1-1     By:  Kuempel (Senate Sponsor - Zaffirini)             H.B. No. 1299
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 23, 2001;
 1-3     April 24, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
 1-4     Intergovernmental Relations; May 4, 2001, reported favorably by the
 1-5     following vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 4, 2001, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to the pooling of sick leave by county employees.
 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-10           SECTION 1.  Section 157.073(a), Local Government Code, is
1-11     amended to read as follows:
1-12           (a)  The commissioners court may adopt rules and prescribe
1-13     procedures and forms relating to the operation of the county sick
1-14     leave pool program.  The commissioners court by rule may require an
1-15     employee to:
1-16                 (1)  enroll in the county sick leave pool as a
1-17     condition for eligibility under Section 157.075(a); and
1-18                 (2)  transfer at least one day of accrued sick leave
1-19     time or, if allowed under Section 157.072(b), accrued vacation
1-20     leave time earned by the employee as a condition of enrollment.
1-21           SECTION 2.  Section 157.074, Local Government Code, is
1-22     amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
1-23           (c)  An employee who is terminated or who resigns or retires
1-24     may donate not more than 10 days of accrued sick leave time or, if
1-25     allowed under Section 157.072(b), accrued vacation leave time
1-26     earned by the employee to take effect immediately before the
1-27     effective date of termination, resignation, or retirement.
1-28           SECTION 3.  Section 157.075(a), Local Government Code, is
1-29     amended to read as follows:
1-30           (a)  An employee is eligible to use time contributed to the
1-31     county sick leave pool if:[,]
1-32                 (1)  because of a catastrophic injury or illness, the
1-33     employee has exhausted all the accrued paid leave and compensatory
1-34     time to which the employee is otherwise entitled; and
1-35                 (2)  the employee is enrolled in the county sick leave
1-36     pool, if the commissioners court requires enrollment under Section
1-37     157.073(a).
1-38           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
1-39     a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
1-40     provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
1-41     Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
1-42     Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
1-43                                  * * * * *