The section lets certain members and death-benefit designees get retirement service credit for unused sick leave, and it requires department or agency disbursing officers and the retirement system to make related certifications and adjustments.
Sec. 813.509. CREDIT FOR ACCUMULATED SICK LEAVE. (a) A member who holds a position included in the employee class of membership during the month that includes the effective date of the member's retirement and who retires based on service or a disability is entitled to service credit in the retirement system for the member's sick leave that has accumulated and is unused on the last day of employment. (b) A death benefit designee under Section 814.301 or 814.302 of a member who holds a position included in the employee class of membership during the month that includes the member's date of death is entitled to service credit in the retirement system for the member's sick leave that has accumulated and is unused on the member's date of death. (c) Sick leave is creditable in the retirement system at the rate of one month of service credit for each 20 days, or 160 hours, of accumulated sick leave and one month for each fraction of days or hours remaining after division of the total hours of accumulated sick leave by 160. (d) Repealed by Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 618, Sec. 26(a)(3), eff. September 1, 2013. (e) Repealed by Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 618, Sec. 26(a)(3), eff. September 1, 2013. (f) Except as provided by Subsection (g), the disbursing officer of each department or agency shall, before the 11th day after the effective date of retirement or date of death of one or more employees of the department or agency, certify to the retirement system: (1) the name of each person: (A) whose retirement from the department or agency, and from state service, became effective during the preceding month; or (B) who died during the preceding month; and (2) the amount of the person's accumulated sick leave on the last day of employment or date of death. (g) The disbursing officer of a department or agency that employs a member who applies for retirement under Subsection (d) shall, not more than 90 or less than 30 days before the effective date of the member's retirement, certify to the retirement system the amount of the member's accumulated and unused sick leave. The officer shall immediately notify the retirement system if the member uses sick leave after the date of certification. (h) On receipt of a certification under Subsection (f) or (g), the retirement system shall grant any credit to which a retiring member or retiree who is a subject of the certification is entitled. An increase in the computation of an annuity because of credit provided by this section after a certification under Subsection (f) begins with the first payment that becomes due after certification. (i) The retirement system shall cancel the retirement of a person who used sick leave creditable under this section to qualify for service retirement if the sick leave is otherwise used by the person before the effective date of retirement. (j) In this section, "sick leave" does not include credit granted under an agency sick-leave pool or under the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (Pub. L. 103-3) and its subsequent amendments. (k) A member or a death benefit beneficiary of that member may use sick leave creditable under this section only for purposes of calculating the member's or beneficiary's annuity. Added by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1165, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Renumbered from Title 110B, Sec. 23.509 and amended by Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1100, Sec. 4.10(a), eff. Sept. 1, 1989. Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 791, Sec. 8, 56(1), eff. Sept. 1, 1993; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 586, Sec. 9, eff. Aug. 28, 1995; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1048, Sec. 10, eff. Sept. 1, 1997; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1231, Sec. 4, eff. Sept. 1, 2001. Amended by: Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 1308 (H.B. 2559), Sec. 7, eff. September 1, 2009. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 618 (S.B. 1459), Sec. 7, eff. September 1, 2013. Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 618 (S.B. 1459), Sec. 26(a)(3), eff. September 1, 2013.