Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3978 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R6976 YDB-D
2	2	By: Simmons H.B. No. 3978
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to limitations on training and education for state agency
8	8	administrators and employees.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 656.043, Government Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 656.043. DEFINITION. In this subchapter, "state
13	13	agency" means a department, agency, or institution of the
14	14	executive, legislative, or judicial branch of [this] state
15	15	government, including an institution of higher education as defined
16	16	by Section 61.003, Education Code, the office of the lieutenant
17	17	governor, the office of the speaker of the house of
18	18	representatives, and the office of each member of the senate and
19	19	house of representatives.
20	20	SECTION 2. Section 656.044, Government Code, is amended to
21	21	read as follows:
22	22	Sec. 656.044. PUBLIC FUNDS FOR TRAINING AND EDUCATION. (a)
23	23	A state agency may use public funds to provide training and
24	24	education for its administrators and employees. The training or
25	25	education must be related to the mission of the agency and the
26	26	duties or prospective duties of the administrator or employee.
27	27	(b) Public funds may be spent to provide education only for
28	28	state agency administrators and employees who are paid annually by
29	29	the state a salary or total hourly wages in an amount that does not
30	30	exceed $110,000.
31	31	SECTION 3. Section 656.047, Government Code, is amended to
32	32	read as follows:
33	33	Sec. 656.047. PAYMENT OF PROGRAM EXPENSES. (a) Except as
34	34	provided by this section or other law, a [A] state agency may spend
35	35	public funds as appropriate to pay the salary, tuition and other
36	36	fees, travel and living expenses, training stipend, expense of
37	37	training materials, and other necessary expenses of an instructor,
38	38	student, or other participant in a training or education program.
39	39	(b) For an administrator or employee of a state agency who
40	40	is enrolled in an associate, baccalaureate, graduate,
41	41	postgraduate, or professional degree education program for which
42	42	the administrator or employee seeks reimbursement from this state,
43	43	the agency may not reimburse tuition expenses unless the courses
44	44	are credited toward a degree education program at an institution of
45	45	higher education, as defined by Section 61.003, Education Code.
46	46	(c) For tuition expenses authorized under Subsection (b), a
47	47	state agency may only pay an amount not to exceed 50 percent of the
48	48	tuition expenses for each course successfully completed by the
49	49	administrator or employee. The administrator or employee must earn
50	50	a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a four-point scale or the
51	51	equivalent for the course.
52	52	(d) A state agency may not pay tuition expenses authorized
53	53	under Subsection (b) for more than one associate, baccalaureate,
54	54	graduate, postgraduate, or professional degree education program
55	55	for an administrator or employee of the agency.
56	56	(e) A state agency may not pay, with respect to an education
57	57	program for which tuition reimbursement is authorized under
58	58	Subsection (b), any other expense, including associated fees,
59	59	travel and living expenses, books, and materials, incurred by the
60	60	state agency administrator or employee.
61	61	(f) Subsection (b) does not authorize a state agency to pay
62	62	the tuition expenses of an elected officer, as defined by Section
63	63	572.002, or a former elected officer.
64	64	SECTION 4. Section 656.048, Government Code, is amended by
65	65	adding Subsection (b) to read as follows:
66	66	(b) A state agency shall adopt rules requiring that before
67	67	an administrator or employee of the agency may be reimbursed for
68	68	tuition expenses under Section 656.047(b):
69	69	(1) the executive director or executive head of the
70	70	agency sign a statement authorizing the tuition payment; and
71	71	(2) the administrator or employee sign a statement
72	72	agreeing to:
73	73	(A) work for the agency for not less than three
74	74	years from the date the course for which tuition is reimbursed is
75	75	completed, unless the administrator's or employee's position is
76	76	eliminated under a reduction in force; or
77	77	(B) if the administrator or employee does not
78	78	fulfill the requirement of Paragraph (A), repay the agency an
79	79	amount equal to the amount the agency paid for the administrator's
80	80	or employee's tuition expenses plus five percent interest
81	81	compounded annually until that amount is repaid.
82	82	SECTION 5. Section 656.101, Government Code, is amended to
83	83	read as follows:
84	84	Sec. 656.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
85	85	(1) "State agency" has the meaning assigned by Section
86	86	656.043.
87	87	(1-a) "State [and "state] employee" has the meaning
88	88	[have the meanings] assigned by Section 572.002 [except that the
89	89	terms do not include a river authority or an employee of a river
90	90	authority].
91	91	(2) "Training" means instruction, teaching, or other
92	92	education received by a state employee that is not normally
93	93	received by other state employees and that is designed to enhance
94	94	the ability of the employee to perform the employee's job. The term
95	95	includes a course of study at an institution of higher education [or
96	96	a private or independent institution of higher education] as
97	97	defined by Section 61.003, Education Code, if the employing state
98	98	agency spends money to assist the state employee to meet the expense
99	99	of the course of study or pays salary to the employee to undertake
100	100	the course of study as an assigned duty. The term does not include a
101	101	course of study at a private or independent institution of higher
102	102	education as defined by Section 61.003, Education Code, a degree
103	103	education program for which reimbursement of tuition expenses is
104	104	authorized under Section 656.047(b), or training required either by
105	105	state or federal law or that is determined necessary by the agency
106	106	and offered to all employees of the agency performing similar jobs.
107	107	SECTION 6. Section 656.102, Government Code, is amended to
108	108	read as follows:
109	109	Sec. 656.102. AGENCY POLICY. Before a state agency spends
110	110	any money on training for a state employee, the state agency must
111	111	adopt a policy governing the training of employees, in addition to
112	112	the rules required by Section 656.048, that requires training to
113	113	relate to the mission of the agency and to an employee's duties
114	114	following the training.
115	115	SECTION 7. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
116	116	training and education expenses paid by a state agency on or after
117	117	the effective date of this Act.
118	118	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.