HB 343
| Fletcher Huffman | Relating to the reporting and recording of a motor vehicle accident involving an official vehicle driven by a peace officer, firefighter, or an emergency medical services employee in the course of official duties. |
| General Remarks: | Current law provides that the drivers license record of a peace officer may not include a traffic accident involving the officer “during an emergency”. This language was problematic because “emergency” was not defined in the law. Accidents involving minor damage and no injuries are generally not reported. However, many law enforcement agencies require any accident involving an officer to be investigated and that a report be filed. These minor accidents have be showing up on the officers drivers license records when the same accident for any citizen would not have. This has caused many officers insurance rates to increase when they should not have. CLEAT sought legislation to fix this. Rep. Allen Fletcher, a retired Houston police officer filed HB 343. The bill passed and was signed by the governor. The new law provides and exemption for officers involved in a traffic accident. The law will provide that an on-duty accident may not be included on an officer’s drivers record if the accident resulted in damages to property less than $1,000, even if the officer was at fault. Also, the law would provide that an on-duty accident in which the officer is not at fault may not be included on the officers’ drivers record regardless of injury or damages. |
| Last Action: | 9- 1-11 G Earliest effective date |
HB 554
| Howard, Donna Watson | Relating to the civil service status of emergency medical services personnel in certain municipalities. |
| General Remarks: | Unique to Austin and Travis County, emergency medical service personnel are not part of the Austin Fire Department. These first responders are employed by the City of Austin, but provide EMS and ambulance service to a large part of Travis County. Since these employees are not part of the fire department, they are not covered by the state civil service law and they are not members of the fire fighter union. They came to CLEAT and sought representation and were given special permission to join. CLEAT has worked with these employees to provide them with the protections and benefits enjoyed by other Austin civil service employees. Previously, CLEAT had helped Austin EMS pass legislation granting them meet and confer rights. This session HB 554 was filed to include them under state civil service. HB 554 passed and will allow an election to be held for the purpose of granting these employees the same civil service protection as police officers and fire fighters in Austin. |
| Last Action: | 6-17-11 G Earliest effective date |
HB 2605
| Taylor, Larry Huffman | Relating to the continuation and functions of the division of workers' compensation of the Texas Department of Insurance. |
| General Remarks: | HB 2605 was the Texas Workers’ Compensation Sunset Bill. Each year, the legislature is required to review various agencies that are scheduled for “sunset”. If the legislature does not re-enact the enabling legislation for the agency, then the agency would cease to exist. The Worker’s Compensation Division of the Texas Department of Insurance oversees workers compensation in Texas. The Texas Labor Code contains the various statutes that regulate Texas workers compensation. HB 2605 amended many of these provisions in the Labor Code and reauthorized the authority of TDI to oversee workers compensation. CLEAT had legislation filed to address the problems peace officers have encountered when injured in the line of duty. This legislation stalled in the House Committee on State Affairs. The original bill was filed by Rep. Joe Deshotel, D-Beaumont, and Senator Robert Deuell, R-Greenville. However, when the sunset bill moved to the House floor, CLEAT saw an opportunity to try and address this important issue. We prepared a floor amendment and Rep. Deshotel offered it during the debate on the House floor. There were efforts to kill this amendment, which was opposed by the Texas Municipal League and their workers’ compensation insurance risk pool. A motion to table the amendment was defeated by our supporters by a vote of 78-65. The bill then moved to the Senate where Senator Eddie Lucio, D-Brownsville, and Senator Deuell worked to keep the amendment in the bill. CLEAT visited with every member of the Texas Senate and obtained a big victory when Senator Huffman, the Senate sponsor, decided not to oppose the first responder amendment. The bill passed the Senate with changes from the original House bill, so the House had to consider these changes. At first, we were led to believe that the House would concur in the Senate amendments, but without warning they did not and the bill went to a conference committee. CLEAT lobbyists had to scramble over the Memorial Day weekend to ensure that our language remained in the final version of the bill called the conference committee report. We were successful and the Legislature adopted the conference committee report on the last day they were able to do so. HB 2605 creates Sections 504.054, 504.055, and 504.056 of the Labor Code. These sections provide that first responders, including peace officers, who are seriously injured in the line of duty are entitled to expedited consideration of workers compensation claims. The law will require an employer, the Workers Compensation Division, and workers compensation insurance companies to accelerate and give priority to an injured first responder’s claim for medical benefits, including all health care required to cure or relieve the effects from a compensable injury. The law will also provide that the Workers Compensation Division shall also accelerate contested case hearings or appeals submitted by a first responder regarding a denial of a claim for medical benefits. Because of these new provisions, we believe that much of the red tape associated with these claims will be avoided. It will force the parties to review these cases more closely and make sure officers are getting the care they need, when they need it. Governor Perry signed HB 2605 and it takes effect on September 1, 2011. |
| Last Action: | 9- 1-11 G Earliest effective date |
SB 423
| Lucio Menendez | Relating to health insurance coverage for eligible survivors of certain public servants killed in the line of duty. |
| General Remarks: | Several bills have been passed in the past to provide health insurance for the families of officers killed in the line of duty. SB 872 was passed in 2009 and clarified the families were entitled to insurance at the same premium rate paid by active employees. It provided that families could re-apply for insurance coverage, however some employers refused to allow families to re-apply if they were not on the employer’s insurance plan at the time of death. Some spouses were on their own employer’s insurance instead of the officers. SB 423 was filed to further clarify that the families could apply for coverage if they were eligible for coverage at the time of death, even if they were not on the plan at the time. The bill also provided another opportunity for survivors to re-apply for coverage, until September 1, 2012. As this bill moved the process, we discovered another problems. We were advised of a case out of Harris County where the sheriff’s department failed to file for the state death benefit for the survivors of a deputy killed in the line of duty and that the state was now denying payment. We discovered that the law did not make it clear that the employing agency was responsible for filing the death benefit. Trying to file for death benefits is the last thing a surviving spouse or family has on their mind when these tragedies occur. CLEAT prepared an amendment to SB 423 to make it clear that the department must file the claim. The amendment also allows a survivor who did not receive death benefits because the claim was not timely filed to re-apply for death benefits until September 30, 2011. This bill passed and was signed by the Governor on May 12, 2011 and took effect immediately. |
| Last Action: | 5-12-11 G Earliest effective date |
SB 543
| Hegar Taylor, Larry | Relating to a probate fee exemption for estates of certain law enforcement officers, firefighters, and others killed in the line of duty. |
| General Remarks: | In 2010, CLEAT met with Galveston County Probate Judge Kimberly Sullivan who had a great idea. She suggested that the family of a peace officer killed in the line of duty should not have to pay the probate fees associated with probating the will and estate of the officer. This is a benefit currently enjoyed by the surivors of US military personnel killed in the line of duty. Thus, SB 543 was born. CLEAT worked with Sen. Hegar and Rep. Taylor to get this bill to the Governor’s desk. Though other organizations have claimed this bill as their own, CLEAT was the only law enforcement organization to sign up and testify for SB 543 when it was considered by the Senate Committee on Jurisprudence. CLEAT also met with Judge Sullivan during the legislative session and went with her to various legislative offices to lobby for passage of this bill. The bill takes effect on September 1, 2011. |
| Last Action: | 9- 1-11 G Earliest effective date |
SB 844
| Patrick, Dan Hunter | Relating to the offense of escape from custody by a person lawfully detained. |
| General Remarks: | CLEAT discovered an appellate court opinion a few years ago that raised questions whether or not a person could be charged with the offense of escape if they escaped when lawfully detained. The court case referred to the “evading arrest or detention” statute and pointed out that the lawfully detained element was not included in the “escape” statute as it is for "evading arrest". For example, if a person is lawfully detained based on reasonable suspicion and placed in the back of a police vehicle while the officer conducts an investigation and the officer returns to find that the person has broken out and fled, could the person be charged with escape since the person was not technically “under arrest” for a specific offense at the time. If the officer did not see the person escape and activily pursue them, then they could not be charged with "evading arrest" either. Also, there was a concern whether or not a person could be charged with the offense of "escape" if they escaped from a police station. The law provides for escape from a "secure correctional facility" which includes prisons or county jails but does not include other facilities. SB 844 addressed these concerns by including the “lawfully detained” element into the escape statute. The bill also clarified that a person could be charged with "escape" if they escape from any “law enforcement facility”. This bill ran into numerous road blocks from defense lawyers and civil liberty organizations throughout the session, but we were able to craft a bill that addressed their concerns and this bill passed during the last week of the session. The bill was signed by the governor and takes effect on September 1, 2011. |
| Last Action: | 9- 1-11 G Earliest effective date |
SB 1010
| Huffman Workman | Relating to providing a victim, guardian of a victim, or close relative of a deceased victim with notice of a plea bargain agreement in certain criminal cases. |
| General Remarks: | CLEAT filed several bills to require a prosector to notify the survivors of an officers killed in the line of duty if they intend to offer a plea bargain in any case involving a defendant who was responsible for the officers death. These bills also allowed the family to make a statement to the judge in support or against the plea bargain. At the same time, Senator Huffman filed SB 1010 that requires the prosecutor to notify any victim or surviving family member of a victim if they intend to offer a plea bargaing. CLEAT supported this bill as well. SB 1010 passed and was signed by the governor. |
| Last Action: | 9- 1-11 G Earliest effective date |
SB 1600
| Whitmire King, Phil | Relating to the registration of peace officers as private security officers. |
| General Remarks: | After the start of the session, CLEAT learned of a problem in Arlington involving officers working extra employment at Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers games. These officers were being required to register with the Private Security Board because they were technically employed by a private security company. These employees were being paid by a subsidiary company of the Cowboys or Rangers that employed all of the event staff, including private security officers that work these events. These companies had to be licensed as security companies since they employed security officers. Current law did not include an exemption for officers employed by security companies. This same problem existed in Houston and Senator Whitmire filed SB 1600 to address it. CLEAT worked with Senator Whitmire and testified about the problem in Arlington during the committee hearing. The bill passed, and makes it clear that these officers are exempt from the Private Security Act. |
| Last Action: | 6-17-11 G Earliest effective date |
SB 1667
| Duncan Truitt | Relating to the administration of and benefits payable by the Teacher Retirement System of Texas and to certain domestic relations orders. |
| General Remarks: | CLEAT has worked for the last several sessions to try improve pension benefits for officers working for universities and school districts who are members of the Teachers Retirement System (TRS). They are not included in the 20-year law enforcement retirement fund currently in the Employee Retirement System of Texas. One of the road blocks associated with trying to seek changes was the fact that the TRS does not keep records identifying which members of the system are peace officers. Because of this, TRS is unable to accurately determine the fiscal impact of changing the retirement plan for these officers or moving them into the ERS fund. Senator Eddie Lucio, D-Brownsville, filed SB 464 which would have required that TRS track this information. At the request of Senator Lucio, this requirement was added into SB 1667 which passed and was signed by the governor. |
| Last Action: | 9- 1-11 G Earliest effective date |
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