State Budget

The Texas Legislature balances and certifies the state budget by diverting dedicated funds from their intended purposes. This impacts many county programs and local budgets. This budgetary trick forces higher property taxes to fund the affected county programs.

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Key Points

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts must certify that there are sufficient funds available in the General Appropriations Act to cover approved spending by the Legislature before the bill is sent to the governor for approval.
In complying with this provision of the constitution, various techniques are used to certify and balance the state’s budget.
One technique is using non-appropriated, dedicated general funds (GR-dedicated) for certification.
There are more than 200 GR-dedicated accounts. Each account is statutorily dedicated for a particular purpose.
GR-dedicated accounts are a method of finance that includes accounts within the General Revenue Fund that are dedicated as a result of legislative action.
GR-dedicated funds are appropriated in nearly all the articles in the General Appropriations Act. By far the largest allocation is to Article III (Education).

Source: A State Budget Guide for County Officials, Texas Association of Counties

	Current State Budget compared with the Legislative Appropriation Requests (LAR’s) for 2020-21 Nov. 11, 2018The latest state budget document showing both the Legislative Appropriation Requests (LAR’s) baseline amounts and any exceptional item requests for the various programs that directly impact counties for the upcoming fiscal years (2020-21)
	Conference Committee Report (CCR) on SB 1 for Fiscal Years 2018 -19 Revised Aug. 7, 2017Fiscal Impact on County State Funded Programs. Governor's veto items included.
	Comptroller Releases State Revenue Estimate for 85th Legislature Jan. 13, 2017The day before the 85th Legislature convened, Comptroller Glenn Hegar released the latest Biennial Revenue Estimate (BRE), which shows that the state is projected to have $104.9 billion available for general purpose spending in the 2018-19 biennium...
	State Budget Highlights: Impact on Counties Jan. 27, 2017The release of both proposed budgets (SB 1 in the Senate and HB 1 in the House) marks the beginning of the budget process for both chambers...
	Report Details How Dedicated Funds Help Balance State Budget County Issues, Oct. 23, 2013As part of what has been a regular practice over the past two decades, General Revenue-Dedicated Funds were used to certify the state budget for the coming fiscal years, according to a report released by the Comptroller’s office...