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Texas Payroll/Personnel Resource

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Salary Adjustments for State Agency Employees
Line-Item Exempt Employees/Positions Salary Changes (Reason Code 029)

Changes in salary, job classification code or work hours for line-item exempt and unclassified employees must also be recorded according to statute.

The General Appropriation Act (GAA) establishes a maximum salary rate for line-item exempt employees. The amount listed in an agency’s appropriation pattern is the not-to-exceed amount for that position.

Generally, if an agency board or commission wishes to increase the salary of the executive director to an amount less than or equal to the not-to-exceed amount listed in the appropriation pattern, the board or commission must submit a letter to the governor, the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) and the Comptroller. The letter must specify the new salary, state that the new salary was approved in a public meeting, and be signed by the presiding officer.

There are specific exceptions to the authority listed in the preceding paragraph:

  • The salaries of those line-item exempt positions that are for elected officials are not-to-exceed amounts and cannot be increased.
  • The governor may establish the title and compensation rate for certain line-item exempt positions regardless of the listing under that agency’s appropriations (see GAA, Article IX, Section 3.04[b][3]). The compensation rate must be within the minimum and maximum salary established for the position’s group.

See the GAA, Article IX, Section 3.04(b)(2) for the current schedule of exempt position salary rates.

In the case of line-item exempt positions for the agencies listed in Article IX, Section 3.04(c)(6), the board or commission may request to set the rate at an amount within the minimum/maximum range. The request must be submitted by the board or commission and must include:

  • The date the board approved the request.
  • A statement to justify the need to exceed the limitation.
  • The source of funds that will be used to pay the increased amount.

Copies of the letter must be submitted to both the LBB and the governor. The request is considered approved if neither office issues a letter denying the request by no later than:

  • The 30th business day after the LBB staff concludes its analysis and forwards its review to the chair of the House Committee on Appropriations, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, the speaker of the House and the lieutenant governor.
  • The 30th business day after the receipt of the proposed increase by the governor.

Sources

Texas Government Code, Sections 659.251-259, 2101.035 and 2101.037; General Appropriations Act, Article V, Rider 7 – Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Rider 21 – Texas Juvenile Justice Department, Article IX, Part 2, Article IX, Parts 3.01-3.04 and 3.07; Texas Administrative Code, Section 5.41.