By Gallegos S.B. No. 1282
75R6796 GJH-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to collective bargaining agreements for police officers in
1-3 certain municipalities.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 142, Local Government Code, is amended by
1-6 designating Sections 142.001-142.011 as Subchapter A, Chapter 142,
1-7 Local Government Code, and adding a subchapter heading to read as
1-8 follows:
1-9 SUBCHAPTER A. ASSISTANCE, BENEFITS,
1-10 AND WORKING CONDITIONS
1-11 SECTION 2. Chapter 142, Local Government Code, is amended by
1-12 adding Subchapter B to read as follows:
1-13 SUBCHAPTER B. POLICE DEPARTMENT
1-14 COLLECTIVE BARGAINING CONTRACTS
1-15 Sec. 142.051. APPLICABILITY. This subchapter applies only
1-16 to a municipality with a population of 1,500,000 or more that has
1-17 not adopted Chapter 174.
1-18 Sec. 142.052. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-19 (1) "Certified bargaining agent" means an agent
1-20 recognized under Section 142.055.
1-21 (2) "Collective bargaining contract" means the terms
1-22 to which the certified bargaining agent recognized under Section
1-23 142.055 and the public employer have voluntarily agreed.
1-24 (3) "Member of the police department" has the meaning
2-1 assigned by Section 142.010.
2-2 (4) "Public employer" means the municipality or the
2-3 agency, board, commission, or department controlled by the
2-4 municipality that is required to establish the wages, rates of pay,
2-5 hours, working conditions, and other terms and conditions of
2-6 employment of, and affirmative action programs affecting, members
2-7 of the police department. The term may, when appropriate, include
2-8 the mayor, manager, or administrator of the municipality, a
2-9 municipal governing body, the director of personnel, a personnel
2-10 board, or one or more other officials.
2-11 (5) "Existing employee association" means an
2-12 organization recognized under Section 142.055 in which police
2-13 officers participate and that exists in whole or in part for the
2-14 purpose of representing public or private employees in their
2-15 relations with one or more public or private employers concerning
2-16 grievances, labor disputes, wages, rates of pay, hours of
2-17 employment, or other conditions of work affecting the employees.
2-18 Sec. 142.053. LOCAL CONTROL; STRIKES. (a) Except as
2-19 provided by Section 142.058(b), a municipality may not be denied
2-20 local control over wages, rates of pay, hours of work, affirmative
2-21 action programs, other terms and conditions of employment, or other
2-22 state-mandated personnel issues on which the public employer and
2-23 the certified bargaining agent agree in writing. A term or
2-24 condition on which the public employer and the certified bargaining
2-25 agent do not have a written contract is governed by applicable
2-26 statutes, local ordinances, and civil service rules. This
2-27 subchapter does not require the public employer and the certified
3-1 bargaining agent to meet and bargain collectively or reach an
3-2 agreement on any issue.
3-3 (b) A public employer and the certified bargaining agent may
3-4 meet and bargain collectively only if the certified bargaining
3-5 agent does not advocate the right to strike by members of the
3-6 police department. A certified bargaining agent that advocates a
3-7 strike by members of the police department loses its recognition as
3-8 the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for all police officers and
3-9 is subject to injunctive relief, a suit for damages, or other legal
3-10 remedy.
3-11 (c) A member of the police department may not engage in a
3-12 strike or organized work stoppage against this state or a political
3-13 subdivision of this state. A member of the police department who
3-14 participates in a strike forfeits all civil service rights,
3-15 reemployment rights, and other rights, benefits, or privileges the
3-16 member of the police department enjoys as a result of the member's
3-17 employment or previous employment with the municipality. This
3-18 subsection does not affect the right of a member of the police
3-19 department to cease employment if the member is not acting in
3-20 concert with other members of the police department.
3-21 Sec. 142.054. EMPLOYEE RIGHTS. (a) A member of the police
3-22 department below the rank of assistant chief has the right to form,
3-23 join, and participate in the activities of an employee organization
3-24 of the member's choice for the purpose of representation on matters
3-25 of wages, rates of pay, hours, benefits, and other terms or
3-26 conditions of employment.
3-27 (b) A member of the police department has the right to
4-1 refuse to join and to refuse to participate in an activity of an
4-2 employee organization.
4-3 (c) A member of the police department has the right to
4-4 choose to have the person's individual grievance heard with or
4-5 without representation by an employee organization, without any
4-6 representation, or with representation of the member's choice. The
4-7 resolution of an individual grievance must be in accord with the
4-8 terms of any contract under this subchapter that is in effect and
4-9 applicable to all of the members of the police department.
4-10 (d) The public employer, a member of the police department,
4-11 or the certified bargaining agent may not interfere with,
4-12 intimidate, restrain, coerce, or discriminate against any member of
4-13 the police department because the member exercised the member's
4-14 rights under this section.
4-15 Sec. 142.055. RECOGNITION OF CERTIFIED AGENT. (a) To be
4-16 eligible for selection under Subsection (b) or (c), a person must
4-17 be an independent agent not affiliated with any existing employee
4-18 association in the five years before the date of selection under
4-19 Subsection (b) or (c).
4-20 (b) Except as provided in Subsection (a), the public
4-21 employer shall recognize and certify as the certified bargaining
4-22 agent the person elected by a unanimous vote of the existing
4-23 employee associations.
4-24 (c) If it is clear that a unanimous election is not
4-25 possible, each existing employee association shall nominate two
4-26 candidates to be voted on by the members of the police department.
4-27 If no candidate receives a majority of the votes cast, a runoff
5-1 election shall occur between the two candidates receiving the
5-2 greatest number of votes. The public employer shall certify as the
5-3 certified bargaining agent the candidate who receives a majority of
5-4 the votes cast. Under this subsection, the election process shall
5-5 be conducted in a manner so that the selection of a bargaining
5-6 agent is completed within 60 days after the date a candidate is
5-7 nominated.
5-8 (d) An existing employee association shall submit to the
5-9 certified bargaining agent a proposal relating to wages, rates of
5-10 pay, hours, benefits, and other conditions of work affecting the
5-11 members of the police department within 30 days after the date the
5-12 bargaining agent is certified.
5-13 (e) Each existing employee association shall share equally
5-14 all fees and expenses of a certified bargaining agent or an
5-15 election relating to a collective bargaining contract. If an
5-16 existing employee association fails to pay a fee or expense within
5-17 60 days after the date the fee is due, the existing employee
5-18 association may not be recognized for the purposes of this
5-19 subchapter until the existing employee association pays the past
5-20 due fee plus 10 percent interest and any past due expenses.
5-21 Sec. 142.056. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING. When the public
5-22 employer and the certified bargaining agent agree to bargain
5-23 collectively, the employer and the certified bargaining agent have
5-24 the obligation to meet at reasonable times, to confer in good
5-25 faith, and, if requested by either party, to reduce to a written
5-26 contract the matters to which the parties agree. A party is not
5-27 required to agree to a proposal or make a concession.
6-1 Sec. 142.057. BARGAINING ISSUES. When the public employer
6-2 and the certified bargaining agent agree to bargain collectively,
6-3 the employer and the certified bargaining agent have the duty to
6-4 bargain with respect to wages, rates of pay, hours, benefits, and
6-5 other terms or conditions of employment. The public employer's
6-6 representative on request shall bargain in good faith with the
6-7 certified bargaining agent and shall fully consider all proposals
6-8 submitted by the certified association to the public employer that
6-9 are appropriate subjects under this section.
6-10 Sec. 142.058. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING CONTRACT. (a) An
6-11 agreement reached by the representative of the public employer and
6-12 the certified bargaining agent shall be in writing. The contract
6-13 is a mutual recommendation to be submitted jointly to the governing
6-14 body of the municipality.
6-15 (b) The contract may not supersede a constitutional,
6-16 statutory, or charter provision that concerns the same issues.
6-17 (c) The term of the contract may not exceed three years.
6-18 (d) A collective bargaining contract is not binding on the
6-19 parties unless:
6-20 (1) the members of the police department have ratified
6-21 the contract by a majority vote of the members voting on the issue
6-22 in a secret ballot, with all members of the police department
6-23 entitled to an opportunity to vote on the issue; and
6-24 (2) the governing body of the municipality has acted
6-25 by majority vote to approve the contract.
6-26 (e) The governing body of the municipality shall complete
6-27 all necessary procedures, including amendments to municipal
7-1 policies, ordinances, and budget appropriations required to
7-2 implement the terms of the contract within a reasonable time after
7-3 the contract has been ratified by the governing body and the
7-4 members of the police department.
7-5 Sec. 142.059. ENFORCEABILITY OF CONTRACT. (a) A contract
7-6 made under this subchapter between a public employer and a
7-7 certified bargaining agent is enforceable and binding on the public
7-8 employer, the certified bargaining agent, an existing employee
7-9 association, and the members of the police department covered by
7-10 the contract if the contract has been ratified under Section
7-11 142.058(d).
7-12 (b) A state district court of the judicial district in which
7-13 the greatest amount of territory of the municipality is located has
7-14 full authority and jurisdiction on the application of either party
7-15 aggrieved by an action or omission of the other party when the
7-16 action or omission relates to the rights, duties, or obligations
7-17 under the contract. The court may issue proper restraining orders,
7-18 temporary and permanent injunctions, and any other writ, order, or
7-19 process, including contempt orders, appropriate to enforcing the
7-20 contract.
7-21 Sec. 142.060. IMPASSE RESOLUTION: SELECTION OF ADVISORY
7-22 FACT FINDER. (a) If the certified bargaining agent and the public
7-23 employer agree to bargain collectively but the certified bargaining
7-24 agent and the public employer's representative are unable to reach
7-25 agreement on a contract within 30 days after the date of their
7-26 first meeting, the parties shall submit all unresolved issues that
7-27 are subject to collective bargaining to advisory fact-finding.
8-1 (b) Not later than the third day after the date of the
8-2 expiration of the period provided by Subsection (a), the certified
8-3 bargaining agent shall inform the American Arbitration Association,
8-4 or its successor organization, that advisory fact-finding is
8-5 desired.
8-6 (c) Not later than the 10th day after the date the
8-7 arbitration association is notified, the arbitration association
8-8 shall simultaneously submit to each party an identical list of
8-9 seven names of persons who are capable of acting as an advisory
8-10 fact finder. The parties shall alternately strike one name from
8-11 the list until one individual is selected.
8-12 (d) The selection process may not take longer than seven
8-13 days.
8-14 Sec. 142.061. IMPASSE RESOLUTION: PROCESS. (a) Not later
8-15 than the 25th day after the date an advisory fact finder is
8-16 selected, the advisory fact finder shall begin hearings between the
8-17 parties. Hearings must be concluded not later than the seventh day
8-18 after the date the hearings begin. The parties shall submit briefs
8-19 not later than the fifth day after the date the hearing is
8-20 concluded.
8-21 (b) The advisory fact finder shall consider the following:
8-22 (1) the lawful authority of the municipality;
8-23 (2) the stipulations of the parties;
8-24 (3) the interests and welfare of the public and the
8-25 financial ability of the municipality to bear the costs involved;
8-26 (4) a comparison of the wages, rates of pay, hours,
8-27 benefits, and other terms or conditions of employment of the
9-1 members of the police department with those of other police
9-2 officers performing similar services in comparable communities;
9-3 (5) the cost of living; and
9-4 (6) the overall compensation received by the members
9-5 of the police department, including direct wage compensation,
9-6 vacation, holidays and other excused time, insurance and pensions,
9-7 medical and hospitalization benefits, the continuity and stability
9-8 of employment, and all other benefits received.
9-9 (c) The advisory fact finder also shall consider the final
9-10 offer of the public employer and the final offer of the certified
9-11 bargaining agent. The advisory fact finder may recommend the final
9-12 offer of the public employer or of the certified bargaining agent,
9-13 a combination of the two, or an appropriate intermediate position.
9-14 The advisory fact finder shall state the reasons for the
9-15 recommendations. The recommendations of the advisory fact finder
9-16 are advisory only.
9-17 (d) The advisory fact finder shall make written findings,
9-18 conclusions, and recommendations. The advisory fact finder may use
9-19 any generally accepted criteria or factors in arriving at the
9-20 findings, conclusions, and recommendations. The advisory fact
9-21 finder shall deliver copies of the findings, conclusions, and
9-22 recommendations to the public employer and the certified bargaining
9-23 agent before the 15th day after the date the hearing under
9-24 Subsection (a) concludes.
9-25 (e) Not later than the 12th day after the date the advisory
9-26 fact finder's recommendations are received, the representative of
9-27 the public employer and the certified bargaining agent shall meet
10-1 and shall simultaneously and in writing notify each other of their
10-2 respective determinations to accept or reject the recommendations
10-3 of the advisory fact finder.
10-4 (f) All fees and expenses related to advisory fact-finding
10-5 are shared equally by the public employer and the certified
10-6 bargaining agent.
10-7 Sec. 142.062. BINDING ARBITRATION. (a) If the certified
10-8 bargaining agent and the public employer are unable to accept the
10-9 recommendations of the advisory fact finder, the representative of
10-10 the certified bargaining agent and the representative of the public
10-11 employer shall select an arbitrator using the procedures described
10-12 by Section 142.060 for the selection of an advisory fact finder.
10-13 The selection process for purposes of Section 142.060(b) begins on
10-14 the third day after the date the parties meet under Section
10-15 142.061(e).
10-16 (b) The parties and the selected arbitrator shall repeat the
10-17 impasse resolution process described by Section 142.061, except
10-18 that the arbitrator shall resolve the disputed issues and the
10-19 arbitrator's resolution is binding on the public employer, the
10-20 certified bargaining agent, an existing employee association, and
10-21 the members of the police department.
10-22 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
10-23 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
10-24 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
10-25 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
10-26 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
10-27 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.