(a) An employee is eligible to use time contributed to the county sick leave pool if:
(1) because of a catastrophic injury or illness, the employee has exhausted all the accrued paid leave and compensatory time to which the employee is otherwise entitled; and
(2) the employee is enrolled in the county sick leave pool, if the commissioners court requires enrollment under Section 157.073(a).
(b) An eligible employee must apply to the administrator for permission to use time in the county sick leave pool. If the administrator determines that the employee is eligible, the administrator shall approve the transfer of time from the pool to the employee. The administrator shall credit the time to the employee, and the employee may use the time in the same manner as sick leave earned by the employee in the course of employment.

(c) An eligible employee may not use time in the county sick leave pool in an amount that exceeds the lesser of one-third of the total amount of time in the pool or 180 days. The administrator shall determine the exact amount that an eligible employee may use.
(d) An employee absent on sick leave assigned from the county sick leave pool is treated for all purposes as if the employee were absent on earned sick leave.
(e) The estate of a deceased employee is not entitled to payment for unused sick leave acquired by that employee from the county sick leave pool.