| 1 | 1 | | By: Dominguez H.B. No. 101 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to a one-time payment for certain state-employed essential |
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| 7 | 7 | | workers; making an appropriation. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: |
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| 10 | 10 | | (1) "Comptroller" means the state comptroller of |
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| 11 | 11 | | public accounts. |
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| 12 | 12 | | (2) "Eligible essential state employee" means an |
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| 13 | 13 | | individual who: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (A) is a state employee; and |
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| 15 | 15 | | (B) was, during any part of the qualifying |
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| 16 | 16 | | period, an eligible worker. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (3) "Eligible worker" means a state employee who was |
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| 18 | 18 | | designated under 42 U.S.C. Section 802 as an essential critical |
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| 19 | 19 | | infrastructure worker. |
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| 20 | 20 | | (4) "Qualifying period" means the period beginning at |
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| 21 | 21 | | 12:01 a.m. on March 13, 2020, and ending at 11:59 p.m. on September |
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| 22 | 22 | | 13, 2021. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (5) "State agency" means a department, commission, |
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| 24 | 24 | | board, office, or other agency in the executive branch of state |
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| 25 | 25 | | government that is created by the constitution or a statute of this |
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| 26 | 26 | | state. |
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| 27 | 27 | | (6) "State employee" means an employee of a state |
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| 28 | 28 | | agency. |
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| 29 | 29 | | SECTION 2. ESSENTIAL WORKER PAYMENT; AMOUNT. (a) An |
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| 30 | 30 | | eligible essential state employee is entitled to an essential |
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| 31 | 31 | | worker payment. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (b) The amount of the essential worker payment to which an |
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| 33 | 33 | | eligible essential state employee is entitled is equal to the |
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| 34 | 34 | | lesser of: |
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| 35 | 35 | | (1) the product of: |
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| 36 | 36 | | (A) $2.00; and |
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| 37 | 37 | | (B) the number of hours the eligible essential |
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| 38 | 38 | | state employee worked for the state during the qualifying period |
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| 39 | 39 | | while designated an eligible worker; or |
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| 40 | 40 | | (2) $8,000. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (c) An essential worker payment is in addition to any other |
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| 42 | 42 | | salary or wage to which eligible essential state employees are |
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| 43 | 43 | | entitled under the terms of their employment. |
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| 44 | 44 | | SECTION 3. DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY. The comptroller, |
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| 45 | 45 | | in consultation with the Legislative Budget Board and the State |
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| 46 | 46 | | Auditor's Office, shall by rule establish the process to be used to: |
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| 47 | 47 | | (1) determine which state employees are eligible |
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| 48 | 48 | | essential state employees; |
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| 49 | 49 | | (2) determine the amount of the essential worker |
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| 50 | 50 | | payment to which each eligible essential state employee is |
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| 51 | 51 | | entitled; and |
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| 52 | 52 | | (3) distribute money to state agencies to make |
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| 53 | 53 | | essential worker payments to eligible essential state employees |
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| 54 | 54 | | employed by the agencies. |
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| 55 | 55 | | SECTION 4. APPROPRIATION; USE OF APPROPRIATED MONEY. (a) |
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| 56 | 56 | | Notwithstanding Chapter 1053 (S.B. 1), Acts of the 87th |
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| 57 | 57 | | Legislature, Regular Session, 2021 (the General Appropriations |
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| 58 | 58 | | Act), or any other law, the amount necessary to provide an essential |
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| 59 | 59 | | worker payment to each eligible essential state employee under |
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| 60 | 60 | | Section 2 of this Act is appropriated from federal money provided to |
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| 61 | 61 | | this state from the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery |
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| 62 | 62 | | Funds under Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 |
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| 63 | 63 | | (Pub. L. No. 117-2) to the comptroller for the two-year period |
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| 64 | 64 | | beginning on the effective date of this Act for distribution to |
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| 65 | 65 | | state agencies on the basis of the number of eligible essential |
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| 66 | 66 | | state employees employed by each state agency on September 1, 2021. |
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| 67 | 67 | | The comptroller shall distribute the money appropriated by this |
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| 68 | 68 | | section as soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 69 | 69 | | (b) A state agency may use money distributed under |
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| 70 | 70 | | Subsection (a) of this section only to provide essential worker |
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| 71 | 71 | | payments to eligible essential state employees employed by the |
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| 72 | 72 | | agency in accordance with Section 2 of this Act. |
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| 73 | 73 | | SECTION 5. EXPIRATION. This Act expires February 1, 2024. |
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| 74 | 74 | | SECTION 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect |
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| 75 | 75 | | immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members |
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| 76 | 76 | | elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas |
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| 77 | 77 | | Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for |
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| 78 | 78 | | immediate effect, this Act takes effect on the 91st day after the |
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| 79 | 79 | | last day of the legislative session. |
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