| 1 | 1 | | 89R14004 JBD-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Harless H.B. No. 4205 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to compensation and employment benefits for law |
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| 10 | 10 | | enforcement personnel in certain counties. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Sections 174.003(3), (4), and (5), Local |
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| 13 | 13 | | Government Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (3) "Police officer" means a paid employee who is |
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| 15 | 15 | | sworn, certified or licensed by the Texas Commission on Law |
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| 16 | 16 | | Enforcement, and full-time, and who regularly serves in a |
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| 17 | 17 | | professional law enforcement capacity in the police department of a |
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| 18 | 18 | | political subdivision, the office of a district attorney as an |
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| 19 | 19 | | investigator, or the office of the county fire marshal. The term |
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| 20 | 20 | | does not include the chief of the department. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (4) "Political subdivision" includes a municipality |
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| 22 | 22 | | and a county. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (5) "Public employer" means the official or group of |
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| 24 | 24 | | officials of a political subdivision whose duty is to establish the |
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| 25 | 25 | | compensation, hours, and other conditions of employment of fire |
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| 26 | 26 | | fighters, police officers, or both, and may include the mayor, city |
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| 27 | 27 | | manager, town manager, town administrator, municipal governing |
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| 28 | 28 | | body, director of personnel, personnel board, commissioners, |
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| 29 | 29 | | commissioners court, or another official or combination of those |
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| 30 | 30 | | persons. |
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| 31 | 31 | | SECTION 2. Section 174.005, Local Government Code, is |
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| 32 | 32 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 33 | 33 | | Sec. 174.005. PREEMPTION OF OTHER LAW. This chapter |
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| 34 | 34 | | preempts all contrary local ordinances, executive orders, |
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| 35 | 35 | | legislation, or rules adopted by the state or by a political |
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| 36 | 36 | | subdivision or agent of the state, including a personnel board, |
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| 37 | 37 | | civil service commission, commissioners court, or home-rule |
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| 38 | 38 | | municipality. |
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| 39 | 39 | | SECTION 3. Subchapter Z, Chapter 152, Local Government |
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| 40 | 40 | | Code, is amended by adding Section 152.908 to read as follows: |
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| 41 | 41 | | Sec. 152.908. COMPENSATION PARITY FOR POLICE OFFICERS IN |
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| 42 | 42 | | CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) In this section, "police officer" has the |
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| 43 | 43 | | meaning assigned by Section 174.003. |
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| 44 | 44 | | (b) This section applies only to a county with a population |
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| 45 | 45 | | of 3.3 million or more. |
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| 46 | 46 | | (c) If the commissioners court of a county increases the |
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| 47 | 47 | | compensation or employment benefits for a class of police officers, |
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| 48 | 48 | | the commissioners court must increase by the same amount the |
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| 49 | 49 | | compensation or employment benefits to all police officers that are |
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| 50 | 50 | | within that class and who receive their compensation and employment |
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| 51 | 51 | | benefits primarily through county funding. |
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| 52 | 52 | | (d) The commissioners court of a county: |
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| 53 | 53 | | (1) shall provide funding to each law enforcement |
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| 54 | 54 | | agency, office, or department of the county necessary to provide |
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| 55 | 55 | | the increase in compensation or employment benefits required by |
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| 56 | 56 | | Subsection (c); and |
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| 57 | 57 | | (2) may not reduce a component of the budget of a law |
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| 58 | 58 | | enforcement agency, office, or department as a result of the |
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| 59 | 59 | | increase in compensation or employment benefits required by |
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| 60 | 60 | | Subsection (c). |
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| 61 | 61 | | SECTION 4. Section 152.908, Local Government Code, as added |
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| 62 | 62 | | by this Act, applies only to an increase in the compensation or |
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| 63 | 63 | | employment benefits for a class of police officers, as defined by |
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| 64 | 64 | | that section, that is adopted by the commissioners court of the |
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| 65 | 65 | | county on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 66 | 66 | | SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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