Funds Consolidation: Limits on New General Revenue Accounts, Special Funds and Dedications of Revenue

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.