Texas Health and Safety Code - HEALTH & SAFETY § 771.071. Emergency Service Fee

(a) Except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, the commission may impose a 9-1-1 emergency service fee on each local exchange access line or equivalent local exchange access line, including lines of customers in an area served by an emergency communication district participating in the applicable regional plan. If a business service user provides residential facilities, each line that terminates at a residential unit, and that is a communication link equivalent to a residential local exchange access line, shall be charged the 9-1-1 emergency service fee. The fee may not be imposed on a line to coin-operated public telephone equipment or to public telephone equipment operated by coin or by card reader. The fee may also not be imposed on any line that the commission excluded from the definition of a local exchange access line or an equivalent local exchange access line pursuant to Section 771.063.

(b) The amount of the fee may not exceed 50 cents a month for each line.

(c) The commission may set the fee in a different amount in each regional planning commission region based on the cost of providing 9-1-1 service to each region.

(d) The fee does not apply to an emergency communication district not participating in the applicable regional plan. A customer in an area served by an emergency communication district not participating in the regional plan may not be charged a fee under this section. Money collected under this section may not be allocated to an emergency communication district not participating in the applicable regional plan.

(e) A service provider shall collect the fees imposed on its customers under this section. Not later than the 30th day after the last day of the month in which the fees are collected, the service provider shall deliver the fees to the comptroller. The comptroller shall deposit money from the fees to the credit of the 9-1-1 services fee account in the general revenue fund. The comptroller may establish alternative dates for payment of fees under this section, provided that the required payment date be no earlier than the 30th day after the last day of the reporting period in which the fees are collected.

(f) The commission shall distribute money appropriated to the commission from the 9-1-1 services fee fund to regional planning commissions for use in providing 9-1-1 services as provided by contracts executed under Section 771.078. The regional planning commissions shall distribute the money to public agencies for use in providing those services.

(g) Repealed by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1045, § 18, eff. June 18, 1999.