HBA-NRS H.B. 3281 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3281 By: Walker Appropriations 4/4/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Texas Forest Service provides emergency service to volunteer fire departments in need of assistance to combat forest fires and other emergencies. Current law does not provide employees of the Texas Forest Service with compensatory pay for overtime worked in an emergency situation. House Bill 3281 authorizes employees of the Texas Forest Service to receive overtime compensation for work performed during an emergency and to be paid for unused compensation time accrued during an emergency. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 3281 amends the Government Code to authorize the Texas Forest Service to pay its employees overtime compensation for work done in an emergency and for unused compensatory time accrued while working during an emergency. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.