SRC-AMY S.B. 1669 78(R) BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research Center S.B. 1669 By: Averitt Veteran Affairs & Military Installations 4/1/2003 As Filed DIGEST AND PURPOSE Currently, Texas law provides for 15 days of leave for state employees and employees of political subdivisions during active military service in state military forces or a reserve component of armed forces; up to 15 days, such leave is taken without loss of salary, efficiency rating, or vacation time. However, many school employees receive state or local personal or sick leave, which is not protected under Texas law. Additionally, school districts may be hesitant to adopt policies providing for paid leaves of absence because of constitutional prohibitions relating to gifts of public funds. If paid leave policies were adopted as partial consideration for employees' contracts or terms of employment, that would eliminate any violation to those state constitutional provisions. As proposed, S.B. 1669 protects a school employee's personal and sick leave from loss of time during a leave of absence. This bill also requires a school employee to be able to use available personal leave for compensation during a term of active military service, and authorizes a school district or home-rule school district to consider a policy of providing paid leave during active military service as part of a consideration of employment. 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 Section 431.005(a), Government Code, to include personal and sick leave hours in the list of benefits a person is prohibited from losing during a military leave of absence. SECTION 2. Amends Section 22.003, Education Code, by adding Subsection (d), as follows: (d) Requires a school employee with available personal leave under this section to be entitled to use that leave for compensation during a term of active military service. Requires this provision to apply to any personal or sick leave available under former law or provided by local policy of a school district or home-rule school district. Authorizes a school district, or home-rule school district, to adopt a policy providing for the paid leave of employees taking leave for active military service, as part of the consideration of employment in the school district or home-rule school district. SECTION 2. [As drafted, two SECTIONS are designated SECTION 2.] Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2003.