Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1849 Compare Versions

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1	1	84R4573 NC-F
2	2	By: King of Taylor H.B. No. 1849
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to occupational licenses for military service members,
8	8	military veterans, and military spouses.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. The heading to Chapter 55, Occupations Code, as
11	11	amended by Chapters 66 (S.B. 162) and 348 (H.B. 2254), Acts of the
12	12	83rd Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, is reenacted to read as
13	13	follows:
14	14	CHAPTER 55. LICENSING OF MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS, MILITARY
15	15	VETERANS, AND MILITARY SPOUSES
16	16	SECTION 2. Section 55.001, Occupations Code, is amended to
17	17	read as follows:
18	18	Sec. 55.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
19	19	(1) "Active duty" means current full-time military
20	20	service in the armed forces of the United States or the Texas
21	21	military forces, as defined by Section 437.001, Government Code, or
22	22	similar military service of another state.
23	23	(2) "Armed forces of the United States" means the
24	24	army, navy, air force, coast guard, or marine corps of the United
25	25	States or an auxiliary service or reserve unit of one of those
26	26	branches of the armed forces.
27	27	(3) "License" means a license, certificate,
28	28	registration, permit, or other form of authorization required by
29	29	law or a state agency rule that must be obtained by an individual to
30	30	engage in a particular business.
31	31	(4) [(1-a)] "Military service member" means a person
32	32	who is on active duty [currently serving in the armed forces of the
33	33	United States, in a reserve component of the armed forces of the
34	34	United States, including the National Guard, or in the state
35	35	military service of any state].
36	36	(5) [(1-b)] "Military spouse" means a person who is
37	37	married to a military service member [who is currently on active
38	38	duty].
39	39	(6) [(1-c)] "Military veteran" means a person who has
40	40	served on active duty and who was discharged or released from active
41	41	duty [in the army, navy, air force, marine corps, or coast guard of
42	42	the United States, or in an auxiliary service of one of those
43	43	branches of the armed forces].
44	44	(7) [(2)] "State agency" means a department, board,
45	45	bureau, commission, committee, division, office, council, or
46	46	agency of the state.
47	47	SECTION 3. Section 55.002, Occupations Code, is amended to
48	48	read as follows:
49	49	Sec. 55.002. EXEMPTION FROM PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO RENEW
50	50	LICENSE. A state agency that issues a license shall adopt rules to
51	51	exempt an individual who holds a license issued by the agency from
52	52	any increased fee or other penalty imposed by the agency for failing
53	53	to renew the license in a timely manner if the individual
54	54	establishes to the satisfaction of the agency that the individual
55	55	failed to renew the license in a timely manner because the
56	56	individual was serving as a military service member [on active duty
57	57	in the United States armed forces serving outside this state].
58	58	SECTION 4. Section 55.003, Occupations Code, is amended to
59	59	read as follows:
60	60	Sec. 55.003. EXTENSION OF LICENSE RENEWAL [CERTAIN]
61	61	DEADLINES FOR [ACTIVE DUTY] MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS [PERSONNEL].
62	62	A military service member [person who holds a license, is a member
63	63	of the state military forces or a reserve component of the armed
64	64	forces of the United States, and is ordered to active duty by proper
65	65	authority] is entitled to one year of [an] additional [amount of]
66	66	time [, equal to the total number of years or parts of years that the
67	67	person serves on active duty,] to complete [:
68	68	[(1) any continuing education requirements; and
69	69	[(2)] any [other] requirement related to the renewal
70	70	of the military service member's [person's] license.
71	71	SECTION 5. Section 55.004, Occupations Code, is amended to
72	72	read as follows:
73	73	Sec. 55.004. ALTERNATIVE LICENSING [LICENSE PROCEDURE] FOR
74	74	MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS, MILITARY VETERANS, AND MILITARY SPOUSES
75	75	[SPOUSE]. (a) A state agency that issues a license shall adopt
76	76	rules for the issuance of the license to an applicant who is a
77	77	military service member, military veteran, or military spouse [the
78	78	spouse of a person serving on active duty as a member of the armed
79	79	forces of the United States] and:
80	80	(1) holds a current license issued by another
81	81	jurisdiction [state] that has licensing requirements that are
82	82	substantially equivalent to the requirements for the license in
83	83	this state; or
84	84	(2) within the five years preceding the application
85	85	date held the license in this state [that expired while the
86	86	applicant lived in another state for at least six months].
87	87	(b) [Rules adopted under this section must include
88	88	provisions to allow alternative demonstrations of competency to
89	89	meet the requirements for obtaining the license.
90	90	[(c)] The executive director of a state agency may waive any
91	91	prerequisite to obtaining a license for an applicant described by
92	92	Subsection (a) after reviewing the applicant's credentials [issue a
93	93	license by endorsement in the same manner as the Texas Commission of
94	94	Licensing and Regulation under Section 51.404 to an applicant
95	95	described by Subsection (a)].
96	96	(c) In addition to the rules adopted under Subsection (a), a
97	97	state agency that issues a license may adopt rules that would
98	98	establish alternate methods for a military service member, military
99	99	veteran, or military spouse to demonstrate competency to meet the
100	100	requirements for obtaining the license.
101	101	SECTION 6. The heading to Section 55.005, Occupations Code,
102	102	as added by Chapter 66 (S.B. 162), Acts of the 83rd Legislature,
103	103	Regular Session, 2013, is amended to read as follows:
104	104	Sec. 55.005. EXPEDITED LICENSE PROCEDURE FOR MILITARY
105	105	SERVICE MEMBERS, MILITARY VETERANS, AND MILITARY SPOUSES.
106	106	SECTION 7. Section 55.005(a), Occupations Code, as added by
107	107	Chapter 66 (S.B. 162), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, Regular
108	108	Session, 2013, is amended to read as follows:
109	109	(a) A state agency that issues a license shall, as soon as
110	110	practicable after a military service member, military veteran, or
111	111	military spouse files an application for a license:
112	112	(1) process the application; and
113	113	(2) issue the [a] license to an [a qualified military
114	114	spouse] applicant who qualifies for the license under Section
115	115	55.004 [holds a current license issued by another jurisdiction that
116	116	has licensing requirements that are substantially equivalent to the
117	117	licensing requirements in this state].
118	118	SECTION 8. Section 55.005, Occupations Code, as added by
119	119	Chapter 348 (H.B. 2254), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, Regular
120	120	Session, 2013, is redesignated as Section 55.008, Occupations Code,
121	121	and amended to read as follows:
122	122	Sec. 55.008 [55.005]. APPRENTICESHIP REQUIREMENTS FOR
123	123	APPLICANT WITH MILITARY EXPERIENCE. (a) Notwithstanding any other
124	124	law, if an apprenticeship is required for a [an occupational]
125	125	license issued by a state agency, the state agency shall credit
126	126	verified military service, training, or education that is relevant
127	127	to the occupation toward the apprenticeship requirements for the
128	128	license.
129	129	(b) The state agency shall adopt rules necessary to
130	130	implement this section.
131	131	SECTION 9. The heading to Section 55.006, Occupations Code,
132	132	is amended to read as follows:
133	133	Sec. 55.006. RENEWAL OF EXPEDITED LICENSE ISSUED TO
134	134	MILITARY SERVICE MEMBER, MILITARY VETERAN, OR MILITARY SPOUSE.
135	135	SECTION 10. The changes in law made by this Act apply only
136	136	to an application for an occupational license or renewal of an
137	137	occupational license filed on or after January 1, 2016. An
138	138	application for a license or for license renewal filed before
139	139	January 1, 2016, is governed by the law in effect immediately before
140	140	the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect
141	141	for that purpose.
142	142	SECTION 11. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
143	143	over another Act of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015,
144	144	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
145	145	codes.
146	146	SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.