Honorable Cecil Bell, Chair, House Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB2814 by Plesa (Relating to providing children committed to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department and prisoners serving a sentence in a county jail with certain documents on discharge or release; authorizing a fee.), As Introduced
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB2814, As Introduced: a positive impact of $5,770 through the biennium ending August 31, 2027.
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
2026
($7,451)
2027
$13,221
2028
$12,781
2029
$12,415
2030
$12,041
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
Fiscal Year
Probable Savings/(Cost) from General Revenue Fund 1
Probable Revenue Gain/(Loss) from General Revenue Fund 1
Change in Number of State Employees from FY 2023
2026
($260,451)
$253,000
2.0
2027
($239,779)
$253,000
2.0
2028
($240,219)
$253,000
2.0
2029
($240,585)
$253,000
2.0
2030
($240,959)
$253,000
2.0
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would require the Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD) to submit a request for identification on the intake of a child to enable the child to have a personal identification certificate at discharge.
The bill would require TJJD to submit a request for a birth certificate and copy of a social security card on the intake of a child to enable the child to have the applicable document at discharge.
The bill would require the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to provide a personal identification certificate when requested by a county sheriff if a prisoner of a county jail would not have a valid license or certificate at discharge. The request would be made on the intake of a prisoner to enable the prisoner to have the certificate at discharge.
The bill would require a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Texas Commission on Jail Standards (TCJS), DPS, and the vital statistics unit of the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to establish responsibilities with respect to issuance of personal identification certificates issued to prisoners in county jails. DSHS would be required to electronically verify the birth record of a prisoner whose name and any other personal information is provided by a county sheriff seeking a personal identification certificate when a prisoner is discharged from the county jail. DSHS would be required to electronically report the recorded filing information to DPS to validate the identity of a prisoner.
The bill would require the sheriff or commissioners court of the county to reimburse DPS or DSHS for actual costs incurred by the agencies in issuing a prisoner with a personal identification certificate or electronic verification of birth records. The sheriff may charge a prisoner for costs incurred or for any additional fees required by Section 521.421 of the Transportation Code.
The bill would require the county sheriff to determine and submit a request for a prisoner upon intake if the prisoner does not have a certified copy of a birth certificate or a copy of a social security card and submit to the appropriate authority on behalf of the prisoner to ensure the sheriff can provide the applicable document when the prisoner is released.
The bill would set the fee of a personal identification certificate for prisoners affected by the bill at $5.
Methodology
According to DSHS, the agency would require additional full-equivalent Customer Services Representative V positions (2.0 FTEs) to support and process increased demand for birth certificate requests. This analysis estimates salaries, benefits, and other FTE related costs for these positions to total $195,216 from the General Revenue in fiscal year 2026 and $239,779 from the General Revenue Fund in fiscal year 2027. The lower cost in fiscal year 2026 is attributable to an assumed start date for these positions later in the first fiscal year.
It is assumed the sheriff or commissioners court of the county would reimburse DSHS for the actual costs incurred for processing birth certificate requests. At a cost of $22 per birth certificate, DSHS estimates a gain of $253,000 per year to the General Revenue Fund based on an estimated 11,500 requests.
It is assumed that any costs incurred by the DPS, TJJD, and the Department of Criminal Justice could be absorbed using existing resources.
According to TCJS, the agency cannot determine the exact fiscal impact on the state as it is unknown how much time, work, and resources this would require from TCJS. The agency indicates that requiring TCJS, DSHS, and DPS to adopt an MOU that establishes the respective responsibilities would likely require an extensive amount of time, cross-agency coordination, and a staff member to work on the memorandum and then roll out the responsibilities/process to county jails.
Technology
According to DSHS, the agency would require modification to the Texas Electronic Vital Events Registrar (TxEVER) application. Costs are estimated to total $61,000 from the General Revenue Fund in fiscal year 2026. Costs for using existing Health and Human Services (HHSC) IT staff to generate a report with verified birth record information as per DPS specifications through the TxEVER application is estimated to total $4,235 from the General Revenue Fund in fiscal year 2026.
Local Government Impact
There could be a cost to counties associated with providing prisoners with state-issued identification and reimbursing DPS or DSHS for the actual costs incurred by those agencies in providing that identification, as would be required by the bill. Some portion of that cost could be offset by revenue raised by counties that elect to charge a prisoner for the actual costs incurred or the associated fees.
Source Agencies:
405 Department of Public Safety, 409 Commission on Jail Standards, 537 State Health Services, Department of, 644 Juvenile Justice Department, 696 Department of Criminal Justice