By: Ellis S.B. No. 2372
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to property and evidence technicians.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Title 10, Occupations Code, is amended by adding
Chapter 1705 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 1705. PROPERTY AND EVIDENCE
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 1705.001. SHORT TITLE. This chapter may be cited as
the Texas Act for Property and Evidence (TAPE).
Sec. 1705.002. EVIDENCE TECHNICIANS. (a) In this section:
(1) "Evidence technician" means a person employed by
or serving a law enforcement agency who receives, preserves,
stores, disposes of, and accounts for any and all property and/or
evidence coming into the possession of the law enforcement agency.
People assigned to Property/Evidence Rooms may also be titled
"Property Control Officer", "Property Attendant", "Property
Specialist", or any other classification as long as the position is
assigned to the Property/Evidence Room.
(2) "Property" means any item submitted to the
Property/Evidence Room that does not have evidentiary value or is
not related to or alleged to be related to any criminal act. The
terms "abandoned", "unclaimed" and "found" may also be used to
further describe property submitted under this definition.
(3) "Evidence" means any item that tends to prove or
disprove that a criminal act occurred or can prove or disprove guilt
or innocence.
Sec. 1705.003. EVIDENCE TECHNICIANS CERTIFICATION.
(a) This state or a political subdivision of this state may not
appoint or employ a person to act as an evidence technician and/or
court clerk, unless the person has had at least eight hours of
evidence technician training as determined by the commission.
(b) The commission shall accredit evidence technician
training programs that fulfill the minimum requirements for an
evidence technician and/or court clerk. The commission shall adopt
rules providing for the accreditation of an evidence technician
training program developed and taught by the Texas Association of
Property and Evidence Inventory Technicians, the Department of
Public Safety, an institution of higher education, including a
junior college, community college, or technical school, or any
other entity approved by the commission.
(c) A person who completes an accredited training program
under this section may, by letter to the commission, request a
written acknowledgment from the commission that the person has met
the minimum requirements for an evidence technician as determined
by the commission. The request must be accompanied, in accordance
with commission rules, by evidence of satisfactory completion of an
accredited evidence technician training program. On a
determination by the commission that the person meets the minimum
requirements for an evidence technician, the commission shall issue
the written acknowledgment to the person.
(d) A person performing the duties of an evidence technician
and serving under permanent appointment on and before September 1,
2009, is not required to meet the requirements of this section as a
condition of continued employment.
(e) Notwithstanding this section, a person may be appointed
or serve as an evidence technician on a temporary or probationary
basis or may perform the duties of an evidence technician in an
emergency.
(f) A person appointed on a temporary or probationary basis
after September 1, 2009, who does not satisfactorily complete an
accredited evidence technician training program before the first
anniversary of the date the person is originally appointed shall be
removed from the position. The person's temporary or probationary
appointment may not be extended for more than one year except that
not earlier than the first anniversary of the date the person is
removed under this subsection, the employing agency may petition
the commission for reinstatement of the person to temporary or
probationary employment.