Legislative Agenda for 2019
TSEA’s 2019 Legislative Agenda has been approved by our TSEA Board. In summary, we will be asking for at least a cost of living pay adjustment for all employees. Improved pay for those positions that are experiencing high turnover rates is also a priority. TSEA will also continue to work on caseload issues in DHS, DCS, and Probation & Parole. The agenda includes our continued battle for longevity for all state employees. Even objective third parties agreed that longevity is at least one solution to employee retention issues in some departments. Please check each week for updates to our legislative agenda and also for updates on meetings with the leaders of departments across state government.
Enhance state employee pay to protect the State’s investment in a quality workforce.
- TSEA supports sufficient appropriations to all state agencies and higher education to allow adequate pay increases.
- TSEA advocates an across-the-board pay raise of at least the cost of living average (COLA) in each year (with an appropriate minimum dollar increase).
- TSEA supports targeted pay raises for particular occupational group or agency group that have turnover rates exceeding 15 percent per annum.
Preserve affordable health benefits for state employees and retirees.
- TSEA supports continuation of the current contribution policy for the premiums of active employees, retired employees and their dependents (i.e., 80 percent of the employee or retiree premium and dependent premium).
- TSEA supports preservation of the basic benefit design for the state health plan.
- TSEA opposes any effort to reduce health benefits for retired state employees or dependents.
Continue to strengthen the retirement fund.
- TSEA advocates maintaining the defined benefit model that has historically rewarded hard-working employees who dedicate their careers to state service.
- TSEA supports maintaining the increased State and employee contributions to the TCRS pension fund to continue actuarial soundness over an infinite period of years and allow for a retiree annuity enhancement.
As TSEA members work to advance our positive agenda, we will also work to make sure that anti-public employee and anti-retiree legislative proposals put forward do not become law. Already, members of the General Assembly are drafting and filing legislation that will move forward our agenda, and your TSEA staff is working hard to monitor these actions.
As public employees, everything about our job is political; down to whether or not we even get to have a job. We cannot afford to ignore what happens at the State Capitol or in the political process.
Archived Legislative Updates
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