HBA-CBW H.B. 1886 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1886
By: Coleman
Ways & Means
3/15/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law allows a hotel occupancy tax to be collected by certain
municipalities with tax rate ceilings set according to population. At
present, an "eligible municipality" is defined as a municipality with a
population of at least 1,200,000 and that has adopted by ordinance a
capital improvement plan for convention and exposition facilities for the
municipality.  There are no longer any cities in the state that fit the
definition of an  "eligible municipality."  However, language relating to
such municipalities still remains in the law, leading to some confusion.
House Bill 1886 removes the definition of "eligible municipality" and
modifies the definition of  "eligible central municipality." 

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. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1886 amends the Tax Code relating to the collection of municipal
hotel occupancy taxes to remove the definition of  "eligible municipality,"
and to modify the  definition of  "eligible central municipality" to mean a
municipality with a population of more than 440,000 but less than 1.5
million located in a county with a population of one million or more and
that adopted a capital improvement plan for the expansion of an existing
convention center facility (Sec. 351.001).  The bill provides that the
portion of the tax revenue allocated for advertising and promotional
purposes by a municipality with a population of more than 1.6 million may
not be less than 23 percent, rather than may not exceed 75 percent, except
that the allocation is subject to and may not impair the authority of the
municipality to pledge all or any portion of that tax revenue to the
payment of bonds (Sec. 351.103). 

The bill removes provisions relating to an  "eligible municipality."

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.