DEPARTMENT DIRECTOR; FISCAL OFFICER.

(a) After complying with the requirements of Subsection (h), the judges described by Section 76.002 shall appoint a department director who must meet, at a minimum, the eligibility requirements for officers established under Section 76.005.

(a-1) The department director shall perform or delegate the responsibility for performing the following duties:

(1) overseeing the daily operations of the department;

(2) preparing annually or biennially a budget for the department;

(3) negotiating and entering into contracts on behalf of the department;

(4) establishing policies and procedures for all functions of the department;

(5) developing personnel policies and procedures, including disciplinary proceedings; and

(6) establishing procedures and practices through which the department will address an employment-related grievance.

(b) The department director shall employ a sufficient number of officers and other employees to conduct presentence investigations, supervise and rehabilitate defendants placed on community supervision, enforce the conditions of community supervision, and staff community corrections facilities. A person employed under this subsection is an employee of the department and not of the judges or judicial districts.

(c) The judges described by Section 76.002 may appoint for the department a fiscal officer, other than the county auditor. The fiscal officer is responsible for:

(1) managing and protecting funds, fees, state aid, and receipts to the same extent that a county auditor manages county funds and funds of other local entities;

(2) ensuring that financial transactions of the department are lawful and allowable; and

(3) prescribing accounting procedures for the department.

(d) The judges described by Section 76.002 may appoint a person as fiscal officer only after investigating the person and determining that the person is:

(1) a person of unquestionably good moral character and intelligence; and

(2) a financial officer with at least two years' experience in auditing and accounting.

(e) A fiscal officer appointed under this section, before beginning employment and not later than the 20th day after the date of appointment, shall:

(1) take an oath stating that the person meets the qualifications required by this section and will not have a personal interest in any contract entered into by the department; and

(2) execute a good and sufficient surety bond that:

(A) is in the amount of $5,000 or more;

(B) is approved by and payable to the judges described by Section 76.002; and

(C) is conditioned on the faithful performance by the fiscal officer of the officer's duties.

(f) The judges described by Section 76.002 shall set the annual compensation of a fiscal officer appointed under this section, and the department shall pay all costs related to the functions of the fiscal officer.

(g) Subsections (c)-(f) do not diminish the rights of the following officers or entities to examine and audit accounts, records, receipts, and expenditures of a department:

(1) the county auditor of a county served by the department;

(2) the comptroller;

(3) the state auditor; and

(4) the division.

(h) When there is a vacancy in the position of department director, the judges described by Section 76.002 shall:

(1) publicly advertise the position;

(2) post a job description, the qualifications for the position, and the application requirements;

(3) conduct a competitive hiring process and adhere to state and federal equal employment opportunity laws; and

(4) review applicants who meet the posted qualifications and comply with the application requirements.