LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD. The Legislative Budget Board was established by the Texas legislature in 1949 to prepare recommendations for appropriations for all state government agencies. A ten-member policy-making board oversees the agency and includes the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the House, who serve as chairman and vice chairman, respectively. Two senators are appointed by the lieutenant governor, and two representatives are appointed by the speaker. Also, the chairmen of the Senate Finance and State Affairs committees and the heads of the House Appropriations and Ways and Means committees serve as members of the board. The board appoints the budget director, who prepares the budgetary requests of all state spending agencies as well as the appropriation bills for them. At each regular and special session of the legislature the director submits the legislative budget estimates, the results of extensive staff analyses of each agency's budget requests. The Legislative Budget Board maintains a program evaluation section that conducts comprehensive reviews of state agency programs and operations and compiles performance reports for the legislature. The reports help to monitor the effectiveness and efficiency of each state agency and aid in budgetary decisions. The board is also responsible for determining constitutional spending ceilings. Staff in the Legislative Budget Office provide support to different legislative appropriations committees, furnish information on revenue and expenditure trends, prepare fiscal notes identifying costs or revenue impact of various legislation, and issue reports about school-finance laws and proposals. In 1991 the Legislative Budget Board had a staff of more than seventy and appropriations totaling more than $2.8 million.
