for lifetime hunting licenses are deposited to the credit of the Lifetime License Endowment Account No. 544 and annual hunting license fees are deposited to the credit of the Game, Fish, and Water Safety Account No. 9.
The table above reflects a scenario of a one-time revenue gain to the Lifetime License Endowment Account No. 544 based on an assumption that all eligible non-resident property owners who hunt would purchase a lifetime hunting license in fiscal year 2016 instead of paying approximately one-third of the cost each year. The revenue gain from 1,440 estimated non-resident landowner hunters purchasing a lifetime hunting license would total $1,440,000. This would also result in a corresponding decrease of $453,600 in revenue deposited to the Game, Fish, and Water Safety Account No. 9 under current law for nonresident hunting licenses. This analysis assumes the decrease to the Game, Fish, and Water Safety Account No. 9 would continue in each subsequent year, and would total $2,268,000 from 2016 to 2020.
Based on information provided by TPWD, implementing the provisions of the bill would result in minimal administrative costs which are not reflected in the table above.
Local Government Impact
No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 802 Parks and Wildlife Department