1-1     By:  Wentworth, Duncan                                S.B. No. 1099

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 10, 1997; March 13, 1997, read

 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on Finance; April 22, 1997,

 1-4     reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the

 1-5     following vote:  Yeas 11, Nays 0; April 22, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6     COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1099               By:  Wentworth

 1-7                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-8                                   AN ACT

 1-9     relating to salaries and fees for services of certain prosecutors.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Chapter 46, Government Code, is amended to read

1-12     as follows:

1-13                    CHAPTER 46.  PROFESSIONAL PROSECUTORS

1-14           Sec. 46.001.  DEFINITIONS [DEFINITION].  In this chapter:

1-15                 (1)  "County prosecutor" means a constitutional county

1-16     attorney who does not have general felony jurisdiction and who is

1-17     not a state prosecutor.

1-18                 (2)  "Benchmark salary" means the salary that is

1-19     provided for a district judge in the General Appropriations Act.

1-20                 (3)  "State prosecutor"[, "prosecutor"] means a

1-21     district attorney, criminal district attorney, or county attorney

1-22     performing the duties of district attorney who serves in a district

1-23     or county listed in Section 46.002.

1-24           Sec. 46.002.  Prosecutors Subject to Chapter.  This chapter

1-25     applies to all county prosecutors and [only] to the following state

1-26     prosecutors:

1-27                 (1)  the district attorneys for the 2nd, 8th, 9th,

1-28     12th, 18th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 26th, 27th, 29th, 34th, 35th,

1-29     36th, 38th, 43rd, 47th, 49th, 51st, 52nd, 53rd, 63rd, 64th, 66th,

1-30     69th, 70th, 76th, 81st, 84th, 85th, 90th, 97th, 105th, 106th,

1-31     110th, 118th, 119th, 123rd, 142nd, 145th, 156th, 159th, 173rd,

1-32     196th, 198th, 216th, 220th, 229th, 235th, 253rd, 259th, 266th,

1-33     268th, 271st, 278th, 286th, 329th, 349th, and 355th judicial

1-34     districts;

1-35                 (2)  the criminal district attorneys for the counties

1-36     of Anderson, Austin, Bastrop, Bexar, Bowie, Brazoria, Caldwell,

1-37     Calhoun, Cass, Deaf Smith, Denton, Eastland, Galveston, Gregg,

1-38     Harrison, Hays, Hidalgo, Jasper, Jefferson, Kaufman, Lubbock,

1-39     McLennan, Navarro, Panola, Polk, Randall, Rockwall, San Jacinto,

1-40     Smith, Tarrant, Taylor, Tyler, Upshur, Van Zandt, Victoria, Walker,

1-41     Waller, Wichita, Wood, and Yoakum; and

1-42                 (3)  the county attorneys performing the duties of

1-43     district attorneys in the counties of Andrews, Callahan, Cameron,

1-44     Castro, Ellis, Falls, Fannin, Freestone, Grayson, Lamar, Lamb,

1-45     Lampasas, Lee, Limestone, Marion, Milam, Morris, Ochiltree, Orange,

1-46     Red River, Robertson, Rusk, Terry, Webb, and Willacy.

1-47           Sec. 46.003.  COMPENSATION OF STATE PROSECUTORS.  (a)  Each

1-48     state prosecutor is entitled to receive from the state compensation

1-49     equal to the compensation that is provided for a district judge in

1-50     the General Appropriations Act.

1-51           (b)  A commissioners court may supplement the state

1-52     prosecutor's state salary but may not pay the state prosecutor an

1-53     amount less than the compensation it pays its highest paid district

1-54     judge.

1-55           Sec. 46.0031.  COMPENSATION OF COUNTY PROSECUTORS.

1-56     (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b), each county having a

1-57     county prosecutor is entitled to receive from the state

1-58     supplemental compensation for use by the county prosecutor equal to

1-59     the amount that is one-half of the benchmark salary divided by the

1-60     total number of counties served by the prosecutor with general

1-61     felony responsibility in that jurisdiction, unless that formula

1-62     would result in an amount less than one-sixth of the benchmark

1-63     salary, in which case the county prosecutor is entitled to receive

1-64     one-sixth of the benchmark salary.  A county with no county

 2-1     prosecutor is not entitled to receive the salary supplement funds

 2-2     provided by this section.

 2-3           (b)  If more than one prosecutor with general felony

 2-4     responsibility serves a county, that county is entitled to receive

 2-5     one-sixth of the benchmark salary from the state as supplemental

 2-6     compensation for use by the county prosecutor.

 2-7           (c)  If the receipt of compensation under this section causes

 2-8     the gross salary of a county prosecutor to exceed the benchmark

 2-9     salary, or if any amount of the compensation is waived by the

2-10     prosecutor, the excess or waived amount shall be used for expenses

2-11     of the county prosecutor's office.

2-12           Sec. 46.004.  Expenses.  (a)  Each state prosecutor is

2-13     entitled to receive not less than $22,500 a year from the state to

2-14     be used by the prosecutor to help defray the salaries and expenses

2-15     of the office.  That money may not be used to supplement the

2-16     prosecutor's salary.

2-17           (b)  Each state prosecutor shall submit annually to the

2-18     comptroller of public accounts a sworn account showing how this

2-19     money was spent during the year.

2-20           Sec. 46.005.  Limitations on Law Practice.  (a)  A state

2-21     prosecutor may not engage in the private practice of law but may

2-22     complete all civil cases that are not in conflict with the interest

2-23     of any of the counties of the district in which the prosecutor

2-24     serves and that are pending in court before the prosecutor takes

2-25     office.

2-26           (b)  A state prosecutor may not accept a fee from an attorney

2-27     to whom the prosecutor has referred a case.

2-28           (c)  This section applies to a county prosecutor and any [an]

2-29     assistant of a prosecutor if, from all state and county funds

2-30     received, the county prosecutor or assistant receives a salary that

2-31     is [equal to or] more than 80 percent of the benchmark salary [paid

2-32     by the state to the prosecutor under this chapter].

2-33           (d)  This section does not apply to a county prosecutor who

2-34     files with the county auditor an annual written waiver of the

2-35     amount of compensation that exceeds 80 percent of the benchmark

2-36     salary.  An amount waived under this subsection shall be used for

2-37     expenses of the county prosecutor's office.

2-38           (e)  This section does not apply to a county prosecutor who,

2-39     before September 1, 1997, was paid in excess of the benchmark

2-40     salary by the county in which the prosecutor serves.

2-41           Sec. 46.006.  Purpose; Duty of County.  (a)  It is the

2-42     purpose of this chapter to increase the effectiveness of law

2-43     enforcement in this state and to increase the funds available for

2-44     use in prosecution at both the felony and misdemeanor levels.

2-45           (b)  The commissioners court in each county that has a

2-46     prosecutor subject to this chapter may not reduce the county [shall

2-47     provide the funds necessary to carry out the purpose of this

2-48     chapter and shall continue to provide] funds provided for the

2-49     salary or office of the prosecutor as a result [in an amount that

2-50     is equal to or greater than the amount] of the funds provided by

2-51     this chapter [for the office by the county on August 27, 1979.

2-52     This subsection does not apply to local supplementation to the

2-53     salary of the prosecutor].

2-54           Sec. 46.007.  Ineligibility for Certain Other State Funds.

2-55     Subchapter C, Chapter 41, does not apply to a county if the county

2-56     is served by a state prosecutor who serves in a district or county

2-57     [prosecuting attorney] listed in Section 46.002.

2-58           SECTION 2.  Subsection (a), Section 152.032, Local Government

2-59     Code, is amended to read as follows:

2-60           (a)  The amount of the compensation and allowances of a

2-61     county auditor may not exceed the amount of the compensation and

2-62     allowances received from all county sources by the highest paid

2-63     elected county officer, other than a judge of a statutory county

2-64     court, whose salary and allowances are set by the commissioners

2-65     court.

2-66           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

2-67           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-68     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-69     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 3-1     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 3-2     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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