By Hirschi                                            H.B. No. 1685
       74R4923 PEP-F
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to filling vacancies in the positions of certain
    1-3  firefighters and police officers.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Section 143.085(a), Local Government Code, is
    1-6  amended to read as follows:
    1-7        (a)  If a municipality's governing body adopts an ordinance
    1-8  that vacates or abolishes a fire or police department position, the
    1-9  fire fighter or police officer who holds that position shall be
   1-10  demoted to the position immediately below the vacated or abolished
   1-11  position.  If one or more positions of equal rank are vacated or
   1-12  abolished, the fire fighters or police officers who have the least
   1-13  seniority in a position shall be demoted to the position
   1-14  immediately below the vacated or abolished position.  If a fire
   1-15  fighter or police officer is demoted under this subsection without
   1-16  charges being filed against the person for violation of civil
   1-17  service rules, the fire fighter or police officer shall be placed
   1-18  on a position reinstatement list in order of seniority.  If the
   1-19  vacated or abolished position is filled or re-created <within one
   1-20  year after the date it was vacated or abolished>, the position must
   1-21  be filled from the reinstatement list.  Appointments from the
   1-22  reinstatement list shall be made in order of seniority.  A person
   1-23  who is not on the list may not be appointed to the position <during
   1-24  the one-year period> until the reinstatement list is exhausted.
    2-1        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
    2-2        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
    2-3  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
    2-4  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
    2-5  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
    2-6  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.