The bill, S.B. No. 1321, aims to amend the Government Code and Occupations Code regarding compensation and leave for certain peace officers in Texas. It expands the definition of "state employee" to include commissioned law enforcement officers from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement and the insurance fraud unit of the Texas Department of Insurance. Additionally, it updates the list of entities that can commission peace officers, adding the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement to the existing list. The bill also allows the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement to commission certified peace officers as investigators and mandates that these officers be compensated according to Schedule C of the position classification salary schedule as prescribed by the General Appropriations Act.

Furthermore, the bill requires the classification officer in the state auditor's office to classify the position of commissioned peace officer employed by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement as a Schedule C position, effective from the state fiscal biennium beginning September 1, 2025. The provisions of the bill regarding injuries to peace officers will only apply to incidents occurring on or after the effective date. The bill is set to take effect on September 1, 2025, and includes a sunset provision that expires on September 1, 2027, for the classification change.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: Government Code 659.301, Government Code 661.918, Occupations Code 1701.160 (Government Code 661, Government Code 659, Occupations Code 1701)