► WPA's INFLUENCE IN THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE

Bill Biles Act -- Officer Disability
Statewide Meet & Confer

Bill Biles Act provides benefits to officers permanently disabled in the line of duty

Waco Officer Bill Biles and Gov. Rick Perry in 2001 -- the year Perry signed The Bill Biles Act into law. (CLEAT Photo)

Legislation named for former Waco Police Officer Bill Biles, which was passed in 2001 by the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas and the Waco Police Association, provides a state supplement to the income of Texas peace officers who become permanently disabled in the line of duty as the result of a criminal act.

Officer Biles became permanently disabled by a gunman in Cameron Park on July 16, 1996. It was his first day back at work after a week's vacation, and he was a mile from Cameron Park when he was called to a domestic disturbance there. His assailant, Kevin Scott, then 19, was on a bicycle talking with a female next to a parked car. When Officer Biles asked for identification, Scott dropped the bike and hit Biles in the head with his fist knocking him to the ground. As Biles reached for his duty weapon, Scott fired one shot into the officer's right chest disabling his arm.

As Biles sought cover, the man fired a second shot. The officer tripped over the bike and as he fell to the ground, a third shot was fired. The bullet hit Biles behind the earlobe and lodged in his neck.

"The next thing I knew, I was staring up at him with the gun aimed at my face. But when he pulled the trigger, it misfired," Biles said in a 1999 story that appeared in CLEAT's Family First Magazine. "That's the shot that saved me." 

The bullet that struck him behind the earlobe permanently damaged his equilibrium, making it impossible for him to maintain balance without support. 

At the time of the shooting, the City of Waco had no disability plan in place, so under pressure from consituents, the City Council agreed to pay the disabled officer's full salary until he reached retirement age -- all he had to do was come to the Council every year at budget time and "beg" for his pay. CLEAT denounced city politicians for putting Biles through the annual humiliation, so they agreed to extend the benefits until 2005. 

CLEAT first attempted to pass the disability legislation in 1999, but it wasn't until 2001 that lawmakers agreed to the proposal. Officer Biles worked tirelessly that year, retelling his horrific experience over and over to Texas lawmakers.

Seven years and hundreds of major legislative fights since, CLEAT Legislative Director Charley Wilkison says the struggle to pass The Bill Biles Act "will always be remembered as one of the toughest battles in our union's history."  

Officer Biles, now retired, didn't receive any benefits under the law bearing his name. But that was never his motivation."I didn't want anyone to ever have to go through what I went through," he said. 

Today, the City of Waco has a disability insurance plan that pays 50 percent of an employee's salary if a disabling injury occurs on duty. Back to top

WPA among first to gain Meet & Confer after passage of statewide law in 2005

Waco police officers were among the first in the state to take advantage of a new law passed in 2005 by the Texas Legislature allowing police unions and municipal governments to negotiate meet and confer agreements.  

The bill, now famously known as HB 304, was passed by the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas as a path around the state’s right-to-work law that forbids public employee unions from recognition.

After work behind the scenes by then WPA President Ken Reeves and others, the Waco City Council recognized the Waco Police Association as the sole and exclusive bargaining agent for Waco officers.

Fewer than 60 police departments out of more than 1,200 in Texas have the ability to sit with their employers and negotiate binding contracts for pay, benefits and working conditions. Back to top