HBA-SEB C.S.S.B. 1664 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.S.B. 1664
By: Shapleigh
Pensions and Investments
5/6/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, in cities with populations of 500,000 to 600,000, an individual
who is transferred involuntarily from a position that does not participate
in a municipal retirement system for firefighters and police officers to a
position that does participate in such a system may not elect to remain
with the individual's original retirement system.  As a result, some
employees may lose time or credit within a pension fund.  

C.S.S.B. 1664 authorizes a person who is involuntarily transferred from a
position that does not participate in such a municipal retirement system to
a position that does participate in a system to elect to continue to be a
member of the person's original municipal retirement system.  This bill
also provides that a public retirement system that elects to participate in
the proportionate retirement program, which is a program of proportionate
benefits to qualified members of more than one public retirement system,
may do so without the approval of the participants of the retirement system
making the election. 

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 Section 803.101(f), Government Code, to provide that an
election to participate in the proportionate retirement program does not
require the approval of the participants in the public retirement system
making the election.   

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 803.003, Government Code, to authorize a person
to make an irrevocable election to continue membership in a municipal
retirement system if the person is involuntarily transferred from a
position included in a retirement system operated by a municipality that
does not participate in a statewide retirement system governed by Article
6243b, V.T.C.S. (Firemen and Policemen Pension Fund in Cities of 500,000 to
600,000), to a position included in the coverage of a retirement system
governed by that article.  Establishes that the decision must be made at
the time of transfer is irrevocable, and that this authorization applies
notwithstanding any other law.  Provides that an involuntary transfer is
determined by the employment rules that apply to the person immediately
before the time of the involuntary transfer. 

SECTION 3.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 4.  Emergency clause.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The substitute makes a conforming change in the caption. 

The substitute modifies the original by removing SECTION 1 of the original.
SECTION 1 of the original would have amended Section 803.0021, Government
Code, to provide that Sections 803.101(g) and 803.102(b) apply only to a
retirement system existing under Article 6243b, V.T.C.S  (Firemen and
Policemen Pension Fund in Cities of 500,000 to 600,000). 

The substitute redesignates SECTIONS 2-5 of the original to SECTIONS 1-4 of
the substitute.   

The substitute modifies SECTION 1, as redesignated, to amend Section
803.101(f), Government Code, to provide that an election to participate in
the proportionate retirement program does not require the approval of the
participants in the public retirement system making the election.  The
substitute would have established the same provision by adding a Subsection
(g). 

The substitute modifies the original in SECTION 2, as redesignated, by
amending Section 803.003, Government Code, rather than Section 803.102,
Government Code.  The substitute specifies that the election authorized to
be made is irrevocable.  The substitute makes nonsubstantive changes to the
original in this section.