Texas 2011 - 82nd Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB545 Compare Versions

The same version is selected twice. Please select two different versions to compare.

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Seliger S.B. No. 545
2	2	(Driver)
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to employment records for law enforcement officers,
8	8	including procedures to correct employment termination reports;
9	9	providing an administrative penalty.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subsections (a) and (d), Section 1701.452,
12	12	Occupations Code, are amended to read as follows:
13	13	(a) The head of a law enforcement agency or the head's
14	14	designee shall submit a report to the commission on a form
15	15	prescribed by the commission regarding a person licensed under this
16	16	chapter who resigns or retires from employment with the law
17	17	enforcement agency, whose appointment with the law enforcement
18	18	agency is terminated, or who separates from the law enforcement
19	19	agency for any other reason. The report must be submitted by the
20	20	head or the designee not later than the seventh business day after
21	21	the date the license holder:
22	22	(1) resigns, retires, is terminated, or separates from
23	23	the agency; and [or]
24	24	(2) exhausts all administrative appeals available to
25	25	the license holder, if applicable [if the license holder was
26	26	terminated based on an allegation of misconduct].
27	27	(d) The head of the law enforcement agency from which a
28	28	license holder resigns, retires, is terminated, or separates for
29	29	reasons other than death, or the head's designee, shall provide to
30	30	the license holder a copy of the report. The report must be
31	31	provided to the license holder not later than the seventh business
32	32	day after the date the license holder:
33	33	(1) resigns, retires, is terminated, or separates from
34	34	the agency; and [or]
35	35	(2) exhausts all administrative appeals available to
36	36	the license holder, if applicable [if the license holder was
37	37	terminated based on an allegation of misconduct].
38	38	SECTION 2. The heading to Section 1701.4525, Occupations
39	39	Code, is amended to read as follows:
40	40	Sec. 1701.4525. PETITION [REQUEST] FOR CORRECTION OF
41	41	REPORT; HEARING; ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY[; HEARING; APPEAL].
42	42	SECTION 3. Section 1701.4525, Occupations Code, is amended
43	43	by amending Subsections (a), (d), and (e) and adding Subsection
44	44	(e-1) to read as follows:
45	45	(a) A person who is the subject of an employment termination
46	46	report maintained by the commission under this subchapter may
47	47	contest information contained in the report by submitting to the
48	48	law enforcement agency and to the commission a written petition on a
49	49	form prescribed by the commission [request] for a correction of the
50	50	report [and any evidence contesting the information contained in
51	51	the report] not later than the 30th day after the date the person
52	52	receives a copy of the report. On receipt of the petition, the
53	53	commission shall refer the petition to the State Office of
54	54	Administrative Hearings [The commission shall allow the head of the
55	55	law enforcement agency to submit to the commission any evidence
56	56	rebutting the evidence submitted by the person who is the subject of
57	57	the report].
58	58	(d) A proceeding [under Subsection (b)] to contest
59	59	information in [the commission's order or under Subsection (c) to
60	60	correct] an employment termination report is a contested case under
61	61	Chapter 2001, Government Code.
62	62	(e) In a proceeding [under Subsection (b)] to contest
63	63	information in [the commission's order or under Subsection (c) to
64	64	correct] an employment termination report for a [an order or]
65	65	report based on alleged misconduct, an administrative law judge
66	66	shall determine if the alleged misconduct occurred by a
67	67	preponderance of the evidence regardless of whether the person who
68	68	is the subject of the report was terminated or the person resigned,
69	69	retired, or separated in lieu of termination. If the alleged
70	70	misconduct is not supported by a preponderance of the evidence, the
71	71	administrative law judge shall order the report to be changed.
72	72	(e-1) The commission may assess an administrative penalty
73	73	against an agency head who fails to make a correction to an
74	74	employment termination report following an order by the State
75	75	Office of Administrative Hearings after all appeals available to
76	76	the agency head have been exhausted.
77	77	SECTION 4. Section 1701.454, Occupations Code, is amended
78	78	to read as follows:
79	79	Sec. 1701.454. CONFIDENTIALITY. (a) All information [A
80	80	report or statement] submitted to the commission under this
81	81	subchapter is confidential and is not subject to disclosure under
82	82	Chapter 552, Government Code, unless the person resigned or was
83	83	terminated due to substantiated incidents of excessive force or
84	84	violations of the law other than traffic offenses.
85	85	(b) Except as provided by this subchapter, a commission
86	86	member or other person may not release information [the contents of
87	87	a report or statement] submitted under this subchapter.
88	88	SECTION 5. Section 1701.455, Occupations Code, is amended
89	89	to read as follows:
90	90	Sec. 1701.455. SUBPOENA. Information [A report or
91	91	statement] submitted to the commission under this subchapter is
92	92	subject to subpoena only in a judicial proceeding.
93	93	SECTION 6. Subsections (b) and (c), Section 1701.4525,
94	94	Occupations Code, are repealed.
95	95	SECTION 7. (a) The changes in law made by this Act to
96	96	Section 1701.452, Occupations Code, apply only to a license holder
97	97	who resigns, retires, is terminated, or separates from a law
98	98	enforcement agency on or after the effective date of this Act. A
99	99	license holder who resigns, retires, is terminated, or separates
100	100	from a law enforcement agency before the effective date of this Act
101	101	is governed by the law in effect on the date of the resignation,
102	102	retirement, termination, or separation, and the former law is
103	103	continued in effect for that purpose.
104	104	(b) The changes in law made by this Act to Section
105	105	1701.4525, Occupations Code, apply only to a petition for a
106	106	correction of an employment termination report submitted on or
107	107	after the effective date of this Act. A request submitted before
108	108	the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on
109	109	the date the request was submitted, and the former law is continued
110	110	in effect for that purpose.
111	111	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.