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House Bill 2866 |
House Author: Bailey et al. |
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Effective: 9-1-05 |
Senate Sponsor: Whitmire |
House Bill 2866 amends the Local Government Code to authorize certain public employers in a municipality with a population of 1.5 million or more to meet and confer with a recognized employee association provided that the association does not advocate an illegal strike by public employees. The bill allows a public employer that chooses to meet and confer to recognize an association as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for all covered employees other than department heads, firefighters, and police officers whose employment is covered by other provisions, provided the association submits a petition for recognition signed by a majority of the municipal employees it seeks to represent. The bill allows the municipality to (1) grant recognition; (2) defer granting it and order a municipal election on the issue regarding whether a public employer may meet and confer; or (3) order a certification election to determine whether the association represents a majority of the covered employees. The bill also requires the public employer's chief executive officer to select one or more persons to represent the public employer as its sole and exclusive bargaining agent. House Bill 2866 provides that a ratified agreement between a public employer and an association preempts any conflicting statute, executive order, local ordinance, civil service provision, or rule, and that it may not interfere with the right of a member of a bargaining unit to pursue certain allegations of discrimination. The bill allows voters in the municipality to call for the repeal of an agreement. If the governing body of the municipality does not repeal the agreement, it is required to call a municipal election to determine whether to repeal the agreement.