| 1 | 1 | | By: S. Davis of Harris (Senate Sponsor - Williams) H.B. No. 1016 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Received from the House April 15, 2013; |
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| 3 | 3 | | April 18, 2013, read first time and referred to Committee on State |
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| 4 | 4 | | Affairs; May 3, 2013, reported favorably by the following vote: |
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| 5 | 5 | | Yeas 8, Nays 1; May 3, 2013, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 9 | 9 | | AN ACT |
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| 10 | 10 | | relating to legal representation for civil suits against peace |
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| 11 | 11 | | officers employed by a school district. |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1. Sections 180.002(b), (c), and (d), Local |
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| 14 | 14 | | Government Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (b) A municipality or a school district or other special |
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| 16 | 16 | | purpose district shall provide a municipal or district employee who |
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| 17 | 17 | | is a peace officer, fire fighter, or emergency medical services |
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| 18 | 18 | | employee with legal counsel without cost to the employee to defend |
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| 19 | 19 | | the employee against a suit for damages by a party other than a |
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| 20 | 20 | | governmental entity if: |
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| 21 | 21 | | (1) legal counsel is requested by the employee; and |
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| 22 | 22 | | (2) the suit involves an official act of the employee |
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| 23 | 23 | | within the scope of the employee's authority. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (c) To defend the employee against the suit, the |
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| 25 | 25 | | municipality or [special purpose] district may provide counsel |
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| 26 | 26 | | already employed by it or may employ private counsel. |
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| 27 | 27 | | (d) An employee may recover from a [If the] municipality or |
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| 28 | 28 | | [special purpose] district that fails to provide counsel as |
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| 29 | 29 | | required by Subsection (b)[, the employee may recover from it] the |
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| 30 | 30 | | reasonable attorney's fees incurred in defending the suit if the |
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| 31 | 31 | | trier of fact finds: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (1) that the fees were incurred in defending a suit |
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| 33 | 33 | | covered by Subsection (b); and |
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| 34 | 34 | | (2) that the employee is without fault or that the |
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| 35 | 35 | | employee acted with a reasonable good faith belief that the |
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| 36 | 36 | | employee's actions were proper. |
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| 37 | 37 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 38 | 38 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 39 | 39 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 40 | 40 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 41 | 41 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2013. |
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| 42 | 42 | | * * * * * |
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