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LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 87TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION
April 28, 2021
TO:
Honorable James White, Chair, House Committee on Homeland Security & Public Safety
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2844 by Goodwin (Relating to certain persons licensed by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.), As Introduced
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB2844, As Introduced: a negative impact of ($4,364,512) through the biennium ending August 31, 2023.
The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.
General Revenue-Related Funds, Five- Year Impact:
Fiscal Year
Probable Net Positive/(Negative) Impact to General Revenue Related Funds
2022
($2,211,851)
2023
($2,152,661)
2024
($2,152,661)
2025
($2,152,661)
2026
($2,152,661)
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
Fiscal Year
Probable Savings/(Cost) from General Revenue Fund 1
Change in Number of State Employees from FY 2021
2022
($2,211,851)
15.0
2023
($2,152,661)
15.0
2024
($2,152,661)
15.0
2025
($2,152,661)
15.0
2026
($2,152,661)
15.0
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend Section 1701.452(b) of the Occupations Code to require the employee termination or separation report, if the license holder resigned or retired, to include information regarding any pending investigation known to internal affairs, supervisors, or management that was not completed due to the officer's resignation or retirement.
The bill would require the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) to establish grounds under which the commission shall suspend or revoke a peace officer license on a determination by the commission that the license holder's continued performance of duties as a peace officer constitutes a threat to the public welfare.
Methodology
According to TCOLE, an expansion of authority would necessitate a proportional expansion of resources. This would include investigative resources on the front end and their support staff, as well as legal resources on the back end to alleviate a bottleneck of cases awaiting decision and action, and to eliminate reliance on OAG resources for SOAH hearings.
TCOLE indicates that the provisions of the bill would require 3.0 Program Specialists, 5.0 Investigator VIs, 1.0 Administrative Assistant III, 1.0 Human Resources Specialist II, 3.0 Attorney IIs, 1.0 Legal Assistant II, and 1.0 Legal Secretary II. The total cost for hiring 15.0 additional FTEs is estimated to be $1,570,915 in each fiscal year, which includes salary and benefits. Additionally, TCOLE estimates $413,800 per fiscal year for salary parity for 20.0 peace officers to match the salary of newly hired investigators.
TCOLE estimates an additional $74,500 per fiscal year for travel expenses, and an average of $43,350 per fiscal year for rent for additional space.
This analysis assumes implementing the provisions of the bill would not result in a significant impact on state correctional populations or on the demand for state correctional resources.
Technology
Based upon the information provided by TCOLE, the estimated cost for the purchase of hardware and software of computing equipment for 15.0 FTEs is $65,753 in fiscal year 2022. Ongoing software security and maintenance is estimated to be $23,952 in each fiscal year thereafter.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.