BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 2157

By: Metcalf

State Affairs

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

According to the State Auditor's Office, the State of Texas Position Classification Plan is designed to ensure that state employees are classified appropriately and consistently while helping to promote salary parity for similar positions across state agencies. State law currently does not provide agencies with enough flexibility to accommodate cases when qualified employees apply for a new position with the same job classification code within their agency but cannot be offered the posted salary. H.B. 2157 seeks to provide greater flexibility to state agencies to adjust the salary paid to these employees.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 2157 amends the Government Code to authorize the annual salary rate for an executive or judicial branch state employee immediately after a transfer to be set at any rate in the appropriate salary group if the employee, as follows:

· transfers within a state agency between two classified positions that are allocated to the same salary group and have the same position title as listed in the General Appropriations Act;

· transfers to a position for which the employment opening is publicly listed with the Texas Workforce Commission;

· voluntarily applies for the position to which the employee transfers; and

· agrees to accept the position to which the employee transfers at the publicly listed salary.

The bill's provisions apply only to a transfer of position that takes effect on or after September 1, 2023.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.