1-1 By: Barrientos, Zaffirini S.B. No. 1344
1-2 (In the Senate - Filed March 8, 2001; March 13, 2001, read
1-3 first time and referred to Committee on Intergovernmental
1-4 Relations; April 19, 2001, reported favorably, as amended, by the
1-5 following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 1; April 19, 2001, sent to printer.)
1-6 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1 By: Staples
1-7 Amend S.B. No. 1344 by adding on page 1, line 61, between the words
1-8 "qualified" and "to", the following words, ", as determined by the
1-9 department,"; and on page 2, line 5, by striking the word, "shall"
1-10 and inserting in place thereof the following: "may".
1-11 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-12 AN ACT
1-13 relating to certain municipal firefighters and police officers
1-14 entitled to additional wages; providing a civil penalty.
1-15 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-16 SECTION 1. Chapter 141, Local Government Code, is amended by
1-17 adding Subchapter C to read as follows:
1-18 SUBCHAPTER C. ADDITIONAL WAGES FOR CERTAIN MUNICIPAL
1-19 FIREFIGHTERS AND POLICE OFFICERS
1-20 Sec. 141.051. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-21 (1) "Additional language skill" means fluency in a
1-22 language other than English.
1-23 (2) "Firefighter" means a full-time member of a
1-24 municipal fire department who performs:
1-25 (A) fire suppression;
1-26 (B) fire prevention;
1-27 (C) fire training;
1-28 (D) fire safety education;
1-29 (E) fire maintenance;
1-30 (F) fire communications;
1-31 (G) fire medical emergency technology;
1-32 (H) fire photography; or
1-33 (I) fire administration.
1-34 (3) "Police officer" means a member of a municipal
1-35 police department who is a licensed peace officer under Section
1-36 1701.307, Occupations Code.
1-37 Sec. 141.052. ENTITLEMENT TO ADDITIONAL WAGES FOR CERTAIN
1-38 SERVICES. A fire or police department may designate a firefighter
1-39 or police officer as a bilingual interpreter. A firefighter or
1-40 police officer who is designated as a bilingual interpreter under
1-41 this section is entitled to appropriate additional wages if:
1-42 (1) the firefighter or police officer provides a
1-43 service to the department that uses an additional language skill
1-44 possessed by the firefighter or police officer; and
1-45 (2) the additional language skill used is outside the
1-46 course and scope of the firefighter or police officer's position as
1-47 indicated by the firefighter or police officer's official job
1-48 description.
1-49 Sec. 141.053. DEPARTMENTAL GUIDELINES. A fire or police
1-50 department that designates a firefighter or police officer as a
1-51 bilingual interpreter under Section 141.052 shall establish
1-52 guidelines to determine:
1-53 (1) the number of designated bilingual interpreters
1-54 needed by the department;
1-55 (2) the types of additional language skills and the
1-56 levels of fluency in additional language skills that require a
1-57 department to pay additional wages under this subchapter; and
1-58 (3) the appropriate levels of additional wages.
1-59 Sec. 141.054. CIVIL PENALTY. A fire or police department
1-60 that fails to compensate a firefighter or police officer entitled
1-61 and qualified to receive additional wages under this subchapter and
1-62 the departmental guidelines established under Section 141.053 is
1-63 liable to the firefighter or police officer for damages in the
2-1 amount of lost wages plus interest at the rate of five percent per
2-2 year.
2-3 SECTION 2. Subsection (c), Section 143.113, Local Government
2-4 Code, is amended to read as follows:
2-5 (c) The municipality's governing body shall [may] authorize
2-6 assignment pay for bilingual personnel performing specialized
2-7 functions as interpreters or translators in their respective
2-8 departments. The assignment pay is in an amount and is payable
2-9 under conditions set by ordinance and is in addition to the regular
2-10 pay received by members of the fire or police department. If the
2-11 ordinance applies equally to each person who meets the criteria
2-12 established by the ordinance, the ordinance may provide for payment
2-13 to each fire fighter or police officer who meets testing or other
2-14 certification criteria for an assignment, or the ordinance may set
2-15 criteria that will determine the foreign languages in which a
2-16 person must be fluent or other criteria for eligibility. The
2-17 ordinance may provide for different rates of pay according to a
2-18 person's capability and may allow more pay to those persons who are
2-19 capable of translating orally and into written English. The heads
2-20 of the fire and police departments are not eligible for the
2-21 assignment pay authorized by this subsection.
2-22 SECTION 3. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
2-23 section, this Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
2-24 (b) Section 141.054, Local Government Code, as added by this
2-25 Act, takes effect January 1, 2002.
2-26 (c) The change in the law made by Section 141.054, Local
2-27 Government Code, applies only to the use of additional language
2-28 skills on or after January 1, 2002.
2-29 * * * * *