83R3134 EES-F
By: Howard H.B. No. 581
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a limited waiver of sovereign immunity for state and
local governmental entities in certain employment lawsuits filed by
nurses.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 301.413, Occupations Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
(g) A nurse employed by a hospital operated by or on behalf
of a state or local governmental entity who alleges a violation of
Subsection (b) may sue the state or local governmental entity for
relief under this section, and the sovereign immunity of the state
or local governmental entity from suit and from liability is waived
for the limited purpose of allowing the nurse to maintain a lawsuit
in state court to obtain that relief. The provisions of Section
554.003, Government Code, relating to the type of relief and the
amount of damages available to a public employee apply to a lawsuit
under this subsection. Relief under this section is in addition to
any other remedies a nurse may have under state or federal law as a
public employee. In this subsection:
(1) "Local governmental entity," "public employee,"
and "state governmental entity" have the meanings assigned by
Section 554.001, Government Code.
(2) "Hospital" has the meaning assigned by Section
241.003, Health and Safety Code, and includes a mental hospital
licensed under Chapter 577, Health and Safety Code.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act to Section
301.413, Occupations Code, applies to an action commenced on or
after the effective date of this Act. An action commenced before
the effective date of this Act is governed by the law as it existed
immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.