| TO: | Honorable Warren Chisum, Chair, House Committee on Appropriations |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB3034 by Turner (Relating to merit pay for certain qualified professionals employed by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice or the Texas Youth Commission.), As Introduced |
The bill would amend the Government Code by requiring the executor director of the Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) and of the Texas Youth Commission (TYC) to adopt policy to provide merit pay for an employee who is a licensed chemical dependency counselor or who has at least two years of experience in chemical dependency counseling and is a licensed social worker, professional counselor, physician, or psychologist and has repaid a student loan owed by the person.
The bill also amends the Human Resources Code adding the same requirements in determining merit pay related to job performance evaluations. The merit pay amendments for the Government Code and Human Resourced Code relate to work performed by a TDCJ or TYC employee on or after the effective date of this Act.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has estimated that depending on the amount and frequency of the merit pay, it may or may not have a significant fiscal impact. Based on the assumption that one 3.4 percent merit pay increase to the positions outlined in the bill, TDCJ estimates that it would cost $124,486 per year. Based on these assumptions, TDCJ has determined that the costs associated with implementing the bill are not anticipated to be significant.
According to the Texas Youth Commission, there are 64 chemical dependency positions within the agency. It is assumed that only a small percentage of the identified employees would meet the requirements defined by the bill. Therefore, TYC has determined that the costs associated with implementing the bill are not anticipated to be significant.
| Source Agencies: | 694 Youth Commission, 696 Department of Criminal Justice
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, CT, GG, SDO
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