Funds Consolidation: Limits on New General Revenue Accounts, Special Funds and Dedications of Revenue
Issued: June 26, 2007
Updated: July 14, 2023 – View Changes
Details
Contacts
For questions, please contact Samuel Miller at samuel.miller@cpa.texas.gov or (512) 936-5870 or your designated appropriation control officer.
Overview
Applicable to
State agencies.
Summary
House Bill 3461, 88th Legislature, Regular Session, limits the number of new General Revenue (GR) accounts, special funds and dedications of revenue.
Unless specifically exempted by HB 3461, funds or accounts created or recreated and revenues dedicated or rededicated by the Legislature during the regular session are abolished and will not become effective Sept. 1, 2023. See Section 2 of HB 3461.
HB 3461 became effective June 13, 2023, and supersedes any other legislation that authorized or created a special fund or account, or dedicated or rededicated revenue for a particular purpose. Funds, accounts, and revenue dedications approved by the 88th Legislature, Regular Session, but abolished by HB 3461, will not become effective.
Exemptions
HB 3461 does not apply to:
- Institutions of higher education, as defined by Education Code, Section 61.003.
- Statutory dedications, funds or accounts enacted before the 88th Legislature convened, or designed to comply with constitutional or federal requirements.
- Dedications, funds or accounts previously exempted from former Texas Government Code, Section 403.094(h), increases in fees or other revenue covered under Section 3 or newly authorized use of or name change to a dedicated fund, account or revenue covered under Section 8 of HB 3461.
In addition, funds and accounts created by approval of a constitutional amendment, pledged for payment of a bond, requiring separate accounting by federal law, dedicating revenue from license plates or established in trust are exempted.
See Funds, Accounts and Revenue Dedications Exempted by the 88th Legislature for a list of funds, accounts and revenue dedications that were exempted and will be created.
Procedure for agencies
Revenues not exempted that otherwise would have been deposited to a special fund or account authorized by the 88th Legislature should be deposited to unappropriated GR (0001). If your agency received an appropriation of newly dedicated revenue or from a new fund or account in the General Appropriations Act, but the dedication, fund or account was abolished, the appropriation will be established in GR (0001).
Conversely, if your agency received an appropriation of revenue in GR (0001) that was dedicated to a new fund or account by the funds consolidation bill, the appropriation will be established in the new fund or account.
Per section 12 of HB 3461, the Legislature can reduce the amount of revenues exceeding appropriations in a dedicated account to be made available for general governmental purposes on Aug. 31, 2025. Section 12 amends Texas Government Code, Section 403.095 (b), (d) and (f) and becomes effective Sept. 1, 2023.
Funds, Accounts and Revenue Dedications Exempted by the 88th Legislature
The following funds, accounts and revenue dedications were exempted in HB 3461 and will be created:
| Administering Agency | HB 3461 Section |
Related Bill | Effective Date | Fund or Account Name and Number/Revenue Information |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts | 10 | HB 5 | 1/1/2024 | Dedicates program administration fees to GR Account 0193 - Foundation School |
| 909 Texas Broadband Development Office | 7 | HB 9/HJR 125 | 1/1/2024 | New Broadband Infrastructure Fund pending voter approval 11/07/2023 |
| 405 Department of Public Safety | 10 | HB 842 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates to Fund 0365 - Mobility, new driver's license fee for reinstatement of license after offense of driving with expired license |
| 537 Department of State Health Services | 9 | HB 1315 | 9/1/2023 | New Open Burn Pit Registry Fund |
| 320 Texas Workforce Commission | 19 | HB 1755 | 9/1/2023 | New GR Account - Lone Star Workforce of the Future |
| 503 Texas Medical Board | 10 | HB 1998 | 9/1/2023 | $15 surcharge dedicated to GR Account 5147 - Texas Physician Health Program. Dedicates to GR Account 5105 - Public Assurance a surcharge for databank administration |
| 808 Texas Historical Commission | 9 | HB 2719 | 9/1/2023 | New Texas Historical Commission Retail Operations outside of the state's treasury |
| 802 Texas Parks and Wildlife | 10 | HB 2755 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates boater education exam fees currently deposited to Fund 0001 to GR Account 0009 - Game, Fish, and Water Safety |
| 405 Department of Public Safety, 608 Department of Motor Vehicles, 582 Texas Commission on Environmental Quality | 10 | HB 3297 | 1/1/2025 | New inspection program replacement fee paid at registration. Dedicated to Fund 0151 - Clean Air, 0365 - Mobility, and Fund 0001 |
| 551 Texas Department of Agriculture | 19 | HB 3323 | 6/11/2023 | New GR Account - Food System Security Planning |
| 902 Comptroller of Public Accounts | 10 | HB 3345 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates 1% of mixed beverage and mixed beverage gross receipts taxes to GR Account - 5010 Sexual Assault Program |
| 301 Office of the Governor - Fiscal | 5 | HB 3447 | 9/1/2023 | New Space Exploration and Aeronautics Research Trust outside of the state's treasury |
| 902 Comptroller of Public Accounts | 10 | HB 3727, SB 627, SB 1420 | 6/12/23, 6/18/23, 6/2/2023 | Dedicates half of hotel occupancy tax collected from the projects to GR Account 5003 - Hotel Occupancy Tax for Economic Development |
| 601 Department of Transportation | 10 | HB 4015 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates rail safety fees currently deposited to Fund 0001 to Fund 0006 - State Highway |
| 802 Texas Parks and Wildlife | 10 | HB 4018 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates new carbon sequestration credits to GR Account 0009 - Game, Fish, and Water Safety and GR Account 0064 - State Parks |
| 582 Texas Commission on Environmental Quality | 9 | HB 4256 | 6/13/2023 | New Leaking Water Wells Fund |
| 302 Office of the Attorney General | 10 | HB 4635 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates attorney fees and other similar costs to GR Account 5006 - Attorney General Law Enforcement and certain forfeiture amounts to GR Account 0469 - Compensation to Victims of Crime |
| 300 Office of the Governor - Fiscal | 19 | HB 5174 | 6/9/2023 | New GR Account - Texas Semiconductor Innovation |
| 902 Comptroller of Public Accounts | 7 | HJR 3/HB 1595 | 1/1/2024 | Dedicates the first $100 million, or as calculated, interest/investment earnings from Economic Stabilization Fund 0599 deposited to new Texas University Fund (previously NRUF) pending voter approval 11/07/23 |
| 580 Water Development Board | 4, 7, 19 | SB 28/SJR 75 | 1/1/2024 | New Texas Water Fund, New Water Supply for Texas, and GR Account - Statewide Public Awareness pending voter approval 11/07/2023 |
| 608 Department of Motor Vehicles | 10 | SB 505 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates new electric vehicle registration fee to Fund 0006 - State Highway |
| 902 Comptroller of Public Accounts | 10 | SB 658 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates revenue from abandoned local Interest on Lawyers' Trust Accounts (IOLTA) to Fund 0573 - Judicial Fund to the Supreme Court basic civil legal services program |
| 802 Texas Parks and Wildlife | 10 | SB 1032 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates new fees for applications for approval of oyster bed location restorations to GR Account 0009 - Game, Fish, and Water Safety |
| 808 Texas Historical Commission | 5 | SB 1332 | 9/1/2023 | New Historic Infrastructure Sustainability Trust outside of the state's treasury |
| 809 State Preservation Board | 9 | SB 1333 | 9/1/2023 | New Texas State Buildings Preservation Endowment outside of the state's treasury |
| 601 Texas Department of Transportation | 19 | SB 1499 | 9/1/2023 | New GR Account - Port Access |
| 802 Texas Parks and Wildlife | 7 | SB 1648/SJR 74 | 1/1/2024 | New Centennial Parks Conservation Trust outside of the state's treasury pending voter approval 11/07/2023 |
| 808 Texas Historical Commission | 9 | SB 2057 | 5/23/2023 | New Iwo Jima Monument and Museum outside of the state's treasury |
| 405 Department of Public Safety, 608 Department of Motor Vehicles, 582 Texas Commission on Environmental Quality | 10 | SB 2102 | 9/1/2023 | Dedicates new fee for initial three-year inspection for rental motor vehicles to Fund 0151 - Clean Air and Fund 0365 - Mobility |
| 473 Public Utility Commission | 7, 9 | SB 2627/ SJR 93 | 11/7/2023 | New Texas Energy Fund and Loan Recipients Escrow Account pending voter approval 11/07/2023 |
Items NOT Exempted
Unless specifically exempted by HB 3461, funds or accounts created or recreated and revenues dedicated or rededicated by the Legislature during the regular session are abolished. The following were not exempted in HB 3461, will not be created, and any revenue will be deposited to undedicated GR (0001):
- HB 387 – State Guard Uniform and Insignia Fund was not exempted in the funds consolidation bill, and will not be created in the treasury.
- HB 2416 – GR Account Gulf Cost Protection was vetoed by the Governor.
- HB 1688 – GR Account Reclamation and Restoration was not exempted in the funds consolidation bill, and will not be created.
- HB 3466 – Community Collaborative Fund was not exempted in the funds consolidation bill, and will not be created.
- HB 3858 – GR Account Peace Officer Mental health was not exempted in the funds consolidation bill, and will not be created.
- SB 224 – The $1 fee increase as dedicated by the bill, was not exempted for dedication in the funds consolidation bill.
If you have questions about this fiscal policy or funds consolidation, please contact Sam Miller at (512) 936-5870 or samuel.miller@cpa.texas.gov.
| Date | Updates |
|---|---|
| 07/14/2023 | Updated to reflect changes by the 88th Legislature |
| 07/16/2021 | Updated to reflect changes by the 87th Legislature |
| 07/19/2019 | Updated to reflect changes by the 86th Legislature |