HBA-GUM C.S.H.B. 2429 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2429
By: King, Tracy
Ways & Means
4/28/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, vendors doing business with the State of Texas cannot
choose their method of payment by the comptroller of public accounts
(comptroller).  Unless a vendor does not have an account with a financial
institution, they must be paid through the direct deposit system.  This has
caused problems for some small businesses that do not have accounting
systems sophisticated enough for this method of payment.  C.S.H.B. 2429
allows such a vendor to choose either an electronic transfer or a warrant
as the method of payment by the comptroller. 

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. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Sections 403.016(c) and (h), Government Code, as follows:

(c)  Includes payments to vendors who choose to receive payment through the
electronic funds transfer system rather than by warrant among the payments
for which the comptroller of public accounts (comptroller) is required to
use the electronic funds transfer system. 

(h)  Includes a person's notification to the comptroller of the person's
option to receive the payment by warrant among the cases in which the
comptroller is required to pay by issue of a warrant. Makes a conforming
change. 

SECTION 2.  Repealer:  Section 403.016(k) (providing that the requirement
of the comptroller to issue a warrant to pay a person who notifies the
comptroller that receiving the payment by electronic funds transfer would
be more costly and be impractical than receiving the payment by a warrant,
does not apply to a vendor), Government Code. 

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 2429 modifies the original to conform to Legislative Council
format. 

The substitute modifies the caption of the original to read "relating to
the method used by the comptroller of public accounts to pay vendors and
other persons," rather than "relating to the method of payment for vendors
by the comptroller of public accounts." 

The substitute combines SECTIONS 1 (Section 403.016(c), Government Code)
and 2 (Section 403.016(h), Government Code) of the original into SECTION 1
of the substitute.  In SECTION 1, the substitute clarifies proposed text
requiring the comptroller to use the electronic funds transfer system to
make payments to vendors who choose to receive payment through the
electronic funds transfer system rather than by warrant, and makes
conforming changes. 

The substitute adds a new SECTION 2 to repeal Section 403.016(k),
Government Code, which provides that the requirement of the comptroller to
issue a warrant to pay a person who notifies the comptroller that receiving
the payment by electronic funds transfer would be more costly and be
impractical than receiving the payment by a warrant, does not apply to a
vendor.