BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 2509

By: Anchia

Urban Affairs

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Police officers in certain municipalities currently have business leave time accounts for the purpose of attending to the business of an employee organization to which they may donate accumulated vacation or compensatory time. Interested parties contend that it is impossible for the employee organization to collectively pool vacation and compensatory time from its members to allow the members to attend to the business of the employee organization without losing pay.

H.B. 2509 seeks to address this issue by amending the applicable law governing donations to the business leave time account for a police officer employee organization.

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

H.B. 2509 amends the Local Government Code, in a provision requiring a police officer employed by a municipality with a population of one million or more that has not adopted The Fire and Police Employee Relations Act and that is not required to establish a legislative leave time account to authorize a donation of accumulated vacation or compensatory time to the business leave time account of certain employee organizations in a certain manner, to make this procedure contingent on the majority of the membership of the employee organization having not affirmatively voted to require contributions by the employee organization's members to its business leave time account.

H.B. 2509 adds an additional method of authorizing a donation to the business leave time account of certain employee organizations by its members, contingent on the majority of the membership of the employee organization having affirmatively voted to require contributions by the employee organization's members to its business leave time account, requiring the municipality to transfer donated time to the account from the accumulated vacation or compensatory time of each police officer who is a member of the employee organization in the amount approved by vote of the employee organization not to exceed the maximum authorized amount. The bill requires the municipality to transfer the donated time to the account monthly beginning with the first calendar month that begins after the date of the employee organization vote requiring contributions and authorizes the police officer, each year, during the period beginning on the 60th day before the anniversary of the first day of the first calendar month in which donations were first transferred to the account and ending on the 30th day before that anniversary, to inform the municipality in writing on a form provided by the employee organization and approved by the municipality that the police officer chooses to not donate time to the account during the 12-month period beginning with that anniversary.

H.B. 2509 repeals a provision relating to the prohibition of an employee organization using for business leave purposes more than 4,000 hours from its business leave time account in a calendar year.

H.B. 2509 repeals Section 142.013(i), Local Government Code.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2013.