H.B. 686 78(R) BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 686 By: Lewis County Affairs Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current requirements for continuing education for County Commissioners mandate 16 classroom hours during each 12 month period. An amendment was made to this provision several years ago, that grants an exemption from this requirement to: Commissioners having 12 years of continuous service on the Commissioners Court and, reside in large urban counties over 1.5 million population and, "attend at least 15 hours of staff briefing on continuing education subjects in each 12 month period as approved by the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas". Many issues affecting large urban counties are unique compared to those affecting smaller counties, and these differences are demonstrated weekly in the volume and complexity of information provided to the Commissioners Court during their regular staff briefing sessions. These briefings can easily be equated with classroom hours of continuing education and should be given credit for accordingly, thereby saving the time and expense involved in seeking continuing education hours elsewhere. House Bill 686 amends Chapter 81, Local Government Code, Section 81.0025 (e)(1) by lowering the population bracket to apply to both Tarrant and Bexar Counties respectively. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion of that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS Section 1 amends Chapter 81, Local Government Code, Section 81.0025(e)(1) to lower the population bracket from a county with a population of 1.5 million or more to a county with a population of 1.3 million or more. EFFECTIVE DATE January 1, 2004.