Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral |
Summary: HB 2962 requires a state agency within the executive branch to use credit or charge cards for all purchases and travel expenses unless the Comptroller's Office provides a reason for using a different form of payment that benefits the state. State agency employees are prohibited from using a personal card. Lastly, the Governor's Office and institutions of higher education are exempted from the provisions in HB 2962.
Analysis: HB 2962 indicates the potential for credit and charge cards to provide greater efficiency and more transparency; however, there is not sufficient research and data to show that the cards will produce the intended results. Also, the Legislative Budget Board indicates that the Health and Human Services Commission anticipates needing ten additional FTEs which seems more than necessary since most of the card related responsibilities could be absorbed by current staff.
The potential for cost savings is real but ambiguous without hard data demonstrating what the savings would be. Furthermore, there is a significant potential for the credit cards to be used for personal purchases. In the absence of clear evidence supporting or opposing the case for this legislation, we remain neutral.