Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HJR126 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R12273 JJT-D
2	2	By: Laubenberg H.J.R. No. 126
3	3
4	4
5	5	A JOINT RESOLUTION
6	6	proposing a constitutional amendment to transfer certain surplus
7	7	state revenues to a sales tax relief fund to support state sales tax
8	8	holidays at the discretion of the comptroller.
9	9	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subsection (g), Section 49-g, Article III, Texas
11	11	Constitution, is amended to read as follows:
12	12	(g) During each fiscal biennium, the amount in the economic
13	13	stabilization fund may not exceed an amount equal to 10 percent of
14	14	the total amount, excluding investment income, interest income, and
15	15	amounts borrowed from special funds, deposited in general revenue
16	16	during the preceding biennium. Amounts that would be deposited to
17	17	the economic stabilization fund as provided by Subsections (b),
18	18	(c), (d), and (e) of this section but for the limitation prescribed
19	19	by this subsection shall be transferred to a special fund in the
20	20	state treasury to be known as the sales tax relief fund. The sales
21	21	tax relief fund may be used only for a state sales tax relief period
22	22	as provided by this subsection and rules of the comptroller. If the
23	23	comptroller determines that the balance of the sales tax relief
24	24	fund will support a state sales tax relief period of at least two
25	25	days, the comptroller may declare a period during which state sales
26	26	tax rates are reduced by at least one-eighth of one cent for a
27	27	period the comptroller determines to be long enough so that the
28	28	difference between state sales tax receipts during the relief
29	29	period and the state sales tax receipts that would otherwise have
30	30	been collected during that period will equal not more than the
31	31	balance of the sales tax relief fund. The comptroller shall
32	32	transfer to the general revenue fund from the sales tax relief fund
33	33	an amount equal to the amount of revenue the comptroller estimates
34	34	was forgone as a result of the state sales tax relief period at any
35	35	time during that state fiscal biennium that the comptroller
36	36	determines appropriate. If the comptroller determines that the
37	37	balance of the sales tax relief fund will not support a state sales
38	38	tax relief period of at least two days, the comptroller may not
39	39	declare a relief period and shall retain the entire balance of the
40	40	sales tax relief fund in the fund for use only for a future state
41	41	sales tax relief period. The comptroller shall credit to the sales
42	42	tax relief fund interest on and other earnings of the fund. The
43	43	comptroller may recover from the sales tax relief fund expenses
44	44	incurred in administering this subsection without the necessity of
45	45	an appropriation.
46	46	SECTION 2. The following temporary provision is added to
47	47	the Texas Constitution:
48	48	TEMPORARY PROVISION. This temporary provision expires
49	49	December 31, 2012. The changes made by the amendment to Section
50	50	49-g, Article III, of this constitution apply beginning with any
51	51	unencumbered positive balance of general revenues on August 31,
52	52	2011.
53	53	SECTION 3. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
54	54	submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 3, 2009.
55	55	The ballot shall be printed to provide for voting for or against the
56	56	proposition: "The constitutional amendment to transfer certain
57	57	surplus state revenues to a sales tax relief fund to support state
58	58	sales tax holidays at the discretion of the comptroller."