HBA-TBM C.S.H.B. 644 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 644
By: Jones, Delwin
County Affairs
4/29/2001
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

In 1987 the 70th Legislature amended the Local Government Code to provide
for salary grievance committees in each county to hear salary grievances by
county or precinct offices.  While the process may have worked well in some
counties, in other counties it has created alleged abuses which resulted in
certain county officials receiving salary increases in excess of what the
budget allowed and are not necessarily due to job performance.  C.S.H.B.
644 authorizes a county to abolish the county's salary grievance committee
by local 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. 

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 644 amends the Local Government Code to authorize the
commissioners court of a county to call an election on the question of
whether the county's salary grievance committee should be abolished. The
bill sets forth provisions regarding the administration of the election,
ballot requirements, and when the results of the election take effect.
These provisions apply only to a county with a population of 245,000 or
less in which the county seat is a municipality with a population of
195,000 or more.   

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.  
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 644 differs from the original by limiting the application of the
bill to a county with a population of 245,000 or less in which the county
seat is a municipality with a population of 195,000 or more.