| 1 | 1 | | By: Ellis S.B. No. 1676 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Filed March 11, 2011; March 23, 2011, read |
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| 3 | 3 | | first time and referred to Committee on Criminal Justice; |
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| 4 | 4 | | April 7, 2011, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 7, |
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| 5 | 5 | | Nays 0; April 7, 2011, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 9 | 9 | | AN ACT |
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| 10 | 10 | | relating to educational and training requirements for certain peace |
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| 11 | 11 | | officers on ethical decision making. |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter F, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is |
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| 14 | 14 | | amended by adding Section 1701.260 to read as follows: |
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| 15 | 15 | | Sec. 1701.260. EDUCATION AND TRAINING PROGRAMS ON ETHICAL |
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| 16 | 16 | | DECISION MAKING. (a) The commission by rule shall require an |
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| 17 | 17 | | officer to complete an eight-hour training program on ethical |
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| 18 | 18 | | decision making once during the year beginning on September 1, |
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| 19 | 19 | | 2012, and once every 24 months for the two Commission on Law |
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| 20 | 20 | | Enforcement Officer Standards and Education training cycles |
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| 21 | 21 | | beginning September 1, 2013. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (b) The program described by Subsection (a) must be approved |
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| 23 | 23 | | by the commission and shall be conducted by the governmental entity |
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| 24 | 24 | | that employs the officer. The program must include education and |
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| 25 | 25 | | training on: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (1) identification of ethical dilemmas in law |
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| 27 | 27 | | enforcement; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (2) stress inoculation, de-escalation, and crisis |
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| 29 | 29 | | management techniques; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (3) principles of ethics and decision making in law |
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| 31 | 31 | | enforcement as they relate to use of force; |
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| 32 | 32 | | (4) public accountability and police professionalism; |
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| 33 | 33 | | and |
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| 34 | 34 | | (5) application in scenario-based ethical dilemmas. |
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| 35 | 35 | | (c) A trainer of a course described by this section may use |
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| 36 | 36 | | curriculum and instructional materials developed by the |
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| 37 | 37 | | commission, a governmental entity conducting a course, and an |
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| 38 | 38 | | entity that has a training agreement with the commission. |
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| 39 | 39 | | (d) This section expires September 1, 2021. |
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| 40 | 40 | | SECTION 2. Not later than December 1, 2011, the Commission |
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| 41 | 41 | | on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education shall adopt the |
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| 42 | 42 | | rules necessary to implement Section 1701.260, Occupations Code, as |
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| 43 | 43 | | added by this Act. |
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| 44 | 44 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 45 | 45 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 46 | 46 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 47 | 47 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 48 | 48 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |
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| 49 | 49 | | * * * * * |
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