HBA-TYH H.B. 362 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 362 By: Hupp Pensions and Investments 2/17/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, state law requires schools to give insurance benefits to out-of-state employees. The impact of this bill is, for the most part, limited to the University of Central Texas, which competes against many non-Texas colleges for federal contracts to provide educational instruction abroad to U.S. servicemen and women. Most other states do not require their colleges to give insurance benefits to out-of-state employees under their state plans, which allows those schools to submit much lower bids for projects. Moreover, many of the benefits provided by the Texas program are not applicable to foreign residents. H.B. 362 gives community/junior colleges the flexibility to decide whether they want to give out-of-state employees insurance benefits under the Texas Uniform Group Insurance Benefits Act. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Article 3.50-2, Vernon's Texas Insurance Code (Texas Employees Uniform Group Insurance Benefits Act), by adding Section 13C, as follows: Sec. 13C. CERTAIN EMPLOYEES INELIGIBLE. Provides that an employee of a public community/junior college who is employed to perform services outside of this state is not eligible to participate in group programs under this Act, unless the college, in accordance with adopted procedures, permits the employee to participate. Provides that, under this section, an employee is considered employed to perform services outside of this state if 75 percent or more of the services rendered are performed outside of this state. Exempts from this section a person employed by the public community/junior college on August 31, 1999, and specifies that the person remains eligible to participate in the group programs provided by this Act even if the person's employment by the college is not continuous. SECTION 2. Amends Section 13(c), Article 3.50-2, Vernon's Texas Insurance Code (Texas Employees Uniform Group Insurance Benefits Act), to make conforming changes. SECTION 3. Effective date: August 31, 1999. SECTION 4. Specifies that, not withstanding Section 13C, an employee hired after the effective date of this Act, to perform services outside of this state, is still eligible to participate in the group program if the program is provided under an insurance policy, contract, or other agreement that is in effect on the effective date of this Act and requires that the employee be eligible to participate in the program provided. Provides that this eligibility terminates on the date that the insurance policy, contract, or other agreement is terminated or renewed. SECTION 5. Emergency clause.