Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB5229 Compare Versions

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1	1	88R11669 LRM-D
2	2	By: Wilson, Garcia H.B. No. 5229
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to an employment preference for members of the military
8	8	and their spouses for positions at state agencies.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 656.027, Government Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 656.027. MILITARY EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCE [FOR
13	13	VETERANS] ON STATE EMPLOYMENT FORMS. The commission shall include
14	14	on all forms relating to state agency employment that are
15	15	prescribed by the commission under this subchapter or other law a
16	16	statement regarding the requirement prescribed by Chapter 657 that
17	17	each state agency give a military [veterans] employment preference
18	18	until the agency workforce is composed of at least 20 [40] percent
19	19	individuals who qualify for a military employment preference under
20	20	Section 657.002 [veterans].
21	21	SECTION 2. The heading to Chapter 657, Government Code, is
22	22	amended to read as follows:
23	23	CHAPTER 657. MILITARY [VETERAN'S] EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCES
24	24	SECTION 3. Section 657.002, Government Code, is amended to
25	25	read as follows:
26	26	Sec. 657.002. INDIVIDUALS QUALIFIED FOR MILITARY
27	27	[VETERAN'S] EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCE. The following individuals
28	28	qualify for a military [veteran's] employment preference:
29	29	(1) a veteran, including a veteran with a disability;
30	30	(2) a veteran's surviving spouse who has not
31	31	remarried; [and]
32	32	(3) an orphan of a veteran if the veteran was killed
33	33	while on active duty; and
34	34	(4) the spouse of a member of the United States armed
35	35	forces or Texas National Guard serving on active duty.
36	36	SECTION 4. Section 657.003, Government Code, is amended to
37	37	read as follows:
38	38	Sec. 657.003. MILITARY [VETERAN'S] EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCE.
39	39	(a) An individual who qualifies for a military [veteran's]
40	40	employment preference is entitled to a preference in employment
41	41	with or appointment to a state agency over other applicants for the
42	42	same position who do not have a greater qualification.
43	43	(b) A state agency shall provide to an individual entitled
44	44	to a military [veteran's] employment preference for employment or
45	45	appointment over other applicants for the same position who do not
46	46	have a greater qualification a military [veteran's] employment
47	47	preference, in the following order of priority:
48	48	(1) a veteran with a disability;
49	49	(2) a veteran;
50	50	(3) a spouse of a member of the United States armed
51	51	forces or Texas National Guard serving on active duty as described
52	52	by Section 657.002(4);
53	53	(4) a veteran's surviving spouse who has not
54	54	remarried; and
55	55	(5) [(4)] an orphan of a veteran if the veteran was
56	56	killed while on active duty.
57	57	(c) If a state agency requires a competitive examination
58	58	under a merit system or civil service plan for selecting or
59	59	promoting employees, an individual entitled to a military
60	60	[veteran's] employment preference who otherwise is qualified for
61	61	that position and who has received at least the minimum required
62	62	score for the test is entitled to have a service credit of 10 points
63	63	added to the test score. A veteran with a disability is entitled to
64	64	have a service credit of five additional points added to the
65	65	individual's test score.
66	66	(d) An individual entitled to a military [veteran's]
67	67	employment preference is not disqualified from holding a position
68	68	with a state agency because of age or an established
69	69	service-connected disability if the age or disability does not make
70	70	the individual incompetent to perform the duties of the position.
71	71	SECTION 5. Section 657.0045, Government Code, is amended to
72	72	read as follows:
73	73	Sec. 657.0045. DESIGNATION OF OPEN POSITION FOR AND
74	74	IMMEDIATE HIRING OF INDIVIDUAL ENTITLED TO MILITARY [VETERAN'S]
75	75	EMPLOYMENT PREFERENCE. (a) A state agency may designate an open
76	76	position as a military preference [veteran's] position and only
77	77	accept applications for that position from individuals who are
78	78	entitled to a military [veteran's] employment preference under
79	79	Section 657.003.
80	80	(b) Notwithstanding any other law, a state agency may hire
81	81	or appoint for an open position within the agency an individual
82	82	entitled to a military [veteran's] employment preference under
83	83	Section 657.003 without announcing or advertising the position if
84	84	the agency:
85	85	(1) uses the automated labor exchange system
86	86	administered by the Texas Workforce Commission to identify an
87	87	individual who qualifies for a military [veteran's] employment
88	88	preference under this chapter; and
89	89	(2) determines the individual meets the
90	90	qualifications required for the position.
91	91	SECTION 6. Section 657.0046, Government Code, is amended to
92	92	read as follows:
93	93	Sec. 657.0046. STATE AGENCY [VETERAN'S] LIAISON FOR
94	94	VETERANS, MILITARY MEMBERS, AND THEIR DEPENDENTS. (a) Each state
95	95	agency that has at least 500 full-time equivalent positions shall
96	96	designate an individual from the agency to serve as a [veteran's]
97	97	liaison for veterans, military members, and their dependents.
98	98	(b) A state agency that has fewer than 500 full-time
99	99	equivalent positions may designate an individual from the agency to
100	100	serve as the [a veteran's] liaison described by Subsection (a).
101	101	(c) Each state agency that designates a [veteran's] liaison
102	102	under this section shall make available on the agency's Internet
103	103	website the liaison's individual work contact information.
104	104	SECTION 7. Section 657.0047, Government Code, is amended to
105	105	read as follows:
106	106	Sec. 657.0047. INTERVIEWS AT STATE AGENCIES. (a) For each
107	107	announced open position at a state agency, the state agency shall
108	108	interview:
109	109	(1) if the total number of individuals interviewed for
110	110	the position is six or fewer, at least one individual qualified for
111	111	a military [veteran's] employment preference under Section
112	112	657.003; or
113	113	(2) if the total number of individuals interviewed for
114	114	the position is more than six, a number of individuals qualified for
115	115	a military [veteran's] employment preference under Section 657.003
116	116	equal to at least 20 percent of the total number interviewed.
117	117	(b) A state agency that does not receive any applications
118	118	from individuals who qualify for a military [veteran's] employment
119	119	preference under Section 657.003 is not required to comply with
120	120	Subsection (a).
121	121	SECTION 8. Section 657.005(a), Government Code, is amended
122	122	to read as follows:
123	123	(a) The individual whose duty is to appoint or employ an
124	124	applicant for a position with a state agency or an officer or the
125	125	chief administrator of the agency who receives an application for
126	126	appointment or employment by an individual entitled to a military
127	127	[veteran's] employment preference, before appointing or employing
128	128	any individual, shall investigate the qualifications of the
129	129	applicant for the position.
130	130	SECTION 9. Section 657.010, Government Code, is amended to
131	131	read as follows:
132	132	Sec. 657.010. COMPLAINT REGARDING EMPLOYMENT DECISION OF
133	133	STATE AGENCY. (a) An individual entitled to a military [veteran's]
134	134	employment preference under this chapter who is aggrieved by a
135	135	decision of a state agency to which this chapter applies relating to
136	136	hiring or appointing the individual, or relating to retaining the
137	137	individual if the state agency reduces its workforce, may appeal
138	138	the decision by filing a written complaint with the executive
139	139	director of the state agency under this section.
140	140	(b) The executive director of a state agency that receives a
141	141	written complaint under Subsection (a) shall respond to the
142	142	complaint not later than the 15th business day after the date the
143	143	executive director receives the complaint. The executive director
144	144	may render a different hiring or appointment decision than the
145	145	decision that is the subject of the complaint if the executive
146	146	director determines that the military [veteran's] preference was
147	147	not applied.
148	148	SECTION 10. Section 32.54(b), Penal Code, is amended to
149	149	read as follows:
150	150	(b) A person commits an offense if the person:
151	151	(1) uses or claims to hold a military record that the
152	152	person knows:
153	153	(A) is fraudulent;
154	154	(B) is fictitious or has otherwise not been
155	155	granted or assigned to the person; or
156	156	(C) has been revoked; and
157	157	(2) uses or claims to hold that military record:
158	158	(A) in a written or oral advertisement or other
159	159	promotion of a business; or
160	160	(B) with the intent to:
161	161	(i) obtain priority in receiving services
162	162	or resources under Subchapter G, Chapter 302, Labor Code;
163	163	(ii) qualify for a military [veteran's]
164	164	employment preference under Chapter 657, Government Code;
165	165	(iii) obtain a license or certificate to
166	166	practice a trade, profession, or occupation;
167	167	(iv) obtain a promotion, compensation, or
168	168	other benefit, or an increase in compensation or other benefit, in
169	169	employment or in the practice of a trade, profession, or
170	170	occupation;
171	171	(v) obtain a benefit, service, or donation
172	172	from another person;
173	173	(vi) obtain admission to an educational
174	174	program in this state; or
175	175	(vii) gain a position in state government
176	176	with authority over another person, regardless of whether the actor
177	177	receives compensation for the position.
178	178	SECTION 11. The changes in law made by this Act to Chapter
179	179	657, Government Code, apply only to an open position with a state
180	180	agency for which the state agency begins accepting applications on
181	181	or after the effective date of this Act. An open position with a
182	182	state agency for which the state agency begins accepting
183	183	applications before the effective date of this Act is governed by
184	184	the law in effect on the date the state agency began accepting
185	185	applications, and the former law is continued in effect for that
186	186	purpose.
187	187	SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.