By: Dominguez H.B. No. 101
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a one-time payment for certain state-employed essential
workers; making an appropriation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS. In this Act:
(1) "Comptroller" means the state comptroller of
public accounts.
(2) "Eligible essential state employee" means an
individual who:
(A) is a state employee; and
(B) was, during any part of the qualifying
period, an eligible worker.
(3) "Eligible worker" means a state employee who was
designated under 42 U.S.C. Section 802 as an essential critical
infrastructure worker.
(4) "Qualifying period" means the period beginning at
12:01 a.m. on March 13, 2020, and ending at 11:59 p.m. on September
13, 2021.
(5) "State agency" means a department, commission,
board, office, or other agency in the executive branch of state
government that is created by the constitution or a statute of this
state.
(6) "State employee" means an employee of a state
agency.
SECTION 2. ESSENTIAL WORKER PAYMENT; AMOUNT. (a) An
eligible essential state employee is entitled to an essential
worker payment.
(b) The amount of the essential worker payment to which an
eligible essential state employee is entitled is equal to the
lesser of:
(1) the product of:
(A) $2.00; and
(B) the number of hours the eligible essential
state employee worked for the state during the qualifying period
while designated an eligible worker; or
(2) $8,000.
(c) An essential worker payment is in addition to any other
salary or wage to which eligible essential state employees are
entitled under the terms of their employment.
SECTION 3. DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY. The comptroller,
in consultation with the Legislative Budget Board and the State
Auditor's Office, shall by rule establish the process to be used to:
(1) determine which state employees are eligible
essential state employees;
(2) determine the amount of the essential worker
payment to which each eligible essential state employee is
entitled; and
(3) distribute money to state agencies to make
essential worker payments to eligible essential state employees
employed by the agencies.
SECTION 4. APPROPRIATION; USE OF APPROPRIATED MONEY. (a)
Notwithstanding Chapter 1053 (S.B. 1), Acts of the 87th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2021 (the General Appropriations
Act), or any other law, the amount necessary to provide an essential
worker payment to each eligible essential state employee under
Section 2 of this Act is appropriated from federal money provided to
this state from the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery
Funds under Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
(Pub. L. No. 117-2) to the comptroller for the two-year period
beginning on the effective date of this Act for distribution to
state agencies on the basis of the number of eligible essential
state employees employed by each state agency on September 1, 2021.
The comptroller shall distribute the money appropriated by this
section as soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act.
(b) A state agency may use money distributed under
Subsection (a) of this section only to provide essential worker
payments to eligible essential state employees employed by the
agency in accordance with Section 2 of this Act.
SECTION 5. EXPIRATION. This Act expires February 1, 2024.
SECTION 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect
immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members
elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas
Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for
immediate effect, this Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
last day of the legislative session.