The bill, S.B. No. 1331, proposes to amend the Local Government Code regarding the municipal civil service system for firefighters and police officers in municipalities with populations under 70,000. Specifically, it allows the governing body of such municipalities to order an election to repeal the civil service system if a petition signed by at least 10 percent of qualified voters is submitted. The previous threshold for population was set at 950,000, which has now been removed from the law.

Additionally, the bill stipulates that the changes will only apply to petitions for which an election has not been ordered prior to the effective date of the Act. If an election has already been ordered, the previous law will remain in effect for that specific petition. The Act is set to take effect immediately upon receiving a two-thirds vote from both houses of the legislature, or on September 1, 2025, if such a vote is not achieved.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: Local Government Code 143.004 (Local Government Code 143)