Texas Attorney General Opinion: JC-310 Page: 1 of 5
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OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL STATE OF TEXAS
JOHN CORNYN
November 27, 2000
The Honorable Ken Armbrister Opinion No. JC-0310
Chair, Committee on Criminal Justice
Texas State Senate Re: Whether the municipal employee retirement
P.O. Box 12068 fund of the City of Fort Worth is a "fire fighter's
Austin, Texas 78711-2068 or police officer's pension fund" under section
143.073 of the Local Government Code, for
purposes of compensating a fire fighter or police
officer absent for a line of duty injury or illness
(RQ-0256-JC)
Dear Senator Armbrister:
You inquire about the construction of section 143.073 of the Local Government Code, a
provision of the fire fighters' and police officers' civil service law. Section 143.073 addresses leaves
of absence for fire fighters or police officers who are injured or become ill in the line of duty. Under
circumstances defined in subsection 143.073(b) of the Local Government Code, a fire fighter or
police officer may retire on pension until able to return to duty if "the municipality has a fire
fighter's or police officer's pension fund." You ask whether this benefit is available in a city such
as Fort Worth, which has a general pension fund covering all city employees. We conclude that this
benefit is not available to fire fighters and police officers employed by the City of Fort Worth.
The City of Fort Worth (the "City") has adopted chapter 143 ofthe Local Government Code,
which provides a civil service system for fire fighters and police officers. Pursuant to section
143.073, "[a] municipality shall provide to a fire fighter or police officer a leave of absence for an
illness or injury related to the person's line of duty." TEX. Loc. GOV'T CODE ANN. 143.073(a)
(Vernon 1999). The leave is with full pay for a period commensurate with the nature of the illness
or injury, and, if necessary, will continue for at least one year. Id. Subsections 143.073(b) and (c)
provide as follows:
(b) At the end of the one-year period, the municipality's
governing body may extend the line of duty illness or injury leave at
full or reduced pay. If the fire fighter's or police officer's salary is
reduced below 60 percent of the person's regular monthly salary and'Brief from Laetitia Coleman Brown, Assistant Fort Worth City Attorney, to Chair, Opinion Committee, Office
of the Attorney General (Aug. 25, 2000) (on file with Opinion Committee).
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Texas. Attorney-General's Office. Texas Attorney General Opinion: JC-310, text, November 27, 2000; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth274619/m1/1/: accessed May 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.