HBA-JRA C.S.H.B. 2380 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2380 By: Burnam Ways & Means 4/27/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, an overpayment of property taxes is held by the county in the county depository until the taxpayer requests a refund of the overpayment. If the refund is not paid within 60 days of the request, the county is required to pay interest to the claimant. Up until the 60th day, or until the refund is made, interest earned on the funds belongs to the county. The authority to deposit these funds in a depository that yields a higher interest rate than the county depository could benefit the county, as well as the entities for which the county collects taxes. C.S.H.B. 2380 authorizes the county tax assessor-collector of a county with a population of one million or more who collects taxes on behalf of the county and one or more other taxing units to deposit collected taxes to the credit of an interest-bearing account in the county depository; with the county's investment officer for investment in accordance with Chapter 2256 (Public Funds Investment), Government Code, and the approved investment policy of the county; or to the credit of a segregated account with the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company. 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 Chapter 31, Tax Code, by adding Section 31.105, as follows: Sec. 31.105. DEPOSIT OF TAXES COLLECTED BY CERTAIN COUNTY ASSESSORCOLLECTORS. (a) Provides that this section applies only to the county assessor-collector of a county with a population of one million or more who collects taxes on behalf of the county and one or more other taxing units. (b) Authorizes the county assessor-collector, with the consent of the commissioners court of the county, to deposit, on behalf of the county and the other taxing units for which the assessor-collector collects taxes, all or a designated part of the taxes collected for the county and the other taxing units to the credit of an interest-bearing account in the county depository; with the county's investment officer for investment in accordance with Chapter 2256 (Public Funds Investment), Government Code, and the approved investment policy of the county; or to the credit of a segregated account with the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, notwithstanding Sections 113.021(a) and (b) (relating to money being deposited into a special fund with the county treasury), and 116.113(b) (relating to the immediate deposit of funds in the county depository), Local Government Code, Section 31.10(c) (requiring the monthly deposit of collected taxes) of this code, and any other law to the contrary. (c) Requires the county assessor-collector to keep interest earned on tax revenues deposited under this section in a separate account in the books and records of the assessorcollector. (d) Requires the county assessor-collector to distribute the interest earned on deposits made under this section to the county and taxing units in proportion to the tax revenues distributed to the county and each of those taxing units. (e) Requires earned interest attributable to the amount refunded to a taxpayer under Section 31.11 (Refunds of Overpayments or Erroneous Payments) on or before the 60th day after the date the liability for the refund arises to be retained by the county assessorcollector for distribution under this section. (f) Provides that Section 113.006 (Liability of County Tax Assessor-Collector), Local Government Code, applies to the deposit of tax revenue under this section in the same manner as that section applies to the deposit of tax revenue in the county depository. SECTION 2.Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute modifies the original in the caption to make a conforming change. The substitute modifies the original in SECTION 1 to change the section title of proposed Section 31.105 to "Deposit of Taxes Collected by Certain County Assessor-Collectors" from "Deposit of Taxes Collected in Certain Counties with Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company." In Subsection (a), the substitute provides that this section applies only to the county assessor-collector of a county with a population of one million or more who collects taxes on behalf of the county and one or more other taxing units, rather than only to a county with a population of one million or more. In Subsection (b), the substitute authorizes the county assessor-collector to deposit collected taxes to the credit of an interest-bearing account in the county depository; with the county's investment officer for investment in accordance with Chapter 2256 (Public Funds Investment), Government Code, and the approved investment policy of the county; or to the credit of a segregated account with the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, rather than only to the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company. The substitute deletes the provision that establishes that county tax revenues deposited with the Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company under this section are county funds subject to the control of the commissioners court. The substitute adds new Subsections (c)-(e) relating to the disposition of interest earned on revenues deposited under this section. The substitute redesignates proposed Subsection (c) of the original to Subsection (f).