BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 155

By: Huffman

Pensions, Investments & Financial Services

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Recent legislation entitles a school district employee who resigns at the end of a school year to health insurance coverage through the summer and prohibits a school district from diminishing or eliminating health insurance coverage before the last date on which the employee was entitled to participate in a group health insurance program. Observers have noted that, while the majority of school districts begin coverage at the beginning of a school year, not every school district's instructional year matches the district's medical plan years, raising some questions as to the period of coverage that a district must provide.

S.B. 155 seeks to clarify matters relating to the required coverage for a former school district employee under a school district's uniform group coverage program or group health coverage.

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

S.B. 155 amends the Education Code to specify that a school district employee whose resignation is effective after the last day of an instructional year is entitled to participate or be enrolled in the district's uniform group coverage plan or the district's group health coverage, as applicable, through the earlier of the first anniversary of the date such coverage was first made available to district employees for the last instructional year in which the employee was employed by the district or the last calendar day before the first day of the instructional year immediately following the last instructional year in which the employee was employed by the district, rather than being entitled to participate or be enrolled through the first anniversary of the participation or coverage being made available for the last instructional year of the employee's employment by the district. The bill makes its provisions applicable beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2011.