By: West S.B. No. 1946
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to business leave time accounts for fire fighter employee
organizations in certain municipalities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 142, Local Government Code, is amended
by adding Section 142.0135 to read as follows:
Sec. 142.0135. BUSINESS LEAVE TIME ACCOUNT FOR FIRE
FIGHTERS IN CERTAIN MUNICIPALITIES. (a) This section applies only
to fire fighters employed by a municipality with a population of one
million or more that has not adopted Chapter 174 and to which
Chapter 143 does not apply.
(b) In this section:
(1) "Business leave" means leave taken for the purpose
of attending to the business of an employee organization.
(2) "Employee organization" includes:
(A) the Dallas Fire Fighter's Association
(c) A fire fighter shall donate not more than one hour for
each quarter of accumulated time to the business leave time account
of the Dallas Fire Fighter's Association. The municipality shall
establish and maintain a business leave time account for the
employee organization.
(d) Only a fire fighter who is a member of the Dallas Fire
Fighter's Association may use for business leave purposes the time
donated to the account of the employee organization. A fire fighter
may use for business leave purposes the time donated under this
section without receiving a reduction in salary and without
reimbursing the municipality.
(e) A request to use for business leave purposes the time in
an employee organization's time account must be in writing and
submitted to the municipality by the president or the equivalent
officer of the employee organization or by that officer's designee.
(f) The municipality shall grant a request for business
leave that complies with Subsection (f) unless:
(1) denial of the request is necessary because of an
emergency; or
(2) a grant of the request will result in having an
insufficient number of fire fighters to carry out the normal
functions of the municipality.
(g) The municipality shall account for the time donated to
the account and used from the account. The municipality shall
credit and debit the account on an hour-for-hour basis regardless
of the cash value of the time donated or used.
(h) The employee organization may not use for business leave
purposes more than 4,000 hours from its business leave time account
under this section in a calendar year, unless the municipality
approves the use of hours in excess of 4,000. This subsection does
not prevent an employee organization from accumulating more than
4,000 hours, but only addresses the total number of donated hours
that an employee organization may use in any calendar year.
(i) The use of business leave by a fire fighter under this
section is not a break in service for any purpose and is treated as
any other paid leave.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2009.