TITLE: CONCERNING THE COLORADO HORSE DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, AND, IN CONNECTION THEREWITH, ALLOWING FOR THE IMPOSITION OF AN ASSESSMENT ON HORSE BRAND INSPECTIONS.

STATE FISCAL IMPACT SUMMARY	FY 1998/99	FY 1999/2000
State Revenues General Fund Brand Inspection Cash Fund	$0 to $15,000	$0 to $15,000
State Expenditures General Fund Brand inspection Cash Fund	Minimal*	Minimal*
FTE Position Change	None	None
Local Government Impact — None

* Any expenditure increase to the Department of Agriculture would be absorbed by the department, no additional appropriation would be necessary.

This reengrossed bill changes the Colorado Horse Development Board to the Colorado Horse Development Authority and vests the powers of the authority in its board of directors. The authority is a body corporate and a political subdivision of the state, however the authority is not an agency of state government. The bill stipulates that each board member who is in office as of September 1, 1998 shall comprise the original board of directors of the authority. Upon the expiration of the term of a board member, the Commissioner of Agriculture shall appoint a successor to a term of three years.

The bill authorizes the State Board of Stock Inspection Commissioners, under the Department of Agriculture, to collect an assessment on horses for which a brand inspection fee is collected. The authority shall determine the assessment in an amount not to exceed three dollars per horse. No person shall be assessed more than $100 in a calendar year. The bill allows any person to purchase a Colorado Horse Development Authority Assessment Card for $100 as evidence that the assessment has been collected.

The bill requires the assessment to be directly deposited by the inspectors into an account specified by the board. The bill authorizes the State Board of Stock Inspection Commissioners to bill the authority a fee of not more than 10 percent of the assessment. The bill abolishes the Horse Development Fund as of June 30, 1998, and directs all moneys in the fund to revert to the General Fund.

The bill requires the operators of all stockyards and livestock auction markets to deduct the assessment from the proceeds of the sale owed by them to the respective owners of horses, and to promptly pay all assessments to the State Board of Stock Inspection Commissioners. The bill specifies the procedures and conditions for any person who has paid an assessment to request a refund. The bill stipulates that a fraudulent claim for a refund is considered a theft and shall be punished per Section 18-4-401, C.R.S. The bill will become effective upon the signature of the Governor.

The provisions of this reengrossed bill will affect state cash fund revenue and expenditures. Therefore, this bill is assessed as having a state fiscal impact.

The Department of Agriculture estimates that operators and inspectors will annually collect a total assessment of $150,000 ($3 x 50,000 horses) starting in FY 1998-99. That amount will be collected by the State Board of Stock Inspection Commissioners and deposited directly to the Horse Development Authority account. Therefore the amount of the assessment would not be considered as state revenue. Of that amount, up to $15,000 ($150,000 x 10 percent) will be billed by the state commissioners and deposited to the Brand Inspection Cash Fund.

This bill abolishes the Horse Development Fund under the Horse Development Authority and directs all moneys in the fund to revert to the General Fund. House Bill 95-1206 appropriated $100,000 from the fund to the Horse Development Board. This fiscal note assumes that any remaining balance of the fund will be fully expended or encumbered by June 30, 1998. Therefore, no moneys will be transferred from the Horse Development Fund to the General Fund.

Section 20 of Article X of the Colorado Constitution, limits the maximum annual percentage increase in state fiscal year spending. Once total state revenue from all sources that are not specifically excluded from fiscal year spending exceeds these limits for the fiscal year, the state constitution requires that the excess shall be refunded in the next fiscal year unless voters approve a revenue change as an offset. Based on the current Legislative Council economic forecast, it is projected that the state will be in a TABOR refund position during each of the next five fiscal years. Any increase or decrease in state revenue from changes in fees, fines, licenses, or other revenue sources will affect the amount of the state revenue to be refunded.

This bill requires the State Board of Stock Inspection Commissioners, under the Department of Agriculture, to collect a horse assessment from the operators of stockyards and livestock auction markets. The department’s expenditures to support the provisions of this bill are based upon the following assumptions:

• that state stock inspectors will collect the assessment during the course of conducting current duties in these facilities;

• that the state stock inspectors will not administer the operator’s collection of the horse assessment, assessment refunds, or the Horse Development Authority Assessment Card; and

• that the state stock inspectors will provide an accounting of all assessments collected by the department and fees retained by the department.

As a result, this fiscal note would imply that the department will incur additional administrative costs to support the provisions of this bill. However, the department anticipates to be able to absorb those costs within existing resources.

This fiscal note would imply that no new state appropriation or spending authority is required for FY 1998-99 to implement the provisions of this bill.