HBA-NLM C.S.S.B. 1354 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.S.B. 1354
By: Barrientos
Appropriations
5/6/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law requires a state employee to be a full-time employee on the
first workday of the month to be eligible for longevity pay.  C.S.S.B. 1354
provides that an employee of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually
Impaired or the Texas School for the Deaf who is otherwise eligible for
longevity pay, is entitled to longevity pay for each month that the
employee is in a full-time paid status on the first work day for which the
school has work scheduled for the employee, notwithstanding other statutory
provisions.  

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 659.043, Government Code, to provide that an
employee of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired or the
Texas School for the Deaf who is otherwise eligible for longevity pay, is
entitled to longevity pay for each month that the employee is in a fulltime
paid status on the first work day for which the school has work scheduled
for the employee, if the employee is not on leave without pay on the first
workday. 

SECTION 2.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

C.S.S.B. 1354 modifies the original in the caption to provide that this Act
relates to longevity pay for "certain state employees" rather than for
"employees of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the
Texas School for the Deaf." 

C.S.S.B. 1354 modifies the original in SECTION 1 (Section 659.043,
Government Code) to clarify that an employee of the Texas School for the
Blind and Visually Impaired or the Texas School for the Deaf who is
otherwise eligible for longevity pay, is entitled to longevity pay for each
month that the employee is in a full-time paid status on the first work day
for which the school has work scheduled for the employee, if the employee
is not on leave without pay on the first workday. The substitute specifies
that this provision applies notwithstanding Subsection (a)(2), rather than
Subsection (a). The original provided that the employees of the Texas
School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Texas School for the
Deaf are entitled to longevity pay for any month in which they are on paid
status for any portion of that month.