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Memorandum of Support: CLEAT Supports HB 1009

May 14, 2013 • Capitol Report

By Charley Wilkison
Director of Public Affairs

The Texas Senate should Act this week to pass HB 1009, for the protection of Texas School Children

The Texas Public Education Committee needs to push The Protection of Texas School children Act out onto the Senate floor and get it to the Governor before May 27th. The House has already passed this piece of much needed legislation. The bill creates a School Marshal program which will provide specialized training for school employees. Continue Reading »

Memorandum of Opposition: SB 1458 is BAD For School Police Officers

April 30, 2013 • Capitol Report

There are thousands of police officers employed by school districts and institutions of higher education. These officers participate in the Teachers Retirement System (TRS). CLEAT is opposed to SB 1458 by Duncan which proposes major plan changes to TRS. The bill will negatively impact the retirement of these officers. The bill will set the earliest retirement age at 62, regardless of years of service. Currently, plan members can retire at age 60 with 20 years of service or at age 50 with 30 years of service.

Under these changes, a new officer, hired at age 21, would have to work 41 years before being able to retire. There is plenty of evidence to suggest that this is an unreasonable expectation for police officers. The stress and physical demands of the job are widely recognized as justifiable reasons for peace officers to retire earlier than other employees. Even under federal law, law enforcement officers are able to retire and access deferred retirement accounts without penalty at age 50. Continue Reading »

Memorandum of Support for HB 13

April 17, 2013 • Capitol Report

April 16, 2013

The Honorable Bill Callegari
P.O. Box 2910
Austin, TX 78768

Mr. Chairman,

Thank you for authoring HB 13 insuring transparency in areas of taxpayer funded public employee retirements and the governmental systems that function to make sure they’re properly appropriated.

Your strong leadership and honest straight forward direction have created a climate of serious introspection in the law enforcement and first responder communities.

We believe, as you do, that the future of law enforcement retirements depends largely on the confidence of the unique financial partnership between the taxpayers and those who risk their lives daily to protect our communities, families and businesses. Continue Reading »