SB2383

The exception is narrow: the person must be an Employees Retirement System of Texas retiree whose last position before retirement under that system was as a commissioned DPS officer, and must return to DPS as a commissioned officer. It does not cover every retired police officer or every civilian DPS retiree. Final law, new Government Code 411.007(h)–(i).

For those qualifying hires, three existing subsections no longer apply: the requirement of just cause for discharge and an appeal to the Public Safety Commission; the requirement that discharge, suspension or demotion be based on a specific commission-rule violation with a written statement of reasons; and the commission public-hearing and district-court judicial-review process for a discharge. These are the particular statutory protections removed—not a declaration that every other employment law or legal remedy disappears. Final law; Prior officer-employment law, subsections (e), (e-1) and (f); Agency definitions.

The bill leaves the section’s other provisions in place, including merit-based appointment rules and commission employment policies. It does not itself promise a job, set a new salary or change a pension benefit. The hire-date limit means the exception is not retroactively applied to someone hired before September 1, 2025. Final law; Prior officer-employment law.

Changes during passage: All five posted versions have the same operative text. The official amendment index lists no amendments, and both committees reported the bill without changes. Introduced; Senate committee; Senate-passed; House committee; Final law; Amendment index.

Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.

DPS gains flexibility in managing these returning retirees, while affected officers lose the specified statutory protections and appeal route. The bill does not establish how many retirees will be hired or discharged. The April 14 fiscal note anticipates no significant state or local fiscal impact and says DPS could absorb costs within existing resources. That budget estimate does not measure the value of lost job protections to an individual officer or prove staffing improvements. Final law; Official fiscal note.