By: Muñoz, Jr. H.B. No. 993
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to sheriff's department civil service systems in certain
counties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Sec. 158.012, Local Government Code, is amended
by amending Subsection (a) to read as follows:
APPEALS. (a) A county employee who, on a final decision by
the commission, is demoted, suspended, or removed from the
employee's position may appeal the decision by filing a petition in
a district court in the county within 30 days after the date of the
decision. unless the employee chooses to appeal to a third-party
hearing examiner.
(b) An appeal under this section is under the substantial
evidence rule, and the judgment of the district court is appealable
as in other civil cases.
(c) If the district court renders judgment for the
petitioner, the court may order reinstatement of the employee,
payment of back pay, or other appropriate relief.
SECTION 2: Chapter 158, Local Government Code is amended by
adding Section 158.013 to read as follows:
Sec. 158.013. HEARING EXAMINERS. (a) A written notice for
a promotional bypass, demotion, or notice of disciplinary action,
as applicable, issued to an employee must state that in an appeal of
a termination, a suspension, a promotional bypass, or a recommended
demotion, the appealing employee may elect to appeal to an
independent third-party hearing examiner instead of to the
commission. The letter must also state that if the employee elects
to appeal to a hearing examiner, the employee waives all rights to
appeal to a district court except as provided by Subsection (j).
(b) To exercise the choice of appealing to a hearing
examiner, the appealing employee must submit to the commission a
written request as part of the original notice of appeal required
under this subchapter stating the employee's decision to appeal to
an independent third-party hearing examiner.
(c) The hearing examiner's decision is final and binding on
all parties. If the employee decides to appeal to an independent
third-party hearing examiner, the employee waives all rights to
appeal to a district court except as provided by Subsection (j).
(d) If the employee chooses to appeal to a hearing examiner,
the employee and the sheriff, or their designees, shall first
attempt to agree on the selection of an impartial hearing examiner.
If the parties do not agree on the selection of a hearing examiner
on or within 10 days after the date the appeal is filed, the
commission shall immediately request a list of seven qualified
neutral arbitrators from the American Arbitration Association or
the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, or their successors
in function. The employee and the sheriff, or their designees, may
agree on one of the seven neutral arbitrators on the list. If they
do not agree within five working days after the date they received
the list, each party or the party's designee shall alternate
striking a name from the list and the name remaining is the hearing
examiner. The parties or their designees shall agree on a date for
the hearing.
(e) The appeal hearing shall begin as soon as the hearing
examiner can be scheduled. If the hearing examiner cannot begin the
hearing within 45 calendar days after the date of selection, the
employee may, within two days after learning of that fact, call for
the selection of a new hearing examiner using the procedure
prescribed by Subsection (d).
(f) In each hearing conducted under this section, the
hearing examiner has the same duties and powers as the commission,
including the right to issue subpoenas.
(g) In a hearing conducted under this section, the parties
may agree to an expedited hearing procedure. Unless otherwise
agreed by the parties, in an expedited procedure the hearing
examiner shall render a decision on the appeal within 10 days after
the date the hearing ended.
(h) In an appeal that does not involve an expedited hearing
procedure, the hearing examiner shall make a reasonable effort to
render a decision on the appeal within 30 days after the date the
hearing ends or the briefs are filed. The hearing examiner's
inability to meet the time requirements imposed by this section
does not affect the hearing examiner's jurisdiction, the validity
of the disciplinary action, or the hearing examiner's final
decision.
(i) The hearing examiner's fees and expenses are shared
equally by the appealing employee and by the department. The costs
of a witness are paid by the party who calls the witness.
(j) A district court may hear an appeal of a hearing
examiner's award only on the grounds that the hearing examiner was
without jurisdiction or exceeded the hearing examiner's
jurisdiction or that the order was procured by fraud, collusion, or
other unlawful means or the ruling was arbitrary or capricious. An
appeal must be brought in the district court having jurisdiction in
the county in which the department is located. An appeal under this
Subsection is under the substantial evidence rule, and the judgment
of the district court is appealable as in other civil cases. An
appeal to district court must:
Be filed with the district court with proper jurisdiction
within 45 days after the hearing examiner issued their final
ruling; and
State clearly the basis for the appeal.
(k) The hearing examiner may uphold, reduce, or overturn the
discipline imposed on the employee.
(l) No evidence of lost compensation shall be required by
the hearing examiner to award the employee compensation. If the
suspension, termination, or demotion is overturned or reduced, the
employee is entitled to:
(1) full compensation for the actual time lost as a
result of the suspension at the rate of pay provided for the
position or class of service from which the employee was suspended
or terminated; restoration of or credit for any other benefits lost
as a result of the suspension, including sick leave, vacation
leave, and service credit in a retirement system. Standard payroll
deductions, if any, for retirement and other benefits restored
shall be made from the compensation paid, and the county shall make
its standard corresponding contributions, if any, to the retirement
system or other applicable benefit systems; and
(2) In the case of an overturning of a demotion, the
employee is entitled to the difference in compensation between the
position they were demoted from and the position they held between
the demotion and the ruling of the hearing examiners.
(m) If an employee is owed a monetary award for backpay
after the final decision of the hearing examiner is rendered, the
county's obligations are the same as those provided by Section
158.0372.
SECTION 5. 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 September 1, 2023.