HBA-RBT H.B. 909 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 909
By: Coleman
State Affairs
4/12/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law permits an employer to ask a job applicant to reveal his or her
sexual orientation to the employer during the course of considering the job
applicant for employment.  H.B. 909 provides that it is an unlawful
employment practice to condition consideration for employment on the
disclosure of an applicant's sexual orientation in an application form,
during an interview, or by asking a person other than the applicant to
offer an assessment of the applicant's genuine or perceived sexual
orientation.  This bill exempts religious organizations, except that it
does apply to activities conducted for profit by a religious organization
to the extent that those activities are subject to federal taxation. 
 
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 Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Labor Code, by adding Section
21.0515, as follows: 

Sec.  21.0515.  PROHIBITED DISCRIMINATION IN EMPLOYMENT APPLICATIONS AND
INTERVIEWS.  Defines "religious organization."  Provides that it is an
unlawful employment practice to condition consideration for employment on
the disclosure of an applicant's sexual orientation in an application or
during an interview, or by asking a person other than the applicant to
offer an assessment of the applicant's genuine or perceived sexual
orientation.  Provides that this section does not apply to a religious
organization, except that it does apply to activities conducted for profit
by a religious organization to the extent that those activities are subject
to federal taxation under Section 511(a), Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
that section existed on September 1, 1999.   

SECTION 2.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.