SRC-TJG S.B. 1199 78(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   S.B. 1199
By: Janek
Finance
3/24/2003
As Filed


DIGEST AND PURPOSE 

Law enforcement officers who work for the state are paid according to a
uniform salary scale.  The salaries for state troopers and Department of
Public Safety officers are not in line with certain other police
departments and sheriff offices.  As proposed, S.B. 1199 creates a new
mechanism for the legislature to address state law enforcement salaries in
order to place and maintain those salaries in a position of strength in a
competitive marketplace with similar-size agencies for law enforcement. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to
a state officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Chapter 659B, Government Code, by adding Section
659.024, as follows: 

Sec. 659.024.  COMPENSATION OF CERTAIN STATE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS.
(a) Defines "local law enforcement department," "local law enforcement
officer," "state law enforcement officer," and "total compensation." 

(b) Requires the state auditor, before September 1 of each even-numbered
year, to conduct a survey of local law enforcement departments that employ
more than 1,000 commissioned law enforcement officers to gather
information about the total compensation provided by the departments to
law enforcement officers. 

(c) Requires the state auditor, before January 1 of each odd-numbered
year, to analyze the findings of the most recent survey conducted in
accordance with Subsection (b) and to submit to the legislature a report
on the findings of the survey and analysis.  Requires the report to
identify the five local law enforcement departments that provide the
highest average total compensation to local law enforcement officers who
have been employed by the local law enforcement departments for at least
30 years. 
 
(d) Requires the state auditor to employ technically and professionally
sound methodologies to conduct the survey and analysis required by this
section. 
 
(e) Requires local law enforcement departments to cooperate with the state
auditor by providing timely and accurate information requested by the
state auditor in accordance with a survey under this section. 
 
(f) Provides that the findings of a survey conducted in accordance with
Subsection (b) are not appealable. 
 
(g) Requires the legislature to, as necessary, based on a report submitted
to the legislature in accordance with this section, increase the salaries
of all state law  enforcement officers as defined by Subsection (a) by
amounts that are determined by a certain mathematical equation, to improve
the ability of the state to recruit and retain qualified law enforcement
officers. 
   
(h) Prohibits the legislature from reducing the salary allocated for a
state law enforcement officer position solely in response to a report
under this section. 
 
SECTION 2.  Requires the state auditor to conduct the first survey in
accordance with Section 659.024, Government Code, as added by this Act,
before September 1, 2004, and to provide to the legislature the first
report in accordance with that section before January 1, 2005. 
 
SECTION 3.  Requires the salary increase, if the legislature increases the
salary paid to a state law enforcement officer under Section 659.024,
Government Code, as added by this Act, to take effect on September 1 of
the next biennium. 
 
SECTION 4.  Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2003