Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2218 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R7339 LED-D
2	2	By: Alonzo H.B. No. 2218
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the eligibility for custodial officer service in the
8	8	Employees Retirement System of Texas of juvenile justice officers
9	9	employed by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 811.001(8), Government Code, is amended
12	12	to read as follows:
13	13	(8) "Custodial officer" means, subject to Section
14	14	811.0011, a member of the retirement system who is employed by the
15	15	Board of Pardons and Paroles or the Texas Department of Criminal
16	16	Justice as a parole officer or caseworker or who is employed by the
17	17	correctional institutions division of the Texas Department of
18	18	Criminal Justice and certified by the department as having a normal
19	19	job assignment that requires frequent or infrequent regularly
20	20	planned contact with, and in close proximity to, inmates or
21	21	defendants of the correctional institutions division without the
22	22	protection of bars, doors, security screens, or similar devices and
23	23	includes assignments normally involving supervision or the
24	24	potential for supervision of inmates in inmate housing areas,
25	25	educational or recreational facilities, industrial shops,
26	26	kitchens, laundries, medical areas, agricultural shops or fields,
27	27	or in other areas on or away from property of the department. The
28	28	term includes a member who transfers from the Texas Department of
29	29	Criminal Justice to the managed health care unit of The University
30	30	of Texas Medical Branch or the Texas Tech University Health
31	31	Sciences Center pursuant to Section 9.01, Chapter 238, Acts of the
32	32	73rd Legislature, 1993, elects at the time of transfer to retain
33	33	membership in the retirement system, and is certified by the
34	34	managed health care unit or the health sciences center as having a
35	35	normal job assignment described by this subdivision.
36	36	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 811, Government Code, is
37	37	amended by adding Section 811.0011 to read as follows:
38	38	Sec. 811.0011. OPTIONAL ALTERNATIVE DEFINITION OF
39	39	CUSTODIAL OFFICER. (a) For purposes of this section, "juvenile
40	40	justice officer" means a member of the retirement system who is
41	41	employed by the Texas Juvenile Justice Department and certified by
42	42	that department as holding a position as a juvenile correctional
43	43	officer, caseworker, or other position the primary duties of which
44	44	include the custodial supervision of or other close, regularly
45	45	planned contact with youth in the custody of that department.
46	46	(b) The board of trustees by rule may adopt an alternative
47	47	definition of "custodial officer" that includes juvenile justice
48	48	officers for purposes of allowing juvenile justice officers to
49	49	participate in the law enforcement and custodial officer
50	50	supplemental retirement fund if the board determines, after
51	51	conducting an actuarial valuation, that:
52	52	(1) the amortization period for the unfunded actuarial
53	53	liabilities of the retirement system and the law enforcement and
54	54	custodial officer supplemental retirement fund does not exceed 30
55	55	years by one or more years; and
56	56	(2) approving juvenile justice officers for
57	57	participation in the law enforcement and custodial officer
58	58	supplemental retirement fund would not reduce or negatively impact
59	59	current benefits paid to members of the retirement system and law
60	60	enforcement and custodial officer supplemental retirement fund.
61	61	(c) Notwithstanding Section 813.506, if the board of
62	62	trustees adopts a rule under Subsection (b), the board, after
63	63	consulting with the Texas Juvenile Justice Board, by rule shall
64	64	adopt standards for determining eligibility of a juvenile justice
65	65	officer for service credit as a custodial officer, based on the need
66	66	to encourage early retirement of persons whose duties are hazardous
67	67	and require them to have routine contact with youth in the custody
68	68	of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department on a regular basis. The
69	69	board shall determine a juvenile justice officer's eligibility to
70	70	receive credit as a custodial officer. A determination by the board
71	71	may not be appealed by an employee.
72	72	(d) The board shall provide notice to the Texas Juvenile
73	73	Justice Department of the adoption of a rule under Subsection (b),
74	74	and the department, after receiving notice, shall:
75	75	(1) certify to the retirement system, in the manner
76	76	prescribed by the retirement system, the name of each person
77	77	employed by the department in the position of juvenile justice
78	78	officer and any other information the system determines is
79	79	necessary to credit service and finance benefits under this
80	80	subtitle; and
81	81	(2) beginning with the first pay period that occurs
82	82	after the board provides notice under this subsection, begin making
83	83	deductions and collecting the contributions for the law enforcement
84	84	and custodial officer supplemental retirement fund as provided by
85	85	Section 815.402(h).
86	86	(e) If the board adopts a rule under Subsection (b), the
87	87	board shall ensure that service credit established by a juvenile
88	88	justice officer before the date of the rule's adoption is
89	89	considered service credit established as a custodial officer for
90	90	purposes of determining the officer's eligibility for benefits
91	91	under the law enforcement and custodial officer supplemental
92	92	retirement fund.
93	93	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.