81R38971 EAH-D
By: Carona S.R. No. 1103
R E S O L U T I O N
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the State of Texas, 81st
Legislature, Regular Session, 2009, That Senate Rule 12.03 be
suspended in part as provided by Senate Rule 12.08 to enable the
conference committee appointed to resolve the differences on House
Bill 1831, relating to disaster preparedness and emergency
management and to certain vehicles used in emergencies, to consider
and take action on the following matter:
(1) Senate Rule 12.03(4) is suspended to permit the
committee to add the following text to SECTION 1.20 of the bill:
(13-a) "Police vehicle" means a vehicle [of a
governmental entity primarily] used by a peace officer, as defined
by Article 2.12, Code of Criminal Procedure, for law enforcement
purposes that:
(A) is owned or leased by a governmental entity;
(B) is owned or leased by the police department
of a private institution of higher education that commissions peace
officers under Section 51.212, Education Code; or
(C) is:
(i) a private vehicle owned or leased by the
peace officer; and
(ii) approved for use for law enforcement
purposes by the head of the law enforcement agency that employs the
peace officer, or by that person's designee, provided that use of
the private vehicle must, if applicable, comply with any rule
adopted by the commissioners court of a county under Section
170.001, Local Government Code, and that the private vehicle may
not be considered an authorized emergency vehicle for exemption
purposes under Section 228.054, 284.070, 366.178, or 370.177,
Transportation Code, unless the vehicle is marked.
Explanation: This change is necessary to ensure that a
private vehicle is marked in order to qualify for an exemption as an
authorized emergency vehicle.
(2) Senate Rule 12.03(4) is suspended to permit the
committee to add the following text to ARTICLE 6 of the bill:
SECTION 6.01. The heading to Section 37.108, Education
Code, is amended to read as follows:
Sec. 37.108. MULTIHAZARD EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN; SAFETY
AND SECURITY AUDIT.
SECTION 6.02. Section 37.108, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (b), and (c) and adding Subsections (c-1)
and (c-2) to read as follows:
(a) Each school district or public junior college district
shall adopt and implement a multihazard emergency operations plan
for use in the district's facilities [district schools]. The plan
must address mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery as
defined by the commissioner of education or commissioner of higher
education in conjunction with the governor's office of homeland
security. The plan must provide for:
(1) district employee training in responding to an
emergency;
(2) if the plan applies to a school district,
mandatory school drills and exercises to prepare district students
and employees for responding to an emergency;
(3) measures to ensure coordination with the
Department of State Health Services and local emergency management
agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire
departments in the event of an emergency; and
(4) the implementation of a safety and security audit
as required by Subsection (b).
(b) At least once every three years, each [a] school
district or public junior college district shall conduct a safety
and security audit of the district's facilities. To the extent
possible, a district shall follow safety and security audit
procedures developed by the Texas School Safety Center or a
comparable public or private entity.
(c) A school district or public junior college district
shall report the results of the safety and security audit conducted
under Subsection (b) to the district's board of trustees and, in the
manner required by the Texas School Safety Center, to the Texas
School Safety Center.
SECTION 6.03. Subchapter D, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 37.109 to read as follows:
Sec. 37.109. SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY COMMITTEE. (a) In
accordance with guidelines established by the Texas School Safety
Center, each school district shall establish a school safety and
security committee.
(b) The committee shall:
(1) participate on behalf of the district in
developing and implementing emergency plans consistent with the
district multihazard emergency operations plan required by Section
37.108(a) to ensure that the plans reflect specific campus,
facility, or support services needs;
(2) provide the district with any campus, facility, or
support services information required in connection with a safety
and security audit required by Section 37.108(b), a safety and
security audit report required by Section 37.108(c), or another
report required to be submitted by the district to the Texas School
Safety Center; and
(3) review each report required to be submitted by the
district to the Texas School Safety Center to ensure that the report
contains accurate and complete information regarding each campus,
facility, or support service in accordance with criteria
established by the center.
SECTION 6.04. Section 37.202, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.202. PURPOSE. The purpose of the center is to serve
as:
(1) a central location for school safety and security
information, including research, training, and technical
assistance related to successful school safety and security
programs; [and]
(2) a central registry of persons providing school
safety and security consulting services in the state; and
(3) a resource for the prevention of youth violence
and the promotion of safety in the state.
SECTION 6.05. Section 37.203(a), Education Code, as amended
by Chapters 258 (S.B. 11) and 263 (S.B. 103), Acts of the 80th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2007, is reenacted to read as
follows:
(a) The center is advised by a board of directors composed
of:
(1) the attorney general, or the attorney general's
designee;
(2) the commissioner, or the commissioner's designee;
(3) the executive director of the Texas Juvenile
Probation Commission, or the executive director's designee;
(4) the executive commissioner of the Texas Youth
Commission, or the executive commissioner's designee;
(5) the commissioner of the Department of State Health
Services, or the commissioner's designee;
(6) the commissioner of higher education, or the
commissioner's designee; and
(7) the following members appointed by the governor
with the advice and consent of the senate:
(A) a juvenile court judge;
(B) a member of a school district's board of
trustees;
(C) an administrator of a public primary school;
(D) an administrator of a public secondary
school;
(E) a member of the state parent-teacher
association;
(F) a teacher from a public primary or secondary
school;
(G) a public school superintendent who is a
member of the Texas Association of School Administrators;
(H) a school district police officer or a peace
officer whose primary duty consists of working in a public school;
and
(I) two members of the public.
SECTION 6.06. Section 37.203(b), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) Members of the board appointed under Subsection (a)(7)
[(a)(6)] serve staggered two-year terms, with the terms of the
members described by Subsections (a)(7)(A)-(E) [(a)(6)(A)-(E)]
expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered year and the terms of
the members described by Subsections (a)(7)(F)-(I) [(a)(6)(F)-(I)]
expiring on February 1 of each even-numbered year. A member may
serve more than one term.
SECTION 6.07. Section 37.207(a), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The center shall develop a model safety and security
audit procedure for use by school districts and public junior
college districts that includes:
(1) providing each district with guidelines [and a
training video] showing proper audit procedures;
(2) reviewing elements of each district audit[,
providing the results of the review to the district,] and making
recommendations for improvements in the state based on that review
[the audit]; and
(3) incorporating the findings of district audits in a
statewide report on school safety and security made available by
the center to the public.
SECTION 6.08. Section 37.209, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.209. CENTER WEBSITE. The center shall develop and
maintain an interactive Internet website that includes:
(1) quarterly news updates related to school safety
and security and violence prevention;
(2) school crime data;
(3) a schedule of training and special events; and
(4) a list of persons who [approved by the board to]
provide school safety or security consulting services in this state
and are registered in accordance with Section 37.2091
[presentations].
SECTION 6.09. Subchapter G, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
amended by adding Sections 37.2091 and 37.2121 to read as follows:
Sec. 37.2091. REGISTRY OF PERSONS PROVIDING SCHOOL SAFETY
OR SECURITY CONSULTING SERVICES. (a) In this section, "school
safety or security consulting services" includes any service
provided to a school district, institution of higher education,
district facility, or campus by a person consisting of advice,
information, recommendations, data collection, or safety and
security audit services relevant to school safety and security,
regardless of whether the person is paid for those services.
(b) The center shall establish a registry of persons
providing school safety or security consulting services in this
state.
(c) Each person providing school safety or security
consulting services in this state shall register with the center in
accordance with requirements established by the center. The
requirements must include provisions requiring a person
registering with the center to provide information regarding:
(1) the person's background, education, and experience
that are relevant to the person's ability to provide knowledgeable
and effective school safety or security consulting services; and
(2) any complaints or pending litigation relating to
the person's provision of school safety or security consulting
services.
(d) The registry is intended to serve only as an
informational resource for school districts and institutions of
higher education. The inclusion of a person in the registry is not
an indication of the person's qualifications or ability to provide
school safety or security consulting services or that the center
endorses the person's school safety or security consulting
services.
(e) The center shall include information regarding the
registry, including the number of persons registered and the
general degree of school safety or security experience possessed by
those persons, in the biennial report required by Section 37.216.
Sec. 37.2121. MEMORANDA OF UNDERSTANDING AND MUTUAL AID
AGREEMENTS. (a) The center shall identify and inform school
districts of the types of entities, including local and regional
authorities, other school districts, and emergency first
responders, with whom school districts should customarily make
efforts to enter into memoranda of understanding or mutual aid
agreements addressing issues that affect school safety and
security.
(b) The center shall develop guidelines regarding memoranda
of understanding and mutual aid agreements between school districts
and the entities identified in accordance with Subsection (a). The
guidelines:
(1) must include descriptions of the provisions that
should customarily be included in each memorandum or agreement with
a particular type of entity;
(2) may include sample language for those provisions;
and
(3) must be consistent with the Texas Statewide Mutual
Aid System established under Subchapter E-1, Chapter 418,
Government Code.
(c) The center shall encourage school districts to enter
into memoranda of understanding and mutual aid agreements with
entities identified in accordance with Subsection (a) that comply
with the guidelines developed under Subsection (b).
(d) Each school district that enters into a memorandum of
understanding or mutual aid agreement addressing issues that affect
school safety and security shall, at the center's request, provide
the following information to the center:
(1) the name of each entity with which the school
district has entered into a memorandum of understanding or mutual
aid agreement;
(2) the effective date of each memorandum or
agreement; and
(3) a summary of each memorandum or agreement.
(e) The center shall include information regarding the
center's efforts under this section in the report required by
Section 37.216.
SECTION 6.10. Section 37.213, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.213. PUBLIC JUNIOR COLLEGES [INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER
EDUCATION]. (a) In this section, "public junior college"
["institution of higher education"] has the meaning assigned by
Section 61.003.
(b) The center shall research best practices regarding
emergency preparedness of public junior colleges and serve as a
clearinghouse for that information.
(c) The center shall provide public junior colleges with
training, technical assistance, and published guidelines or
templates, as appropriate, in the following areas:
(1) multihazard emergency operations plan
development;
(2) drill and exercise development and
implementation;
(3) mutual aid agreements;
(4) identification of equipment and funds that may be
used by public junior colleges in an emergency; and
(5) reporting in accordance with 20 U.S.C. Section
1092(f) [An institution of higher education may use any appropriate
model plan developed by the center under Section 37.205(4).
[(c) The center may provide an institution of higher
education with on-site technical assistance and safety training.
[(d) The center may charge a fee to an institution of higher
education for assistance and training provided under Subsection
(c)].
SECTION 6.11. Section 37.216, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.216. BIENNIAL [ANNUAL] REPORT. (a) Not later than
January [September] 1 of each odd-numbered year, the board shall
provide a report to the governor, the legislature, the State Board
of Education, and the agency.
(b) The biennial [annual] report must include any findings
made by the center regarding school safety and security and the
center's functions, budget information, and strategic planning
initiatives of the center.
SECTION 6.12. Subchapter G, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 37.2161 to read as follows:
Sec. 37.2161. SCHOOL SAFETY AND SECURITY PROGRESS REPORT.
(a) The center shall periodically provide a school safety and
security progress report to the governor, the legislature, the
State Board of Education, and the agency that contains current
information regarding school safety and security in the school
districts and public junior college districts of this state based
on:
(1) elements of each district's multihazard emergency
operations plan required by Section 37.108(a);
(2) elements of each district's safety and security
audit required by Section 37.108(b); and
(3) any other report required to be submitted to the
center.
(b) The center shall establish guidelines regarding the
specific information to be included in the report required by this
section.
(c) The center may provide the report required by this
section in conjunction with the report required by Section 37.216.
SECTION 6.13. Subchapter E, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 51.217 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.217. MULTIHAZARD EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN; SAFETY
AND SECURITY AUDIT. (a) In this section, "institution" means a
general academic teaching institution, a medical and dental unit,
or other agency of higher education, as those terms are defined by
Section 61.003.
(b) An institution shall adopt and implement a multihazard
emergency operations plan for use at the institution. The plan must
address mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. The plan
must provide for:
(1) employee training in responding to an emergency;
(2) mandatory drills to prepare students, faculty, and
employees for responding to an emergency;
(3) measures to ensure coordination with the
Department of State Health Services, local emergency management
agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire
departments in the event of an emergency; and
(4) the implementation of a safety and security audit
as required by Subsection (c).
(c) At least once every three years, an institution shall
conduct a safety and security audit of the institution's
facilities. To the extent possible, an institution shall follow
safety and security audit procedures developed in consultation with
the division of emergency management of the office of the governor.
(d) An institution shall report the results of the safety
and security audit conducted under Subsection (c) to the
institution's board of regents and the division of emergency
management of the office of the governor.
(e) Except as provided by Subsection (f), any document or
information collected, developed, or produced during a safety and
security audit conducted under Subsection (c) is not subject to
disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code.
(f) A document relating to an institution's multihazard
emergency operations plan is subject to disclosure if the document
enables a person to:
(1) verify that the institution has established a plan
and determine the agencies involved in the development of the plan
and the agencies coordinating with the institution to respond to an
emergency, including the Department of State Health Services, local
emergency services agencies, law enforcement agencies, health
departments, and fire departments;
(2) verify that the institution's plan was reviewed
within the last 12 months and determine the specific review dates;
(3) verify that the plan addresses the four phases of
emergency management under Subsection (b);
(4) verify that institution employees have been
trained to respond to an emergency and determine the types of
training, the number of employees trained, and the person
conducting the training;
(5) verify that each campus has conducted mandatory
emergency drills and exercises in accordance with the plan and
determine the frequency of the drills;
(6) verify that the institution has completed a safety
and security audit under Subsection (c) and determine the date the
audit was conducted, the person conducting the audit, and the date
the institution presented the results of the audit to the board of
regents; and
(7) verify that the institution has addressed any
recommendations by the board of regents for improvement of the plan
and determine the institution's progress within the last 12 months.
SECTION 6.13a. Chapter 111, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subchapter I to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER I. UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON HURRICANE CENTER FOR
INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY
Sec. 111.121. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Board" means the board of regents of the
University of Houston System.
(2) "Center" means the University of Houston Hurricane
Center for Innovative Technology (UHC-IT) established under this
subchapter.
Sec. 111.122. ESTABLISHMENT. (a) The University of
Houston Hurricane Center for Innovative Technology is established
at the University of Houston.
(b) The organization, control, and management of the center
are vested in the board.
(c) The center shall be hosted by the university's College
of Engineering. Participation in the center's activities shall be
open to any faculty member of the university who is an active
researcher in the field of materials, nanotechnology, structural
engineering, designing of structures, or sensor technology, or in
another relevant field as determined by the university.
Sec. 111.123. PURPOSE. The center is created to:
(1) promote interdisciplinary research, education,
and training for the development of state-of-the-art products,
materials, systems, and technologies designed to mitigate the wind,
and asserted structural damages in the built environment and
offshore structures caused by hurricanes in the Gulf Coast region;
and
(2) develop protocols for the fast and efficient
recovery of the public and private sectors, including utilities,
hospitals, petrochemical industries, offshore platforms, and
municipalities and other local communities following a hurricane.
Sec. 111.124. POWERS AND DUTIES. The center shall:
(1) collaborate with appropriate federal, state, and
local agencies and private business or nonprofit entities as
necessary to coordinate efforts after a hurricane in the Gulf Coast
region;
(2) develop smart materials and devices for use in
hurricane protection and mitigation systems for structural
monitoring;
(3) develop anchor systems for window and door
screens, dwellings and other buildings, pipelines, and other
onshore and offshore structures to withstand hurricane wind damage;
(4) develop test facilities for evaluating the
performance of new products, materials, or techniques designed to
protect against hurricane wind damage;
(5) develop specifications and standards for products
used for protecting against hurricane wind damage;
(6) design buildings, houses, and other structures to
withstand hurricane wind damage; and
(7) provide hurricane-related educational programs,
seminars, conferences, and workshops to the community designed to
ensure safety, minimize loss of life, and mitigate the destruction
of property associated with hurricane wind damage.
Sec. 111.125. COLLABORATION WITH OTHER ENTITIES. The
University of Houston shall encourage public and private entities
to participate in or support the operation of the center and may
enter into an agreement with any public or private entity for that
purpose. An agreement may allow the center to provide information,
services, or other assistance to an entity in exchange for the
entity's participation or support.
Sec. 111.126. GIFTS AND GRANTS. The board may solicit,
accept, and administer gifts and grants from any public or private
source and use existing resources for the purposes of the center.
State funding is not available unless the legislature makes
specific appropriation for this purpose.
Sec. 111.127. PERSONNEL. The board may employ personnel
for the center as necessary.
SECTION 6.14. Section 418.004(10), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(10) "Local government entity" means a county,
incorporated city, independent school district, public junior
college district, emergency services district, other special
district, joint board, or other entity defined as a political
subdivision under the laws of this state that maintains the
capability to provide mutual aid.
SECTION 6.15. Section 37.210, Education Code, is repealed.
SECTION 6.17. A person providing school safety or security
consulting services in this state shall comply with Section
37.2091, Education Code, as added by this article, not later than
January 1, 2010.
SECTION 6.18. This article does not make an appropriation.
A provision in this article that creates a new governmental
program, creates a new entitlement, or imposes a new duty on a
governmental entity is not mandatory during a fiscal period for
which the legislature has not made a specific appropriation to
implement the provision.
SECTION 6.19. This article takes effect September 1, 2009.
Explanation: This change is necessary to require public
junior college districts to adopt and implement a multihazard
emergency operation plan, to establish school safety and security
committees, and to establish the University of Houston Hurricane
Center for Innovative Technology.
(3) Senate Rule 12.03(1) is suspended to permit the
committee to change text that is not in disagreement in SECTION 6.16
of the bill so that section reads as follows:
SECTION 6.16. Sections 37.108(c-1) and (c-2), and Sections
51.217(d) and (e), Education Code, as added by this article, apply
only to a request for documents or information that is received on
or after the effective date of this article. A request for
documents or information that was received before the effective
date of this article is governed by the law in effect on the date the
request was received, and the former law is continued in effect for
that purpose.
Explanation: This change is necessary to add a
cross-reference to Sections 51.217(d) and (e), Education Code, to
the transition provisions of the bill.