HBA-NRS H.B. 2858 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2858
By: Junell
Appropriations
4/8/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The Civil Practice and Remedies Code limits the amount to $5,000 or 5
percent by which the comptroller of public accounts (comptroller) may
reduce the total appropriations made by the legislature to a state agency
in order for the comptroller to pay a settlement of judgment resulting from
a lawsuit. However, the General Appropriations Act (Act) provides that the
payment of settlements and judgments may not exceed $250,000 or 10 percent
of a state agency's appropriations from funds appropriated to the state
agency. House Bill 2858 conforms the Civil Practice and Remedies Code with
the General Appropriations Act to prohibit an amount paid by a state agency
for a particular claim from exceeding a limitation imposed by the Act.  

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 2858 amends the Civil Practice and Remedies Code to authorize a
state agency rather than the comptroller of public accounts (Act) to pay a
claim only from money appropriated to that agency by the General
Appropriations Act. The bill prohibits the amount paid by a state agency
for a particular claim from exceeding a limitation imposed by the Act,
rather than exceeding $5,000 on the amount that may be paid by the agency
on a particular claim. The bill prohibits the total of all amounts for a
particular claim paid by a state agency from money appropriated to the
agency for any fiscal year from exceeding a limitation imposed by the Act,
rather than five percent of the appropriation made to that agency for that
fiscal year. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.