By: Jackson S.B. No. 1749
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to participation in the Texas Employees Uniform Group
1-2 Insurance Benefits Act by certain former members of the governing
1-3 bodies of community/junior colleges.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Subdivision (5), Subsection (a), Section 3, Texas
1-6 Employees Uniform Group Insurance Benefits Act (Article 3.50-2,
1-7 Vernon's Texas Insurance Code), is amended to read as follows:
1-8 (5)(A) "Employee" shall mean any appointive or
1-9 elective officer or employee in the service of the State of Texas,
1-10 including an employee of an institution of higher education:
1-11 (i) who is retired or retires and is an
1-12 annuitant under the jurisdiction of the Employees Retirement System
1-13 of Texas, pursuant to Subtitle B, D, or E;
1-14 (ii) who is retired or retires and is an
1-15 annuitant under the jurisdiction of the Teacher Retirement System
1-16 of Texas, pursuant to Subtitle C, Title 8, Government Code, or
1-17 pursuant to Chapter 803, Government Code, and whose last employment
1-18 with the state prior to retirement, including employment by a
1-19 public community/junior college, was as an employee of a department
1-20 whose employees are authorized to participate in the Texas
1-21 employees uniform group insurance program;
1-22 (iii) who is retired or retires and is an
1-23 annuitant under the optional retirement program established by
1-24 Chapter 830, Government Code, if the person's last state employment
2-1 before retirement, including employment by a public
2-2 community/junior college, was as an employee of a department whose
2-3 employees are authorized to participate in the Texas employees
2-4 uniform group insurance program, and if the person either:
2-5 (a) would have been
2-6 eligible to retire and receive a service retirement annuity from
2-7 the Teacher Retirement System of Texas or the Employees Retirement
2-8 System of Texas had the person not elected to participate in the
2-9 optional retirement program; or
2-10 (b) is disabled as
2-11 determined by the Employees Retirement System of Texas;
2-12 (iv) who receives compensation for
2-13 services rendered to the State of Texas, other than an employee of
2-14 an institution of higher education described by this subdivision,
2-15 on a warrant issued pursuant to a payroll certified by a department
2-16 or by an elected or duly appointed officer of this state;
2-17 (v) who receives payment for the
2-18 performance of personal services on a warrant issued pursuant to a
2-19 payroll certified by a department and drawn by the comptroller upon
2-20 the State Treasury against appropriations made by the Texas
2-21 Legislature from any state funds or against any trust funds held by
2-22 the comptroller or who is paid from funds of an official budget of
2-23 a state department, rather than from funds of the General
2-24 Appropriations Act;
2-25 (vi) who is appointed, subject to
2-26 confirmation of the senate, as a member of a board or commission
3-1 with administrative responsibility over a statutory agency having
3-2 statewide jurisdiction whose employees are covered by this Act;
3-3 (vii) who is a member of the governing
3-4 body of an institution of higher education, as that term is defined
3-5 by this Act, or who was a member of the governing body of a public
3-6 community/junior college who rendered at least 10 continuous years
3-7 of service and who is at least 55 years of age;
3-8 (viii) who is a member of the State Board
3-9 of Education;
3-10 (ix) who receives compensation for
3-11 services rendered to an institution of higher education on a
3-12 warrant or check issued pursuant to a payroll certified by an
3-13 institution of higher education or by an elected or duly appointed
3-14 officer of this state, and who is eligible for participation in the
3-15 Teacher Retirement System of Texas; or
3-16 (x) who receives compensation for services
3-17 rendered to an institution of higher education as provided by this
3-18 subdivision but is not permitted to be a member of the Teacher
3-19 Retirement System of Texas because the person is solely employed by
3-20 an institution of higher education that as a condition of
3-21 employment requires the person to be enrolled as a student in an
3-22 institution of higher education in graduate-level courses and who
3-23 is employed by the institution at least 20 hours a week.
3-24 (B) Persons performing personal services for the
3-25 State of Texas as independent contractors shall never be considered
3-26 employees of the state for purposes of this Act.
4-1 SECTION 2. Subsection (b), Section 15, Texas Employees
4-2 Uniform Group Insurance Benefits Act (Article 3.50-2, Vernon's
4-3 Texas Insurance Code), is amended to read as follows:
4-4 (b) The state shall contribute to the cost of each
4-5 employee's individual and dependent group coverages the amounts
4-6 appropriated for the coverages in the General Appropriations Act.
4-7 The governing board of each state department and institution of
4-8 higher education participating in the program established under
4-9 this Act shall pay the trustee a like amount for each employee's
4-10 individual or dependent group coverages for their employees who
4-11 are, and retirees who were, compensated from funds not appropriated
4-12 in the General Appropriations Act. The departments and
4-13 institutions shall include the required contributions from funds
4-14 not appropriated in the General Appropriations Act in their annual
4-15 operating budgets. Each state department and institution of higher
4-16 education participating in the program shall assure current
4-17 participant coverages based on the records of the trustee, make
4-18 timely payments of amounts due the trustee from all fund sources
4-19 under the control of the department or institution, and reconcile
4-20 trustee and agency records of coverages and payments monthly.
4-21 There is hereby allocated to the trustee, in accordance with the
4-22 provisions of this Act, from the several funds from which employees
4-23 receive their respective salaries, a sum equal to the total of all
4-24 employer contributions computed in accordance with the provisions
4-25 of this Act and the rules and regulations of the trustee
4-26 promulgated pursuant thereto. In the event that a public
5-1 community/junior college elects to continue the health benefits of
5-2 a former member of the governing body of the institution who
5-3 rendered at least 10 continuous years of service and is at least 55
5-4 years of age, the required contributions shall be paid from funds
5-5 under the control of the institution or from the personal funds of
5-6 the former member, but in no event shall the required contributions
5-7 be paid by the state.
5-8 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
5-9 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
5-10 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-11 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-12 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-13 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.