BILL ANALYSIS S.B. 540 By: Zaffirini (Danburg) 4-19-95 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND Currently, public employees who are pregnant can take leave from work under several state and federal provisions when they no longer can perform their jobs. However, there is no provision for law enforcement officers who are only partially physically restricted due to pregnancy. These employees may be disqualified by their physician from continuing work in their regular job, but could work in another, less strenuous, work assignment. Once a physician certifies that a law enforcement officer can no longer perform patrol functions, that same officer could continue to work in a desk or dispatch assignment. There have been incidents in which these temporary work assignments were available, but the employer refused to allow the employee to keep working. PURPOSE As proposed, S.B. 540 requires a municipality or county to make a reasonable effort to accommodate the employment needs of pregnant municipal and county employees. 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 Chapter 180, Local Government Code, by adding Section 180.004, as follows: Sec. 180.004. PREGNANT EMPLOYEES. (a) Requires a municipality or a county to make a reasonable effort to accommodate an employee of the municipality or county determined by a physician to be partially physically by a pregnancy. (b) Requires the municipality or county to offer to assign an employee to a temporary work assignment, if available, that the employee is capable of performing, if the employee's physician certifies that the employee is unable to perform a permanent work assignment. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1995. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION SB 540 was considered by the County Affairs Committee in a public hearing on 4/19/95. Representative Danburg opened and closed. SB 540 was reported favorably with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by the record vote of 5 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, 4 absent.