88R3753 JCG-D
By: Johnson of Dallas H.B. No. 3031
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a grant program for members of the Texas military forces
experiencing financial hardship caused by a tax withholding error.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 437, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 437.233 to read as follows:
Sec. 437.233. GRANT PROGRAM FOR FINANCIAL HARDSHIP CAUSED
BY TAX WITHHOLDING ERROR. (a) The department shall establish and
administer a grant program to assist members of the Texas military
forces who experience financial hardship caused by a federal tax
withholding error in connection with the compensation paid to
members who served in Operation Lone Star in 2021 or 2022.
(b) A member of the Texas military forces is eligible for a
grant under this section if:
(1) the department erroneously withheld an
insufficient amount from the member's compensation for service in
Operation Lone Star in 2021 or 2022 to cover the federal income tax
imposed on that compensation;
(2) the member certifies in the grant application that
the member did not have actual knowledge of the withholding error;
and
(3) the member demonstrates that the withholding error
caused the member financial hardship.
(c) The department:
(1) may establish additional eligibility criteria for
grant applicants; and
(2) shall establish:
(A) grant application procedures;
(B) guidelines relating to grant amounts that
ensure that a grant to a member does not exceed the difference
between the amount the member owed in federal income taxes on
compensation the member received for service in Operation Lone Star
in 2021 or 2022 and the amount withheld for federal income taxes;
and
(C) criteria for evaluating grant applications.
(d) Not later than December 1, 2024, the department shall
report to the governor and the legislature on the results and
performance of the grant program.
(e) This section expires January 1, 2025.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2023.