Texas Public Employees Association wants state employees to be aware of legislative activities and developments affecting your job and career.

TPEA is sending this message to our members and to state employees who have participated at TPEA events and given us their e-mail addresses. TPEA also requested and received e-mail addresses as public information from a number of state agencies.

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REMEMBER: STATE EMPLOYEES SHOULD NOT USE STATE EQUIPMENT OR STATE TIME TO ENGAGE IN ANY TYPE OF LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY EFFORTS. This message should not be printed, replied to, or forwarded using state equipment, unless allowed by your agency's policies and procedures.

Legislature Completes Work in Special Session

The Third Special Session of the 79th Texas Legislature adjourned on Monday, May 15, having completed its work on lowering school property taxes and revising the state’s public education finance system. Governor Perry, Lt. Governor Dewhurst and Speaker Craddick are to be commended for leading the legislative response to the Texas Supreme Court ruling that threatened to close Texas public schools. This newspaper article explains the legislature’s actions.

The legislature passed five related bills that have been sent to Governor Perry, who has indicated he will sign them into law.  Under the measures local school property taxes will be decreased by 11 percent next year and by up to 33 percent in the following year.  In order to pay for these property tax reductions, a new broad-based business margins tax will replace the state’s outdated franchise tax; cigarette taxes will increase by $1 a pack on January 1; sales prices for used car sales will be tied to assumed “Blue Book” values; and, about $2.4 billion in the state’s current revenue surplus will be used.

The legislature also granted teachers and some other school district employees a $2000 a year pay raise.  This represents only the second time the legislature has mandated such a pay raise for local school district employees, traditionally pay and compensation issues have been a matter of local control. The legislature also increased funding for school districts to raise the level of equalized funding and to limit recapture from some wealthier school districts.

The one concern that has been raised from the state employee perspective is whether the legislature’s actions will create budgetary and fiscal problems in the next, and subsequent, legislative sessions.  Because the new revenue sources are dedicated to property tax reduction, and the baseline spending for public education was increased substantially, there likely will be less available funds to deal with the many challenges Texas faces.  See this newspaper article that discusses this issue.

Related Web Sites:
Statesman: Session ends with property tax cut.
Statesman: Bills for schools may slow spending.

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Consider Attending TPEA’s Annual Meeting in San Antonio, July 27-29

Texas Public Employees Association will hold its 60th Annual Professional Development Conference in San Antonio on July 27-29.  Under this year’s format the educational part of the schedule has been reduced to one day. The conference opens on Thursday evening, July 27, with the Unsung Hero Awards ceremony and reception.  Friday, July 28th is a full day of education combined with an exhibit hall, silent auction and meals and social events.  TPEA’s Annual Business Meeting will be held Saturday morning.

Until June 22, the registration fee to attend the conference is just $95. State employees should contact their agency to see if registration fees, lodging and other costs are reimbursable by the agency.  Some state agencies will reimburse registration fees and other expenses if continuing education is provided.  This year’s conference will award each attendee six hours of CPE credit.  Conference details and registration forms can be found on TPEA’s website at http://www.tpea.org/conference/. Should you have any additional questions, please call DJ Kyle at 512-476-2691 or email her at djkyle@tpea.org.

We hope to see you in San Antonio!

Related Web Site:
TPEA Conference Web Site

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ERS News: Interest rate for refunded ERS service credit will increase on September 1

If you plan to purchase refunded Employees Retirement System of Texas (ERS) service credit, please note that the interest rate will increase from 5 percent to 10 percent on September 1. See more information and a list of frequently asked questions on the ERS website.

The deadlines for purchasing service credit before the interest rate increases are:
The rollover request form to ERS must be postmarked by midnight August 1, 2006 (the deadline for rollovers is earlier than for other forms of payment, because ERS will send additional paperwork which must be submitted to the qualified plan so the rollover transaction can be completed before August 31).

Lump sum payments using cash, checks or money orders must be postmarked by midnight August 31, 2006.

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ERS Summer Enrollment is July 24-August 18

If you are a state employee eligible for the Texas Employees Group Benefits Program (GBP), administered by ERS, look for information in the mail in July on your Summer Enrollment opportunities. For Plan Year 2007, which begins September 1, 2006, Summer Enrollment is July 24-August 18.

There will be no benefit changes for Plan Year 2007. The State will continue to pay 100 percent of the health premiums for full-time employees and 50 percent of their dependents' premiums. However, if you are covering dependents on your health insurance, you will notice a slight increase in your HealthSelect or HMO rates.  You can see preliminary rates at http://www.ers.state.tx.us/Insurance/Rates/InsuranceRates_PY07.htm.

Check with ERS to make sure your home address on file is correct so you won't miss out on important information about Summer Enrollment opportunities. Visit ERS and click on the ERS OnLine Login button. You can also call ERS at (877) 275-4377 or in Austin at (512) 867-7711.

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TPEA has been building a new list of email addresses – ones that don’t go to State computers or workplaces and instead to home and web-based email accounts. Because you are receiving this email, we invite you to join the new list. Signing up will ensure that TPEA can keep you up-to-date on all issues concerning Texas State Employees.

Register your home or web-based email address.

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If you do not wish to remain on this list, you can unsubscribe by following the instructions at the end of this email.