Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2323 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Carona S.B. No. 2323
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the functions of the Texas School Safety Center and
7	7	safety and security at public educational institutions.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. The heading to Section 37.108, Education Code,
10	10	is amended to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 37.108. MULTIHAZARD EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN; SAFETY
12	12	AND SECURITY AUDIT.
13	13	SECTION 2. Section 37.108, Education Code, is amended by
14	14	amending Subsections (a), (b), and (c) and adding Subsections
15	15	(c-1), (c-3), and (e) to read as follows:
16	16	(a) Each school district or institution of higher education
17	17	shall adopt and implement a multihazard emergency operations plan
18	18	for use in the district's facilities or in the institution of higher
19	19	education [district schools]. The plan must address mitigation,
20	20	preparedness, response, and recovery as defined by the commissioner
21	21	of education or commissioner of higher education in conjunction
22	22	with the governor's office of homeland security. The plan must
23	23	provide for:
24	24	(1) [district] employee training in responding to an
25	25	emergency;
26	26	(2) if the plan applies to a school district,
27	27	mandatory school drills and exercises to prepare district students
28	28	and employees for responding to an emergency;
29	29	(3) measures to ensure coordination with the
30	30	Department of State Health Services and local emergency management
31	31	agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire
32	32	departments in the event of an emergency; and
33	33	(4) the implementation of a safety and security audit
34	34	as required by Subsection (b).
35	35	(b) At least once every three years, each [a] school
36	36	district or institution of higher education shall conduct a safety
37	37	and security audit of the district's or institution's facilities.
38	38	To the extent possible, a district or institution of higher
39	39	education shall follow safety and security audit procedures
40	40	developed by the Texas School Safety Center or a comparable public
41	41	or private entity.
42	42	(c) A school district or institution of higher education
43	43	shall report the results of the safety and security audit conducted
44	44	under Subsection (b) to the district's board of trustees or the
45	45	institution's board of regents, as applicable, and, in the manner
46	46	required by the Texas School Safety Center, to the Texas School
47	47	Safety Center.
48	48	(c-1) Except as provided by Subsection (c-3), any document
49	49	or information collected, developed, or produced during a safety
50	50	and security audit conducted under Subsection (b) is not subject to
51	51	disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code.
52	52	(c-3) A document relating to an institution of higher
53	53	education's multihazard emergency operations plan is subject to
54	54	disclosure if the document enables a person to:
55	55	(1) verify that the institution has established a plan
56	56	and determine the agencies involved in the development of the plan
57	57	and the agencies coordinating with the institution to respond to an
58	58	emergency, including local emergency services agencies, law
59	59	enforcement agencies, and fire departments;
60	60	(2) verify that the institution's plan was reviewed
61	61	within the last 12 months and determine the specific review dates;
62	62	(3) verify that the plan addresses the four phases of
63	63	emergency management under Subsection (a);
64	64	(4) verify that institution employees have been
65	65	trained to respond to an emergency and determine the types of
66	66	training, the number of employees trained, and the person
67	67	conducting the training;
68	68	(5) verify that each campus of the institution has
69	69	conducted mandatory emergency drills and exercises in accordance
70	70	with the plan and determine the frequency of the drills;
71	71	(6) verify that the institution has completed a safety
72	72	and security audit under Subsection (b) and determine the date the
73	73	audit was conducted, the person conducting the audit, and the date
74	74	the institution presented the results of the audit to the board of
75	75	regents;
76	76	(7) verify that the institution has addressed any
77	77	recommendations by the board of regents for improvement of the plan
78	78	and determine the institution's progress within the last 12 months;
79	79	and
80	80	(8) verify that the institution has established a
81	81	visitor policy and identify the provisions governing access to an
82	82	institution building or other institution property.
83	83	(e) In this section, "institution of higher education" has
84	84	the meaning assigned by Section 61.003.
85	85	SECTION 3. Subchapter D, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
86	86	amended by adding Section 37.109 to read as follows:
87	87	Sec. 37.109. SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY COMMITTEE. (a) In
88	88	accordance with guidelines established by the Texas School Safety
89	89	Center, each school district shall establish a school safety and
90	90	security committee.
91	91	(b) The committee shall:
92	92	(1) participate on behalf of the district in
93	93	developing and implementing emergency plans consistent with the
94	94	district multihazard emergency operations plan required by Section
95	95	37.108(a) to ensure that the plans reflect specific campus,
96	96	facility, or support services needs;
97	97	(2) provide the district with any campus, facility, or
98	98	support services information required in connection with a safety
99	99	and security audit required by Section 37.108(b), a safety and
100	100	security audit report required by Section 37.108(c), or another
101	101	report required to be submitted by the district to the Texas School
102	102	Safety Center; and
103	103	(3) review each report required to be submitted by the
104	104	district to the Texas School Safety Center to ensure that the report
105	105	contains accurate and complete information regarding each campus,
106	106	facility, or support service in accordance with criteria
107	107	established by the center.
108	108	SECTION 4. Section 37.202, Education Code, is amended to
109	109	read as follows:
110	110	Sec. 37.202. PURPOSE. The purpose of the center is to serve
111	111	as:
112	112	(1) a central location for school safety and security
113	113	information, including research, training, and technical
114	114	assistance related to successful school safety and security
115	115	programs; [and]
116	116	(2) a central registry of persons providing school
117	117	safety and security consulting services in the state; and
118	118	(3) a resource for the prevention of youth violence
119	119	and the promotion of safety in the state.
120	120	SECTION 5. Subsection (a), Section 37.203, Education Code,
121	121	as amended by Chapters 258 (S.B. 11) and 263 (S.B. 103), Acts of the
122	122	80th Legislature, Regular Session, 2007, is reenacted to read as
123	123	follows:
124	124	(a) The center is advised by a board of directors composed
125	125	of:
126	126	(1) the attorney general, or the attorney general's
127	127	designee;
128	128	(2) the commissioner, or the commissioner's designee;
129	129	(3) the executive director of the Texas Juvenile
130	130	Probation Commission, or the executive director's designee;
131	131	(4) the executive commissioner of the Texas Youth
132	132	Commission, or the executive commissioner's designee;
133	133	(5) the commissioner of the Department of State Health
134	134	Services, or the commissioner's designee;
135	135	(6) the commissioner of higher education, or the
136	136	commissioner's designee; and
137	137	(7) the following members appointed by the governor
138	138	with the advice and consent of the senate:
139	139	(A) a juvenile court judge;
140	140	(B) a member of a school district's board of
141	141	trustees;
142	142	(C) an administrator of a public primary school;
143	143	(D) an administrator of a public secondary
144	144	school;
145	145	(E) a member of the state parent-teacher
146	146	association;
147	147	(F) a teacher from a public primary or secondary
148	148	school;
149	149	(G) a public school superintendent who is a
150	150	member of the Texas Association of School Administrators;
151	151	(H) a school district police officer or a peace
152	152	officer whose primary duty consists of working in a public school;
153	153	and
154	154	(I) two members of the public.
155	155	SECTION 6. Subsection (b), Section 37.203, Education Code,
156	156	is amended to read as follows:
157	157	(b) Members of the board appointed under Subsection (a)(7)
158	158	[(a)(6)] serve staggered two-year terms, with the terms of the
159	159	members described by Subsections (a)(7)(A)-(E) [(a)(6)(A)-(E)]
160	160	expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered year and the terms of
161	161	the members described by Subsections (a)(7)(F)-(I) [(a)(6)(F)-(I)]
162	162	expiring on February 1 of each even-numbered year. A member may
163	163	serve more than one term.
164	164	SECTION 7. Subsection (a), Section 37.207, Education Code,
165	165	is amended to read as follows:
166	166	(a) The center shall develop a model safety and security
167	167	audit procedure for use by school districts and institutions of
168	168	higher education that includes:
169	169	(1) providing each district or institution with
170	170	guidelines [and a training video] showing proper audit procedures;
171	171	(2) reviewing elements of each district or institution
172	172	audit[, providing the results of the review to the district,] and
173	173	making recommendations for improvements in the state based on that
174	174	review [the audit]; and
175	175	(3) incorporating the findings of district and
176	176	institution audits in a statewide report on school safety and
177	177	security made available by the center to the public.
178	178	SECTION 8. Section 37.209, Education Code, is amended to
179	179	read as follows:
180	180	Sec. 37.209. CENTER WEBSITE. The center shall develop and
181	181	maintain an interactive Internet website that includes:
182	182	(1) quarterly news updates related to school safety
183	183	and security and violence prevention;
184	184	(2) school crime data;
185	185	(3) a schedule of training and special events; and
186	186	(4) a list of persons who [approved by the board to]
187	187	provide school safety or security consulting services in this state
188	188	and are registered in accordance with Section 37.2091
189	189	[presentations].
190	190	SECTION 9. Subchapter G, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
191	191	amended by adding Sections 37.2091 and 37.2121 to read as follows:
192	192	Sec. 37.2091. REGISTRY OF PERSONS PROVIDING SCHOOL SAFETY
193	193	OR SECURITY CONSULTING SERVICES. (a) In this section, "school
194	194	safety or security consulting services" includes any service
195	195	provided to a school district, institution of higher education,
196	196	district facility, or campus by a person consisting of advice,
197	197	information, recommendations, data collection, or safety and
198	198	security audit services relevant to school safety and security,
199	199	regardless of whether the person is paid for those services.
200	200	(b) The center shall establish a registry of persons
201	201	providing school safety or security consulting services in this
202	202	state.
203	203	(c) Each person providing school safety or security
204	204	consulting services in this state shall register with the center in
205	205	accordance with requirements established by the center. The
206	206	requirements must include provisions requiring a person
207	207	registering with the center to provide information regarding:
208	208	(1) the person's background, education, and experience
209	209	that are relevant to the person's ability to provide knowledgeable
210	210	and effective school safety or security consulting services; and
211	211	(2) any complaints or pending litigation relating to
212	212	the person's provision of school safety or security consulting
213	213	services.
214	214	(d) The registry is intended to serve only as an
215	215	informational resource for school districts and institutions of
216	216	higher education. The inclusion of a person in the registry is not
217	217	an indication of the person's qualifications or ability to provide
218	218	school safety or security consulting services or that the center
219	219	endorses the person's school safety or security consulting
220	220	services.
221	221	(e) The center shall include information regarding the
222	222	registry, including the number of persons registered and the
223	223	general degree of school safety or security experience possessed by
224	224	those persons, in the biennial report required by Section 37.216.
225	225	Sec. 37.2121. MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING AND MUTUAL AID
226	226	AGREEMENTS. (a) The center shall identify and inform school
227	227	districts of the types of entities, including local and regional
228	228	authorities, other school districts, and emergency first
229	229	responders, with whom school districts should customarily make
230	230	efforts to enter into memoranda of understanding or mutual aid
231	231	agreements addressing issues that affect school safety and
232	232	security.
233	233	(b) The center shall develop guidelines regarding memoranda
234	234	of understanding and mutual aid agreements between school districts
235	235	and the entities identified in accordance with Subsection (a). The
236	236	guidelines:
237	237	(1) must include descriptions of the provisions that
238	238	should customarily be included in each memorandum or agreement with
239	239	a particular type of entity;
240	240	(2) may include sample language for those provisions;
241	241	and
242	242	(3) must be consistent with the Texas Statewide Mutual
243	243	Aid System established under Subchapter E-1, Chapter 418,
244	244	Government Code.
245	245	(c) The center shall encourage school districts to enter
246	246	into memoranda of understanding and mutual aid agreements with
247	247	entities identified in accordance with Subsection (a) that comply
248	248	with the guidelines developed under Subsection (b).
249	249	(d) Each school district that enters into a memorandum of
250	250	understanding or mutual aid agreement addressing issues that affect
251	251	school safety and security shall, at the center's request, provide
252	252	the following information to the center:
253	253	(1) the name of each entity with which the school
254	254	district has entered into a memorandum of understanding or mutual
255	255	aid agreement;
256	256	(2) the effective date of each memorandum or
257	257	agreement; and
258	258	(3) a summary of each memorandum or agreement.
259	259	(e) The center shall include information regarding the
260	260	center's efforts under this section in the report required by
261	261	Section 37.216.
262	262	SECTION 10. Section 37.213, Education Code, is amended to
263	263	read as follows:
264	264	Sec. 37.213. INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION. (a) In
265	265	this section, "institution of higher education" has the meaning
266	266	assigned by Section 61.003.
267	267	(b) The center, in cooperation with institutions of higher
268	268	education and the division of emergency management in the office of
269	269	the governor, shall coordinate the development of standards for
270	270	institutions of higher education in the following areas:
271	271	(1) multihazard emergency operations plans;
272	272	(2) drills and exercises;
273	273	(3) risk assessment and hazard identification on a
274	274	campus-specific and facility-specific basis to determine
275	275	appropriate campus and facility information for inclusion in
276	276	emergency operations plans; and
277	277	(4) required training for emergency management team
278	278	members.
279	279	(c) The center shall make standards developed under
280	280	Subsection (b) available to institutions of higher education
281	281	through a variety of readily accessible methods.
282	282	(d) The center shall provide institutions of higher
283	283	education with directed training, technical assistance, and
284	284	published guidelines to ensure understanding and implementation of
285	285	the standards developed under Subsection (b).
286	286	(e) The center shall research best practices regarding
287	287	emergency preparedness of institutions of higher education and
288	288	serve as a clearinghouse for that information.
289	289	(f) The center shall provide institutions of higher
290	290	education with training, technical assistance, and published
291	291	guidelines or templates, as appropriate, in the following areas:
292	292	(1) multihazard emergency operations plan
293	293	development;
294	294	(2) drill and exercise development and
295	295	implementation;
296	296	(3) mutual aid agreements;
297	297	(4) identification of equipment and funds that may be
298	298	used by institutions of higher education in an emergency; and
299	299	(5) reporting in accordance with 20 U.S.C. Section
300	300	1092(f) [An institution of higher education may use any appropriate
301	301	model plan developed by the center under Section 37.205(4).
302	302	[(c) The center may provide an institution of higher
303	303	education with on-site technical assistance and safety training.
304	304	[(d) The center may charge a fee to an institution of higher
305	305	education for assistance and training provided under Subsection
306	306	(c)].
307	307	SECTION 11. Section 37.216, Education Code, is amended to
308	308	read as follows:
309	309	Sec. 37.216. BIENNIAL [ANNUAL] REPORT. (a) Not later than
310	310	January [September] 1 of each odd-numbered year, the board shall
311	311	provide a report to the governor, the legislature, the State Board
312	312	of Education, and the agency.
313	313	(b) The biennial [annual] report must include any findings
314	314	made by the center regarding school safety and security and the
315	315	center's functions, budget information, and strategic planning
316	316	initiatives of the center.
317	317	SECTION 12. Subchapter G, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
318	318	amended by adding Section 37.2161 to read as follows:
319	319	Sec. 37.2161. SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY PROGRESS REPORT.
320	320	(a) The center shall periodically provide a school safety and
321	321	security progress report to the governor, the legislature, the
322	322	State Board of Education, and the agency that contains current
323	323	information regarding school safety and security in the school
324	324	districts and institutions of higher education of this state based
325	325	on:
326	326	(1) elements of each district's or institution's
327	327	multihazard emergency operations plan required by Section
328	328	37.108(a);
329	329	(2) elements of each district's or institution's
330	330	safety and security audit required by Section 37.108(b); and
331	331	(3) any other report required to be submitted to the
332	332	center.
333	333	(b) The center shall establish guidelines regarding the
334	334	specific information to be included in the report required by this
335	335	section.
336	336	(c) The center may provide the report required by this
337	337	section in conjunction with the report required by Section 37.216.
338	338	SECTION 13. Subdivision (10), Section 418.004, Government
339	339	Code, is amended to read as follows:
340	340	(10) "Local government entity" means a county,
341	341	incorporated city, independent school district, institution of
342	342	higher education, as defined by Section 61.003, Education Code,
343	343	emergency services district, other special district, joint board,
344	344	or other entity defined as a political subdivision under the laws of
345	345	this state that maintains the capability to provide mutual aid.
346	346	SECTION 14. Section 37.210, Education Code, is repealed.
347	347	SECTION 15. Subsections (c-1) and (c-3), Section 37.108,
348	348	Education Code, as added by this Act, apply only to a request for
349	349	documents or information that is received by an institution of
350	350	higher education on or after the effective date of this Act. A
351	351	request for documents or information that was received before the
352	352	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
353	353	date the request was received, and the former law is continued in
354	354	effect for that purpose.
355	355	SECTION 16. A person providing school safety or security
356	356	consulting services in this state shall comply with Section
357	357	37.2091, Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than
358	358	January 1, 2010.
359	359	SECTION 17. This Act does not make an appropriation. A
360	360	provision in this Act that creates a new governmental program,
361	361	creates a new entitlement, or imposes a new duty on a governmental
362	362	entity is not mandatory during a fiscal period for which the
363	363	legislature has not made a specific appropriation to implement the
364	364	provision.
365	365	SECTION 18. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.