BILL ANALYSIS



C.S.S.B. 496
By: Madla (Longoria)
5-3-95
Committee Report (Substituted)


BACKGROUND

S.B. 140, which passed in the 73rd Legislature, created a county
employee sick leave pool program for county employees, but did not
include the provision to allow vacation leave to be transferred as
well.

PURPOSE

As proposed, S.B. 496 authorizes certain county employees to
contribute accrued vacation leave time to a county sick leave pool.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

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

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 157.072, Local Government Code, as
follows:

     Sec. 157.072.  AUTHORITY TO ESTABLISH PROGRAM FOR SICK LEAVE
     POOL. (a)  Created from existing text.
     
     (b)  Authorizes the commissioners court of a county with a
       population of one million or more to allow an employee to
       voluntarily transfer vacation leave time earned by the
       employee to a county sick leave pool.
SECTION 2. Amends Section 157.074(b), Local Government Code, to
authorize an employee to transfer accrued vacation leave time in a
county operating under Section 157.072(b).

SECTION 3. Effective date:  September 1, 1995.

SECTION 4. Emergency clause.



COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The committee substitute lowers the population bracket to one
million. The original bill had a population bracket of 1.18
million. 

SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION

SB 496 was considered by the County Affairs Committee in a public
hearing on 5/3/95. The following people testified for SB 496: Mark
Mendez, representing the Tarrant County Commissioners Court; and
Mary J. Vargas-McCabe, representing herself. The committee
considered a complete committee substitute. The committee
substitute was adopted without objection. SB 496 was reported
favorably, as substituted, with the recommendation that it do pass
and be printed and be sent to the Committee on Local and Consent
Calendars, by the record vote of 5 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, 4 absent.