Honorable Four Price, Chair, House Committee on Public Health
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2619 by Giddings (Relating to a grant program administered by the governor's criminal justice division to implement programs, practices, and services to maintain peace officers' mental health.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB2619, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted: an impact of $0 through the biennium ending August 31, 2019.
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
2018
$0
2019
$0
2020
$0
2021
$0
2022
$0
Fiscal Year
Probable Savings/(Cost) from Federal Funds 555
2018
($250,000)
2019
($500,000)
2020
($500,000)
2021
($500,000)
2022
($500,000)
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend Government Code relating to a grant program administered by the governor's criminal justice division to implement practices to maintain peace officers' mental health.
The bill would require the Criminal Justice Division (CJD) in the Trusteed Programs Within the Office of the Governor to establish and administer a grant program for law enforcement agencies to apply for grants to implement certain programs, practices, and services to address direct and indirect emotional harm suffered by police officers. The bill would require CJD to evaluate and compare the practices implemented by grant recipients to determine the most successful. The bill allows CJD to contract with a third party to conduct the evaluations. The bill requires CJD to biennially report the results and performance of the grant program.
The bill would take effect September 1, 2017.
Methodology
The Office of the Governor anticipates the proposed program expenses will be eligible for federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding administered by CJD. However, as VOCA funds have specific usage restrictions, this analysis assumes the program would be structured to only provide programs and services for VOCA-eligible victims and activities under the provisions of the bill.
Once the grant program is established, the Office of the Governor anticipates using $250,000 of Federal Funds in fiscal year 2018 for grants to law enforcement agencies in a pilot program to evaluate most successful practices. The amount available for awards will increase to $500,000 each subsequent fiscal year.
This analysis assumes the CJD will use existing resources in fiscal year 2018 to absorb the cost of initial program design, implementation, and contracting with a third party to conduct programmatic evidence-based evaluations. In addition, this analysis assumes administrative duties and responsibilities associated with implementing the provisions of the bill could be accomplished utilizing existing resources in the Trusteed Programs Within the Office of the Governor.
Local Government Impact
According to the Texas Association of Counties, the fiscal impact to counties to implement the provisions of the bill is not anticipated to be significant.
Source Agencies:
300 Trusteed Programs Within the Office of the Governor, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts