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MEMORANDUM TO: Karl Louis, Chief of Police Larry W. Schenk, City Attorney~{~0 FROM: SUBJECT: Legal Implications of Implementing a Modified Two-week Work Schedule of Alternating Forty-four (44) Hours and Thirty-six (36) Hours for Paris Police Officers DATE: February 4, 2003 You have forwarded a copy of a memorandum addressed to City Manager Michael E. Malone dated December 2, 2002, a copy of which is appended hereto, whereby you proposed a new patrol- staffing plan to enable your patrol officers to work as much as twelve (12) hours in a single shift. To implement that plan, you propose a two-week work schedule in which officers would work forty- four (44) hours in one week and thirty-six (36) hours the second week, thereby totaling eighty (80) hours in the two (2) week period. The actual work week would consist of three (3) working days of twelve (12) hours in duration and the second work week would consist of three (3) days of twelve (12) hour shifts with one eight (8) hour day. You're proposal has been forwarded to this department to determine the Federal and State law implications, if any, of your proposal. With regard to the Federal statutes, your proposal does not appear to raise any serious implications relative to the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), other than the City Manager will need to make an administrative declaration to accept the partial overtime exemption available onder Section 207(k) of the FLSA and declare a fourteen (14) day workweek for all affected police patrol personnel prior to implementation of your plan.. With regard to State law, however, certain issues arise under Section 142.0015 of the Local Government Code. Section 142.0015(0 provides as follows: "(f) A police officer may not, except as provided by subsection (g) or (j), be required to work more hoors during a calendar week than the number of hours in the normal work week of the majority of the employees of the municipality other than firefighters and police officers." Because the "normal work week" of a majority of the employees of the City of Paris, other than firefighters, consists of an even forty (40) hours per week, the provisions of subsection (f) cited above would prohibit your proposal unless the exceptions set out in subsections (g) or (j) apply. Subsection (g) allows officers to work more hours than permitted by subsection (f) in the event of an emergency and is not applicable to your inquiry. Subsection (j), however, provides as follows: