Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3977 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Rosenthal H.B. No. 3977
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6	6	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	relating to conditions of employment for firefighters employed by
9	9	certain political subdivisions.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 5, Local Government Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Chapter 174A to read as follows:
13	13	CHAPTER 174A. LOCAL CONTROL OF FIREFIGHTER EMPLOYMENT MATTERS IN
14	14	CERTAIN POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS
15	15	SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
16	16	Sec. 174A.001. APPLICABILITY. This chapter does not apply
17	17	to:
18	18	(1) a political subdivision that has adopted
19	19	Subchapter A, Chapter 158, by order or Chapter 174 by election; or
20	20	(2) a fire department that provides services
21	21	exclusively to a municipality.
22	22	Sec. 174A.002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
23	23	(1) "Covered firefighter" means a firefighter who is
24	24	employed by a political subdivision and who is not:
25	25	(A) the head of the fire department; or
26	26	(B) exempt from an employment agreement by the
27	27	mutual agreement of the recognized firefighters association and the
28	28	public employer.
29	29	(2) "Employment agreement" means an agreement
30	30	developed by a public employer and a firefighters association that
31	31	governs the conditions of employment of the public employer's
32	32	firefighters, such as grievances, labor disputes, wages, salaries,
33	33	rates of pay, hours of work, or other working conditions.
34	34	(3) "Firefighter" means a person who is defined as
35	35	fire protection personnel under Section 419.021, Government Code,
36	36	and who is employed by a political subdivision.
37	37	(4) "Firefighters association" means an employee
38	38	organization in which firefighters employed by a political
39	39	subdivision participate that exists for the purpose, wholly or
40	40	partly, of dealing with the political subdivision or public
41	41	employer concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages, salaries,
42	42	rates of pay, hours of work, or other working conditions affecting
43	43	firefighters.
44	44	(5) "Public employer" means a political subdivision or
45	45	the fire department of the political subdivision that is required
46	46	to establish the wages, salaries, rates of pay, hours of work, other
47	47	working conditions, and other terms and conditions of employment of
48	48	firefighters employed by the political subdivision.
49	49	Sec. 174A.003. EFFECT OF OTHER LAW. (a) This chapter
50	50	preempts all contrary:
51	51	(1) ordinances, orders, regulations, and similar
52	52	measures adopted by a political subdivision; and
53	53	(2) rules adopted by a state agency.
54	54	(b) Section 617.002, Government Code, does not apply to an
55	55	agreement made or an action taken under this chapter.
56	56	Sec. 174A.004. EFFECT ON EXISTING BENEFITS. This chapter
57	57	may not be construed as repealing any existing benefit provided by
58	58	state statute or ordinance, order, regulation, or similar measure
59	59	concerning firefighters' compensation, pensions, retirement plans,
60	60	hours of work, conditions of employment, or other emoluments,
61	61	except as expressly provided by a ratified employment agreement.
62	62	This chapter is in addition to the benefits provided by existing
63	63	statutes and ordinances, orders, regulations, or similar measures.
64	64	SUBCHAPTER B. RECOGNITION OF FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION AND STRIKE
65	65	PROHIBITION
66	66	Sec. 174A.051. PETITION FOR RECOGNITION: ACTION BY
67	67	GOVERNING BODY. Not later than the 30th day after the date the
68	68	governing body of a political subdivision receives from a
69	69	firefighters association a petition signed by the majority of all
70	70	covered firefighters employed by the political subdivision that
71	71	requests recognition of the association as the sole and exclusive
72	72	bargaining agent for all covered firefighters employed by the
73	73	political subdivision, the governing body shall determine by
74	74	majority vote whether to grant both:
75	75	(1) recognition of the association as requested in the
76	76	petition; and
77	77	(2) the public employer the authority to develop an
78	78	employment agreement under this chapter.
79	79	Sec. 174A.052. CHANGE OR MODIFICATION OF RECOGNITION. (a)
80	80	The firefighters may modify or change the recognition of the
81	81	association granted under this chapter by filing with the governing
82	82	body of the political subdivision a petition signed by a majority of
83	83	all covered firefighters.
84	84	(b) The governing body of the political subdivision shall
85	85	recognize the change or modification as provided by the petition.
86	86	Sec. 174A.053. RECOGNITION OF FIREFIGHTERS ASSOCIATION.
87	87	(a) A public employer in a political subdivision that chooses to
88	88	develop an employment agreement under this chapter shall recognize
89	89	an association that is recognized under Section 174A.051 or
90	90	174A.052 as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for the covered
91	91	firefighters employed by the political subdivision in accordance
92	92	with this chapter and the petition.
93	93	(b) A public employer shall recognize a firefighters
94	94	association until recognition of the association is withdrawn, in
95	95	accordance with Section 174A.052, by a majority of the covered
96	96	firefighters.
97	97	Sec. 174A.054. STRIKES PROHIBITED. (a) A firefighter
98	98	employed by a political subdivision may not engage in a strike or
99	99	organized work stoppage against the political subdivision.
100	100	(b) A firefighter who participates in a strike forfeits any
101	101	civil service rights, reemployment rights, and other rights,
102	102	benefits, or privileges the firefighter may have as a result of the
103	103	firefighter's employment or prior employment with the political
104	104	subdivision.
105	105	(c) This section does not affect the right of a person to
106	106	cease work if the person is not acting in concert with others in an
107	107	organized work stoppage.
108	108	SUBCHAPTER C. EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT
109	109	Sec. 174A.101. GENERAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO AGREEMENTS.
110	110	(a) A political subdivision acting under this chapter may not be
111	111	denied local control over the wages, salaries, rates of pay, hours
112	112	of work, other working conditions, or other terms and conditions of
113	113	employment to the extent the public employer and the firefighters
114	114	association recognized as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent
115	115	under this chapter agree as provided by this chapter, if the
116	116	agreement is ratified and not withdrawn in accordance with this
117	117	chapter. Applicable statutes and applicable local ordinances,
118	118	orders, or similar measures apply to an issue not governed by the
119	119	employment agreement.
120	120	(b) An employment agreement under this chapter must be in
121	121	writing.
122	122	(c) This chapter does not require a public employer or a
123	123	recognized firefighters association to meet on any issue or reach
124	124	an agreement.
125	125	(d) A public employer and a recognized firefighters
126	126	association may meet only if the association does not advocate an
127	127	illegal strike by public employees.
128	128	(e) While an employment agreement under this chapter
129	129	between a public employer and a recognized firefighters association
130	130	is in effect, the public employer may not accept a petition with
131	131	regard to the firefighters of the political subdivision requesting
132	132	an election to adopt collective bargaining under Chapter 174.
133	133	Sec. 174A.102. SELECTION OF BARGAINING AGENT; BARGAINING
134	134	UNIT. (a) A public employer's chief executive officer or the chief
135	135	executive officer's designee shall select one or more persons to
136	136	represent the public employer as its sole and exclusive bargaining
137	137	agent to bargain on issues related to the wages, salaries, rates of
138	138	pay, hours of work, and other working conditions and other terms and
139	139	conditions of employment of firefighters by the political
140	140	subdivision.
141	141	(b) A firefighters association may designate one or more
142	142	persons to bargain on the association's behalf.
143	143	(c) A political subdivision's bargaining unit is composed
144	144	of all the covered firefighters employed by the political
145	145	subdivision.
146	146	Sec. 174A.103. PROTECTED RIGHTS OF FIREFIGHTER. (a) For
147	147	any disciplinary appeal, a member of the political subdivision's
148	148	bargaining unit may be represented by the firefighters association
149	149	or by any person the member selects.
150	150	(b) An employment agreement ratified under this chapter may
151	151	not interfere with the right of a member of a bargaining unit to
152	152	pursue:
153	153	(1) allegations of discrimination based on race,
154	154	creed, color, national origin, religion, age, sex, or disability
155	155	with the Texas Workforce Commission civil rights division or the
156	156	federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; or
157	157	(2) affirmative action litigation.
158	158	Sec. 174A.104. OPEN RECORDS. (a) A proposed employment
159	159	agreement and a document prepared and used by a political
160	160	subdivision or public employer in connection with the proposed
161	161	agreement are available to the public under Chapter 552, Government
162	162	Code, only after the agreement is ready to be ratified by the
163	163	governing body of the political subdivision.
164	164	(b) This section does not affect the application of
165	165	Subchapter C, Chapter 552, Government Code, to a document prepared
166	166	and used in connection with the agreement.
167	167	Sec. 174A.105. OPEN DELIBERATIONS. (a) A deliberation
168	168	relating to bargaining between a public employer and a firefighters
169	169	association, a deliberation relating to an agreement or proposed
170	170	agreement under this chapter by a quorum of a firefighters
171	171	association authorized to bargain, or a deliberation by a quorum of
172	172	the sole and exclusive bargaining agent of the public employer
173	173	authorized to bargain must be open to the public and comply with
174	174	state law.
175	175	(b) Subsection (a) may not be construed to prohibit the
176	176	representative of the public employer or the representatives of the
177	177	firefighters association from conducting private caucuses that are
178	178	not open to the public during bargaining.
179	179	Sec. 174A.106. RATIFICATION AND ENFORCEABILITY OF
180	180	AGREEMENT. (a) An agreement under this chapter is enforceable and
181	181	binding on a public employer, a recognized firefighters
182	182	association, and the covered firefighters only if:
183	183	(1) the governing body of the political subdivision
184	184	ratifies the agreement by a majority vote; and
185	185	(2) the recognized firefighters association ratifies
186	186	the agreement by conducting a secret ballot election at which only
187	187	the firefighters employed by the political subdivision in the
188	188	association are eligible to vote, and a majority of the votes cast
189	189	at the election favor ratifying the agreement.
190	190	(b) An employment agreement ratified as described by
191	191	Subsection (a) may establish a procedure by which the parties agree
192	192	to resolve disputes related to a right, duty, or obligation
193	193	provided by the agreement, including binding arbitration on a
194	194	question involving interpretation of the agreement.
195	195	(c) A district court of a judicial district in which a
196	196	political subdivision is located has jurisdiction to hear and
197	197	resolve a dispute under the ratified employment agreement on the
198	198	application of a party to the agreement aggrieved by an action or
199	199	omission of the other party when the action or omission is related
200	200	to a right, duty, or obligation provided by the agreement. The court
201	201	may issue proper restraining orders, temporary and permanent
202	202	injunctions, or any other writ, order, or process, including
203	203	contempt orders, appropriate to enforcing the agreement.
204	204	Sec. 174A.107. ACTION TO TERMINATE AGREEMENT. The
205	205	governing body of a political subdivision and a firefighters
206	206	association may terminate an agreement before the agreement's date
207	207	of expiration only if both parties agree in writing to terminate the
208	208	agreement.
209	209	Sec. 174A.108. AGREEMENT SUPERSEDES CONFLICTING
210	210	PROVISIONS. A written employment agreement ratified under this
211	211	chapter preempts, during the term of the agreement and to the extent
212	212	of any conflict, all contrary:
213	213	(1) local ordinances, orders, civil service
214	214	provisions, rules adopted by the head of the fire department or
215	215	political subdivision or by a division or agent of the political
216	216	subdivision, such as a personnel board or a civil service
217	217	commission, and similar measures; and
218	218	(2) state statutes, executive orders, and rules
219	219	adopted by a state agency.
220	220	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.