1-1     By:  Van de Putte                                     S.B. No. 1714
 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 9, 2001; March 14, 2001, read
 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on Intergovernmental
 1-4     Relations; May 4, 2001, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-5     Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 4, 2001, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to a legislative leave time bank for peace officers and
 1-9     firefighters.
1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-11           SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 614, Government Code, is
1-12     amended by adding Section 614.011 to read as follows:
1-13           Sec. 614.011.  LEGISLATIVE LEAVE TIME BANK.  (a)  A peace
1-14     officer or fire fighter may donate not more than one hour for each
1-15     month of accumulated vacation or compensatory time in increments of
1-16     one-quarter hour to the legislative leave time bank of an employee
1-17     organization.  The employer shall establish and maintain a
1-18     legislative leave time bank for each employee organization.
1-19           (b)  The peace officer or fire fighter must authorize the
1-20     donation in writing on a form provided by the employee organization
1-21     and approved by the employer.  After receiving the signed
1-22     authorization on an approved form, the employer shall transfer
1-23     donated time to the legislative leave time bank monthly until the
1-24     employer receives the peace officer's or fire fighter's written
1-25     revocation of the authorization.
1-26           (c)  Only a peace officer or fire fighter who is a member of
1-27     an employee organization may use for legislative leave purposes the
1-28     time donated to the legislative leave time bank of that employee
1-29     organization.  A peace officer or fire fighter may use for
1-30     legislative leave purposes the time donated under this section
1-31     instead of reimbursing the employer under Section 614.005.
1-32           (d)  A request to use for legislative leave purposes the time
1-33     in an employee organization's legislative leave time bank must be
1-34     in writing and submitted to the employer by the president or the
1-35     equivalent officer of the employee organization or by that
1-36     officer's designee.
1-37           (e)  A legislative leave time bank authorized by this section
1-38     is perpetual.  Unused time donated to an employee organization's
1-39     legislative leave time bank carries over from year to year until
1-40     used by the employee organization.
1-41           (f)  The employer shall account for the time donated to the
1-42     legislative leave time bank and used from the time bank.  The
1-43     employer may:
1-44                 (1)  determine and credit the actual cash value of the
1-45     donated time in the legislative leave time bank and determine and
1-46     debit the actual cash value of time used from the time bank for
1-47     legislative leave purposes; or
1-48                 (2)  credit and debit a legislative leave time bank on
1-49     an hour-for-hour basis regardless of the cash value of the time
1-50     donated or used.
1-51           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
1-52                                  * * * * *