By Armbrister S.B. No. 1563 76R7568 MXM-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to establishing customer service standards and performance 1-3 measures for state agencies. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 10, Government Code, is amended 1-6 by adding Chapter 2113 to read as follows: 1-7 CHAPTER 2113. CUSTOMER SERVICE 1-8 Sec. 2113.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "state agency" 1-9 means a department, commission, board, office, or other agency in 1-10 the executive or judicial branch of state government that is 1-11 created under the constitution or a statute of this state. The 1-12 term includes an institution of higher education as defined by 1-13 Section 61.003, Education Code. 1-14 Sec. 2113.002. CUSTOMER SERVICE INPUT. (a) A state agency 1-15 shall create an inventory of external customers for each budget 1-16 strategy listed in the General Appropriations Act for that agency. 1-17 (b) Each agency shall gather information from customers 1-18 using survey or focus groups regarding the quality of service 1-19 delivered by that agency. The information requested must include 1-20 evaluations of an agency's: 1-21 (1) facilities, including the customer's ability to 1-22 access that agency, the office location, signs, and cleanliness; 1-23 (2) staff, including employee courtesy, friendliness, 1-24 and knowledgeability, and whether staff members adequately identify 2-1 themselves to customers by name, including the use of name plates 2-2 or tags for accountability; 2-3 (3) communications, including toll-free telephone 2-4 access, the average time a customer spends on hold, call transfers, 2-5 access to a live person, letters, and electronic mail; 2-6 (4) Internet site, including the ease of use of the 2-7 site, information on the location of the site and the agency, and 2-8 information accessible through the site such as a listing of 2-9 services and programs and who to contact for further information or 2-10 to complain; 2-11 (5) complaint handling process, including whether it 2-12 is easy to file a complaint and whether responses are timely; 2-13 (6) ability to timely serve its customers, including 2-14 the amount of time a customer waits for service in person, by 2-15 phone, by letter, or at a website; and 2-16 (7) brochures or other printed information, including 2-17 the accuracy of that information. 2-18 (c) Not later than June 1 of each even-numbered year, an 2-19 agency shall report on the information gathered under Subsection 2-20 (b) to the Legislative Budget Board and the governor's office of 2-21 budget and planning. 2-22 Sec. 2113.003. PERFORMANCE MEASURES. The Legislative Budget 2-23 Board shall develop means to measure customer service satisfaction 2-24 and create performance measures for state agencies in this area. 2-25 Sec. 2113.004. INSPECTIONS. The Legislative Budget Board 2-26 and the governor's office of budget and planning may inspect a 2-27 state agency and analyze its customer service performance by 3-1 sending a customer service evaluator to confidentially pretend to 3-2 be a customer of that agency. 3-3 Sec. 2113.005. TEXAS STAR AWARD. (a) The Legislative 3-4 Budget Board and the governor's office of budget and planning may 3-5 award the "Texas Star" to a state agency that provides exemplary 3-6 customer service based on the performance measures and standards 3-7 adopted under this chapter. 3-8 (b) The board and the office of budget and planning shall 3-9 conduct an evaluation to determine agencies that may qualify for 3-10 the Texas Star award. The evaluation shall be conducted under the 3-11 procedures outlined in Sections 66-68, Article IX, Chapter 1452, 3-12 Acts of the 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997 (the General 3-13 Appropriations Act). 3-14 Sec. 2113.006. CUSTOMER RELATIONS REPRESENTATIVE; COMPACT 3-15 WITH TEXANS. (a) A state agency shall appoint a customer 3-16 relations representative. 3-17 (b) The representative shall: 3-18 (1) coordinate the state agency's customer service 3-19 performance measurement under this chapter; 3-20 (2) gather information and evaluations from the public 3-21 about an agency's customer service; 3-22 (3) respond to customer concerns; and 3-23 (4) establish the agency's compact with Texans under 3-24 Subsection (c). 3-25 (c) Each state agency shall create a "Compact With Texans." 3-26 The compact must be approved by the governor's office of budget and 3-27 planning. Each Compact With Texans shall set customer service 4-1 standards and describe customer service principles for that agency 4-2 and address: 4-3 (1) the agency's procedures for responding to public 4-4 contacts and complaints; 4-5 (2) applicable licensing and certification procedures; 4-6 and 4-7 (3) customer waiting time for access and service 4-8 delivery and responses to complaints. 4-9 SECTION 2. (a) For purposes of this section, "state agency" 4-10 means a department, commission, board, office, or other agency in 4-11 the executive or judicial branch of government that is created 4-12 under the constitution or a statute of this state. The term 4-13 includes an institution of higher education as defined by Section 4-14 61.003, Education Code. 4-15 (b) The Legislative Budget Board and the governor's office 4-16 of budget and planning shall prepare a report and file it with the 4-17 lieutenant governor and speaker of the house of representatives not 4-18 later than December 31, 2000. 4-19 (c) The report must include: 4-20 (1) an analysis of each state agency's customer 4-21 service performance standards and ways in which that agency can 4-22 improve its performance; and 4-23 (2) recommendations regarding improving customer 4-24 service by state agencies. 4-25 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999, except 4-26 that Section 2113.004, Government Code, as added by this Act, takes 4-27 effect September 1, 2001. 5-1 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the 5-2 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 5-3 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 5-4 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 5-5 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.