1-1           By:  Ogden, Lucio                                S.B. No. 584

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed February 12, 1997; February 18, 1997,

 1-3     read first time and referred to Committee on Finance;

 1-4     March 4, 1997, reported adversely, with favorable Committee

 1-5     Substitute by the following vote:  Yeas 11, Nays 0; March 4, 1997,

 1-6     sent to printer.)

 1-7     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 584                 By:  Moncrief

 1-8                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-9                                   AN ACT

1-10     relating to spending by state agencies for certain employee

1-11     benefits and membership dues.

1-12           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-13           SECTION 1.  Subtitle B, Title 6, Government Code, is amended

1-14     by adding Chapters 667 and 668 to read as follows:

1-15                    CHAPTER 667.  TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES

1-16           Sec. 667.001.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:

1-17                 (1)  "State agency" and "state employee" have the

1-18     meanings assigned by Section 572.002.

1-19                 (2)  "Training" means instruction, teaching, or other

1-20     education received by a state employee that is not normally

1-21     received by other state employees and that is designed to enhance

1-22     the ability of the employee to perform the employee's job.  The

1-23     term does not include training required either by state or federal

1-24     law or that is determined necessary by the agency and offered to

1-25     all employees of the agency performing similar jobs.

1-26           Sec. 667.002.  AGENCY POLICY.  Before a state agency spends

1-27     any money on training for a state employee, the state agency must

1-28     adopt a policy governing the training of employees.  The policy

1-29     must require training to relate to an employee's duties following

1-30     the training.

1-31           Sec. 667.003.  RESTRICTIONS.  (a)  If a state employee

1-32     receives training that is paid for by a state agency and during the

1-33     training period the employee does not perform the employee's

1-34     regular duties for three or more months as a result of the

1-35     training, a policy adopted under Section 667.002 must include a

1-36     requirement that the employee:

1-37                 (1)  work for the agency for at least one month for

1-38     each month of the training period; or

1-39                 (2)  pay the agency for all the costs associated with

1-40     the training, including the amount of the employee's salary, if

1-41     any, paid during the training period.

1-42           (b)  If a state employee is to receive training which is to

1-43     be paid for by a state agency and during which the employee will

1-44     not be performing the employee's regular duties for three months or

1-45     more, the agency shall require the employee to agree in writing,

1-46     before the training begins, to meet the requirements described in

1-47     Subsection (a).

1-48           (c)  By an order adopted in a public meeting, the governing

1-49     body of a state agency may waive the requirements described in

1-50     Subsection (a) and release an employee from the obligation to meet

1-51     those requirements if the governing body finds that such action is

1-52     in the best interest of the agency or is warranted due to an

1-53     extreme personal hardship of the employee.

1-54           Sec. 667.004.  LIABILITY.  If the employee does not provide

1-55     the services required in accordance with Section 667.003(a)(1),

1-56     provides those services for less than the required term, or fails

1-57     to make payments required in accordance with Section 667.003(a)(2)

1-58     and the employee is not released from the obligation to provide

1-59     such services or to make such payments as provided by Section

1-60     667.003(c), the employee is liable to the agency for any costs

1-61     described in Section 667.003(a)(2) and for the agency's reasonable

1-62     expenses incurred in obtaining payment, including reasonable

1-63     attorney's fees.

1-64           Sec. 667.005.  REPORT.  Each state agency shall prepare and

 2-1     submit an annual report to the Legislative Budget Board detailing

 2-2     the amount of money expended by the agency in the preceding fiscal

 2-3     year for training under this chapter.

 2-4                        CHAPTER 668.  MEMBERSHIP DUES

 2-5           Sec. 668.001.  DEFINITION.  In this chapter, "state agency"

 2-6     has the meaning assigned by Section 572.002.

 2-7           Sec. 668.002.  REPORTING OF MEMBERSHIP DUES.  A state agency

 2-8     that pays membership dues to an organization that pays all or part

 2-9     of the salary of a person required to register under Chapter 305

2-10     shall notify the Legislative Budget Board, the Senate Finance

2-11     Committee, and the House Appropriations Committee of the payment.

2-12     The notification shall, at a minimum, include the name of the

2-13     organization, the amount of the memberships dues, and the person or

2-14     persons hired by the organization required to register under

2-15     Chapter 305.

2-16           SECTION 2.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-17           (b)  Not later than September 15, 1997, each state agency

2-18     shall adopt a policy relating to the payment of training expenses

2-19     of state employees as required under Chapter 667, Government Code,

2-20     as added by this Act.

2-21           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-22     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-23     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-24     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-25     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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