HBA-MPA H.B. 1366 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1366
By: Burnam
County Affairs
3/23/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

There is concern that the housing needs of low-income Texans are not being
adequately addressed. With decreases in federal spending on affordable
housing, there may be a need for a reliable funding source for the housing
trust fund.  H.B. 1366 places a $1 affordable housing fee on real property
and personal property documents filed with the county clerk, and sets forth
requirements for collecting and depositing the fee at the county level. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 118.011, Local Government Code, by adding
Subsection (e), to require  a county clerk to collect an affordable housing
fee of $1 for each document filed for recording for which a fee is charged
under Section 118.012 (Personal Property Records Filing), or 118.013 (Real
Property Records Filing).  Requires the clerk to collect the fee at the
time the document is filed and provides that the fee is in addition to any
other fee charged. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 118, Local Government Code, by
adding Section 118.0115, as follows: 

Sec. 118.0115. AFFORDABLE HOUSING FEE.  (a) Requires the county clerk to
remit to the county treasurer, no later than the10th day after the last day
of each month, the affordable housing fees collected during that month.   

(b) Requires the county treasurer to remit to the comptroller, no later
than the 15th day after the last day of each quarter, 90 cents of each
dollar collected as an affordable housing fee under Section 118.011, Local
Government Code, for that quarter.  Requires the county clerk to retain ten
cents of each dollar collected as an affordable housing fee to reimburse
county expenses associated with collecting and remitting the fee.   

(c) Requires the comptroller to deposit amounts received under Subsection
(b) to the housing trust fund established under Section 2306.201 (Housing
Trust Fund), Government Code, for use according to the purposes of that
fund. 

SECTION 3. Amends Section 2306.201(b), Government Code, to make conforming
and nonsubstantive changes. 

SECTION 4.  Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 5.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 6.  Emergency clause.