HBA-KDB H.B. 1723 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1723 By: Seaman Land & Resource Management 7/20/2001 Enrolled BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, there are local workforce development boards (LWDBs) across the state to provide workforce development programs specific to the needs of each community. State block grants for employment, training, and child care are administered to LWDBs by the Texas Workforce Commission. However, there is concern that more populated urban areas might be receiving greater attention and funding than less populated rural areas. There is a potential need to create a more expansive, long-term solution for the adequate provision of workforce services to these rural communities. House Bill 1723 authorizes the commissioners court of a county with a population of 50,000 or less to establish a county employment development board for the purpose of supplementing existing workforce development programs being administered by LWDBs. 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 1723 amends the Local Government Code to authorize the commissioners court of a rural county to establish a county employment development board (board) (Sec. 386.002). The bill sets forth provisions for the membership and operations of the board and the terms of board members (Sec. 386.021). The bill provides for the board's powers and duties and authorizes the board to adopt rules to accomplish its goals (Sec. 386.022). Provisions relating to open meetings and public information apply to the board (Sec. 386.023). The bill authorizes a county to impose a sales and use tax (tax) at the rate of one-eighth of one percent in the county for the benefit of a program for rural economic assistance if a majority of the votes cast at an election held for that purpose favor the imposition of the tax. The bill prohibits a county from imposing the tax if the adoption of the tax would result in a combined tax rate of all local sales and use taxes of more than two percent in any location in the county (Sec. 386.041). The bill sets forth provisions for the election for the tax (Sec. 386.042). The bill provides the County Sales and Use Tax Act governs the imposition, computation, administration, collection, and remittance of the tax (Sec. 386.043). The bill sets forth provisions for the adoption, abolition, effective date, and imposition of the tax and use of the revenue from the tax ( Secs. 386.044 - 386.047). For the benefit of a program for rural economic assistance, the bill authorizes the commissioners court to impose a new property tax in the county at a rate not to exceed three cents on the $100 valuation of taxable property, increase the property tax rate in the county by an amount not to exceed three cents on the $100 valuation of taxable property, or use revenue collected from a county property tax imposed under another law, in an amount not to exceed three cents on the $100 valuation of property taxed (Sec. 386.061). The bill sets forth provisions for the use of revenue from the property tax (386.062). H.B. 1723 amends law to provide that proceeds of a sales and use tax may be used to provide funding to a county employment development board (Art. 5190.6, V.T.C.S.). EFFECTIVE DATE Vetoed.