Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1858 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: West S.B. No. 1858
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the disclosure of criminal history record information
7	7	regarding public school employees.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Section 411.084, Government Code, is amended by
10	10	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (a-1) and (c) to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	(a) Criminal history record information obtained from the
13	13	department under this subchapter, including any identification
14	14	information that could reveal the identity of a person about whom
15	15	criminal history record information is requested and information
16	16	that directly or indirectly indicates or implies involvement of a
17	17	person in the criminal justice system:
18	18	(1) is for the exclusive use of the authorized
19	19	recipient of the information; and
20	20	(2) may be disclosed or used by the recipient only if,
21	21	and only to the extent that, disclosure or use is authorized or
22	22	directed by:
23	23	(A) this subchapter;
24	24	(B) another statute;
25	25	(C) a rule adopted under a statute; or
26	26	(D) an order of a court of competent
27	27	jurisdiction.
28	28	(a-1) The term "criminal history record" information under
29	29	Subsection (a) does not refer to any specific document produced to
30	30	comply with this subchapter but to the information contained,
31	31	wholly or partly, in a document's original form or any subsequent
32	32	form or use.
33	33	(c) An agency or individual may not confirm the existence or
34	34	nonexistence of criminal history record information to any person
35	35	that is not eligible to receive the information.
36	36	SECTION 2. Subsections (b) and (c), Section 411.090,
37	37	Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
38	38	(b) Criminal history record information obtained by the
39	39	board in the original form or any subsequent form [under Subsection
40	40	(a)]:
41	41	(1) may be used only for a [any] purpose related to the
42	42	issuance, denial, suspension, or cancellation of a certificate
43	43	issued by the board;
44	44	(2) may not be released to any person except:
45	45	(A) the person who is the subject of the
46	46	information;
47	47	(B) the Texas Education Agency;
48	48	(C) a local or regional educational entity as
49	49	provided by Section 411.097; or
50	50	(D) by [on] court order [or with the consent of
51	51	the applicant for a certificate]; [and]
52	52	(3) is not subject to disclosure as provided by
53	53	Chapter 552; and
54	54	(4) shall be destroyed by the board after the
55	55	information is used for the authorized purposes.
56	56	(c) The department shall notify the State Board for Educator
57	57	Certification of the arrest of any educator, as defined by Section
58	58	5.001, Education Code, who has fingerprints on file with the
59	59	department. Any record of the notification and any information
60	60	contained in the notification is not subject to disclosure as
61	61	provided by Chapter 552.
62	62	SECTION 3. Section 411.0901, Government Code, is amended to
63	63	read as follows:
64	64	Sec. 411.0901. ACCESS TO CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD
65	65	INFORMATION: TEXAS EDUCATION AGENCY. (a) The Texas Education
66	66	Agency is entitled to obtain criminal history record information
67	67	maintained by the department about a person who:
68	68	(1) is employed or is an applicant for employment by a
69	69	school district or open-enrollment charter school;
70	70	(2) is employed or is an applicant for employment by a
71	71	shared services arrangement, if the employee's or applicant's
72	72	duties are or will be performed on school property or at another
73	73	location where students are regularly present; or
74	74	(3) is employed or is an applicant for employment by an
75	75	entity that contracts with a school district, open-enrollment
76	76	charter school, or shared services arrangement if:
77	77	(A) the employee or applicant has or will have
78	78	continuing duties relating to the contracted services; and
79	79	(B) the employee or applicant has or will have
80	80	direct contact with students.
81	81	(b) Criminal history record information obtained by the
82	82	agency in the original form or any subsequent form:
83	83	(1) may be used only for a purpose authorized by the
84	84	Education Code;
85	85	(2) may not be released to any person except:
86	86	(A) the person who is the subject of the
87	87	information;
88	88	(B) the State Board for Educator Certification;
89	89	(C) a local or regional educational entity as
90	90	provided by Section 411.097; or
91	91	(D) by court order;
92	92	(3) is not subject to disclosure as provided by
93	93	Chapter 552; and
94	94	(4) shall be destroyed by the agency after the
95	95	information is used for the authorized purposes.
96	96	SECTION 4. Section 411.097, Government Code, is amended by
97	97	amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (f) to read as
98	98	follows:
99	99	(d) Criminal history record information obtained by a
100	100	school district, charter school, private school, service center,
101	101	commercial transportation company, or shared services arrangement
102	102	in the original form or any subsequent form:
103	103	(1) [under Subsection (a), (b), or (c)] may not be
104	104	released [or disclosed] to any person except:
105	105	(A) [, other than] the individual who is the
106	106	subject of the information;
107	107	(B) [,] the Texas Education Agency;
108	108	(C) [,] the State Board for Educator
109	109	Certification;
110	110	(D) [, or] the chief personnel officer of the
111	111	transportation company, if the information is obtained under
112	112	Subsection (a)(2); or
113	113	(E) by court order;
114	114	(2) is not subject to disclosure as provided by
115	115	Chapter 552; and
116	116	(3) shall be destroyed by the school district, charter
117	117	school, private school, service center, commercial transportation
118	118	company, or shared services arrangement on the earlier of:
119	119	(A) the first anniversary of the date the
120	120	information was originally obtained; or
121	121	(B) the date the information is used for the
122	122	authorized purpose.
123	123	(f) An employee of a school district, charter school,
124	124	private school, regional education service center, commercial
125	125	transportation company, or education shared services arrangement
126	126	or an entity that contracts to provide services to a school
127	127	district, charter school, or shared services arrangement may
128	128	request from the employer a copy of any criminal history record
129	129	information relating to that employee that the employer has
130	130	obtained as provided by Subchapter C, Chapter 22, Education Code.
131	131	The employer may charge a fee to an employee requesting a copy of
132	132	the information in an amount not to exceed the actual cost of
133	133	copying the requested criminal history record information.
134	134	SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 22, Education Code, is
135	135	amended by adding Section 22.08391 to read as follows:
136	136	Sec. 22.08391. CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.
137	137	(a) Information collected about a person to comply with this
138	138	subchapter, including the person's name, address, phone number,
139	139	social security number, driver's license number, other
140	140	identification number, and fingerprint records:
141	141	(1) may not be released except:
142	142	(A) to comply with this subchapter;
143	143	(B) by court order; or
144	144	(C) with the consent of the person who is the
145	145	subject of the information;
146	146	(2) is not subject to disclosure as provided by
147	147	Chapter 552, Government Code; and
148	148	(3) shall be destroyed by the requestor or any
149	149	subsequent holder of the information not later than the first
150	150	anniversary of the date the information is received.
151	151	(b) Any criminal history record information received by the
152	152	State Board for Educator Certification as provided by this
153	153	subchapter is subject to Section 411.090(b), Government Code.
154	154	(c) Any criminal history record information received by the
155	155	agency as provided by this subchapter is subject to Section
156	156	411.0901(b), Government Code.
157	157	(d) Any criminal history record information received by a
158	158	school district, charter school, private school, regional
159	159	education service center, commercial transportation company, or
160	160	education shared services arrangement or an entity that contracts
161	161	to provide services to a school district, charter school, or shared
162	162	services arrangement as provided by this subchapter is subject to
163	163	Section 411.097(d), Government Code.
164	164	SECTION 6. The change in law made by this Act applies to
165	165	information collected, assembled, or maintained before, on, or
166	166	after the effective date of this Act.
167	167	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
168	168	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
169	169	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
170	170	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
171	171	Act takes effect September 1, 2009.