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Rules committee backs repeal of fiscal-impact requirement for certain health benefit plan legislation (HB1080)
Summary
The House Rules Committee recommended HB1080, which would repeal a statutory requirement for multiple fiscal-impact statements tied to proposed legislation affecting health benefit plans and certain state entities, citing unintended coverage of higher education institutions.
Representative John Eubanks, chair of the House Committee on Rules and representative for District 46, presented House Bill 10 80 and described its intent: “This bill is an act to repeal a requirement for a fiscal impact statement for any proposed legislation imposing a new or increased cost obligation for health benefit plans or on an entity of the state.”
Eubanks said the Bureau of Legislative Research proposed the change after a consultant flagged the Employee Benefits Division (EBD) filing requirement as having an unintended consequence of including higher education institutions. He told the committee the prior language required “eight different fiscal impacts for each bill and each amendment to that bill.”
Eubanks said the bureau concluded the requirement belongs in joint rules rather than statute because “one legislature can't bind another legislature.” The Senate had already approved the joint rules in committee, Eubanks said, and the joint rules provision for fiscal-impact treatment of the EBD program would be adopted with each new legislature.
There were no public speakers on HB 10 80. The committee voted to give HB 10 80 a do-pass recommendation and sent the bill to the floor for further consideration.
