C.S.H.B. 3134 78(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


C.S.H.B. 3134
By: Olivo
County Affairs
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, only counties with populations over 500,000 may create a
sheriff civil service system. Counties with smaller populations only have
the authority to create civil service systems for all county employees. 

When a sheriff's office employee is involved in a labor related complaint,
his or her only recourse is through the courts when the department resides
in a county of less than 500,000. A civil service system for sheriff's
office employees would  provide an outlet for these disputes without
necessitating a lawsuit. 

CSHB 3134 would grant the commissioners courts in counties with population
between 250,000 and 500,000 the authority to create a civil service system
for sheriff's departments only.  


RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any
additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or
institution. 

ANALYSIS
CSHB 3134 adds subsection (a) and (b) to Section 158.032, Local Government
Code to allow for the creation of a civil service system in counties with
a population of more than 500,000.  

CSHB 3134 allows for the commissioners court to create a civil service
system under Section 158.002 specifically for the sheriff's department. 



EFFECTIVE DATE
This Act takes effect September 1, 2003. 


COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE
The original version of HB 3134 allows the creation of a civil service
system, if one half (fifty percent) of the employees of a sheriff's
department signs a petition, thereby allowing the commissioner's court to
vote on whether to create the system no later than 30 days after the date
the court received the petition. CSHB 3134 amends the Sec. 158.032, Local
Government Code allowing the creation of a civil service system under Sec.
158.002 to be specific to only the employees of the sheriff's department
of the county. HB 3134 allows for a petition of at least 50 percent of the
employees of the department in Section 158.032, subsection (b), whereas
CSHB 3134 leaves the current law to state 20 percent of the employees to
petition but amends Section 158.033, subsection (a) to be specific to a
sheriff's department. HB 3134 does not amend Section 158.034, whereas CSHB
3134 adds the authority of the commissions court to be able to order the
creation of a sheriff's department civil service system.