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Summary: HB 3812 would create a new fund for non-attainment counties to put emissions-related inspections fees into. This legislation is designed to fix the issues with the current funds of the Low Income Vehicle Repair Assistance, Retrofit, and Accelerated Vehicle Retirement Program (LIRAP) that are being used to certify the Texas budget and are not being returned to the counties as they were designated for.
Analysis: HB 3812 is designed to fix a problem but it does not address that problem. It creates a new fund for Texans’ money to go into and perhaps be used for the designated purpose without any guarantee that it would. If the legislature feels that it is important that the LIRAP funds be returned to the counties, it can use other sources of revenue to certify the budget, not LIRAP. While this legislation may be designed to allow counties to migrate to this new program, there is no guarantee counties would be able to leave the current LIRAP that is the designated recipient of a portion of the emissions fees. One possible outcome of this legislation is the unintended double collection of fees to fund both LIRAP and the new program. We oppose this legislation.