HBA-MPA, BTC H.B. 197 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 197 By: Burnam Economic Development 2/18/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In 1997, 3.3 million Texans lived in poverty, including nearly one out of four Texas children. The majority of these children live in families that include at least one working parent. Studies that have examined the effects of raising the national minimum wage have shown that the benefits of a wage increase went primarily to low-income working families, and that employment opportunities for teenagers and young adults were not adversely affected by the increase. H.B. 197 sets the Texas minimum wage at $6.00 an hour on or after September 1, 1999, and raises it to $6.50 an hour on or after January 1, 2000. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 62.003(b), Labor Code, to make conforming and nonsubstantive changes. SECTION 2. Amends Section 62.051, Labor Code, to increase the minimum wage from $3.35 to $6.00 per hour to begin on or after September 1, 1999, but no later than January 1, 2000, and to $6.50 per hour on or after January 1, 2000. Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. SECTION 3. Amends Section 62.201, Labor Code, to make conforming changes. SECTION 4. Repealer: Section 62.055 (Special Wage for Certain Employees), Labor Code, which authorizes certain employees to be paid not less than 60 percent of the minimum wage, and Section 62.056 (Medical Certificate), Labor Code, which provides that an employer must obtain a medical certificate in order to pay an employee at less than the minimum wage because the person's productive capacity is impaired by age, physical or mental deficiency, or injury. SECTION 5.Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 6.Emergency clause.