BILL ANALYSIS S.B. 579 By: Wentworth Intergovernmental Relations 3-23-95 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND Section 158.038(b), Local Government Code, provides for Civil Service Systems in sheriffs' officers in counties with populations of 2,000,000 or less. The law provides due process job security for career employees while providing adequate flexibility to sheriffs to fulfill electoral mandates. One of the important powers left to sheriffs is the right to install or to remove personal appointees as heads of the principal divisions and functional areas within sheriffs' offices. Currently, the law limits sheriffs to 10 employee positions for exempt appointments. Due to the growth of sheriffs' offices, however, 10 exempt positions no longer adequately provide personally appointed heads to each principal division and functional area within the sheriffs' offices. PURPOSE As proposed, S.B. 579 provides for a percentage of the staff of the agency or 10 positions, whichever is greater, to be potentially exempt from civil service restrictions. 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 158.038(b), Local Government Code, as follows: (b) Prohibits a sheriff of a county with a population of 2,000,000 or less from designating as exempt from the civil service system a number of positions that exceeds the greater of 1.5 percent of the total number of full-time employees of the department, or 10. SECTION 2. Emergency clause. Effective date: 90 days after adjournment.