By Maxey                                         H.B. No. 633

      75R2719 GCH-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to retirement of members of the employee class of the

 1-3     Employees Retirement System of Texas; providing for appropriation

 1-4     reductions.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 814, Government Code, is

 1-7     amended by adding Section 814.1041 to read as follows:

 1-8           Sec. 814.1041.  RETIREMENT INCENTIVE FOR EMPLOYEE CLASS.  (a)

 1-9     A member of the employee class may retire under this section if the

1-10     member has at least a minimum amount of service credit required by

1-11     Section 814.104 and is not more than five years younger than the

1-12     minimum age required under that section for eligibility for service

1-13     retirement with that amount of service credit.

1-14           (b)  A member of the employee class who has at least the

1-15     minimum amount and type of service credit required for service

1-16     retirement with an annuity computed under Section 814.107 may

1-17     retire under this section and receive an annuity under that section

1-18     that is not actuarially reduced, if the member is not more than

1-19     five years younger than the minimum age required under that section

1-20     to avoid actuarial reduction of the annuity.

1-21           (c)  A member eligible to retire under this section is one

1-22     who:

1-23                 (1)  meets minimum age and service requirements under

1-24     Section 814.104 or 814.107 except as provided by Subsection (a) or

 2-1     (b) of this section, as applicable;

 2-2                 (2)  applies for service retirement;

 2-3                 (3)  holds a position included in the employee class on

 2-4     the date the application is filed; and

 2-5                 (4)  designates an effective date of retirement that is

 2-6     after August 31, 1997, but before September 1, 1999, and is the

 2-7     later of September 30, 1997, or the earliest date that the member's

 2-8     retirement may become effective.

 2-9           (d)  The retirement system shall report to the comptroller

2-10     the name of each person who retires under this section, the

2-11     effective date of the person's retirement, the entity by which the

2-12     person was employed immediately before retirement, and the amount

2-13     of compensation used in computing the person's annuity.  The

2-14     retirement system shall submit reports under this subsection at the

2-15     times and in the manner the comptroller provides.

2-16           (e)  Except as provided by Subsection (f), the comptroller

2-17     shall reduce the total amount of legislative appropriations to the

2-18     entity by which the retiring member was employed immediately before

2-19     retirement by the amount of the reported compensation multiplied by

2-20     the number of months remaining in the fiscal biennium.

2-21           (f)  The comptroller may not reduce appropriations under

2-22     Subsection (e) if the total legislative appropriations to the

2-23     entity for the fiscal year in which the employee retires, or for

2-24     any subsequent fiscal year in the biennium, are less than $1

2-25     million.

2-26           (g)  This section expires September 1, 1999.

2-27           SECTION 2.  Section 812.202, Government Code, is amended to

 3-1     read as follows:

 3-2           Sec. 812.202.  BENEFITS NOT AFFECTED.  [(a)]  The payment of

 3-3     benefits to a retiree is not affected by:

 3-4                 (1)  the retiree's taking a position included in a

 3-5     class of membership other than a class from which the person

 3-6     retired; or

 3-7                 (2)  the retiree's serving the state as an independent

 3-8     contractor, except as provided by Section 812.203(a).

 3-9           [(b)  The payment of benefits to a retiree for service

3-10     credited in the employee class of membership is not affected by the

3-11     retiree's taking, for nine months or less within any fiscal year, a

3-12     position included in the employee class.]

3-13           SECTION 3.  Section 812.203(a), Government Code, is amended

3-14     to read as follows:

3-15           (a)  The retirement system shall suspend annuity payments to

3-16     a retiree for service that was credited to the retiree in the

3-17     employee class for any period during which [if] the retiree holds a

3-18     position included in the employee class or serves the state as an

3-19     independent contractor [for more than nine months in any one fiscal

3-20     year:]

3-21                 [(1)  until the retiree no longer holds a position

3-22     included in the employee class; or]

3-23                 [(2)  until the next fiscal year, whichever comes

3-24     first].

3-25           SECTION 4.  Chapter 2252, Government Code, is amended by

3-26     adding Subchapter Z to read as follows:

3-27                   SUBCHAPTER Z.  MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

 4-1           Sec. 2252.901.  SERVICE CONSULTANT PROHIBITION.  (a)  A state

 4-2     agency may not contract with a retiree of the Employees Retirement

 4-3     System of Texas to provide personal services before the first

 4-4     anniversary of the retiree's effective date of retirement.

 4-5           (b)  In this section, "state agency" means a board,

 4-6     commission, department, or other unit of state government and

 4-7     includes an "institution of higher education," as that term is

 4-8     defined by Section 61.003, Education Code.

 4-9           SECTION 5.  Section 812.203(b), Government Code, is repealed.

4-10           SECTION 6.  Section 2252.901, Government Code, as added by

4-11     this Act, applies only to services under a contract entered into on

4-12     or after the effective date of this Act.

4-13           SECTION 7.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

4-14           SECTION 8.  The importance of this legislation and the

4-15     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

4-16     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

4-17     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

4-18     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.