Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3596 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		84R25701 GCB-F
2	2		By: Huberty, Nevárez H.B. No. 3596
3		-	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3596:
4		-	By: Nevárez C.S.H.B. No. 3596
5	3
6	4
7	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	6		AN ACT
9	7		relating to public school safety and security policies, procedures,
10	8		and practices.
11	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	10		SECTION 1. Section 37.108, Education Code, is amended by
13	11		amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
14	12		follows:
15	13		(a) Each school district or public junior college district
16	14		shall adopt and implement a multihazard emergency operations plan
17	15		for use in the district's facilities. The plan must address
18	16		mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery as defined by the
19	17		commissioner of education or commissioner of higher education in
20	18		conjunction with the governor's office of homeland security. The
21	19		plan must provide for:
22	20		(1) district employee training in responding to an
23	21		emergency;
24	22		(2) if the plan applies to a school district:
25	23		(A) [,] mandatory school drills and exercises to
26	24		prepare district students and employees for responding to an
27	25		emergency;
28	26		(B) establishment of memoranda of understanding
29	27		and mutual aid agreements with local law enforcement and other
30	28		entities with jurisdiction over emergency services provided to
31	29		persons residing within the attendance boundaries of the district;
32	30		and
33	31		(C) the implementation of routine campus safety
34	32		and security assessments under Subsection (b-1);
35	33		(3) measures to ensure coordination with the
36	34		Department of State Health Services and local emergency management
37	35		agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire
38	36		departments in the event of an emergency; and
39	37		(4) the implementation of a safety and security audit
40	38		as required by Subsection (b).
41	39		(b-1) In addition to conducting safety and security audits
42	40		under Subsection (b), each school district shall conduct routine
43	41		campus safety and security assessments throughout the school year
44	42		at intervals set by the Texas School Safety Center.
45	43		SECTION 2. Sections 37.1081(a) and (b), Education Code, are
46	44		amended to read as follows:
47	45		(a) The Texas School Safety Center[, in consultation with
48	46		the School Safety Task Force established under Section 37.1082,]
49	47		shall implement [develop] a school safety certification program.
50	48		(b) The Texas School Safety Center shall award a school
51	49		safety certificate to a school district that:
52	50		(1) has adopted and implemented a multihazard
53	51		emergency operations plan as required under Section 37.108 and that
54	52		includes in that plan:
55	53		(A) measures for security of facilities and
56	54		grounds;
57	55		(B) measures for communication with parents and
58	56		the media in the event of an emergency; and
59	57		(C) an outline of safety training for school
60	58		employees;
61	59		(2) demonstrates to the center through documentation
62	60		[with current written self-audit processes] that the district
63	61		conducts at least one drill per year for each of the following types
64	62		of drills:
65	63		(A) a school lockdown drill;
66	64		(B) an evacuation drill;
67	65		(C) a weather-related emergency drill;
68	66		(D) a reverse evacuation drill; and
69	67		(E) a shelter-in-place drill;
70	68		(3) addresses circumstances that may be unique to the
71	69		region in which the district is located and that affect:
72	70		(A) facilities and security; or
73	71		(B) the safety of students [is in compliance with
74	72		Sections 37.108(b) and (c)]; and
75	73		(4) meets any other eligibility criteria [as]
76	74		recommended by the former School Safety Task Force.
77	75		SECTION 3. Section 37.202, Education Code, is amended to
78	76		read as follows:
79	77		Sec. 37.202. PURPOSE. The purpose of the center is to serve
80	78		as:
81	79		(1) a central location for school safety and security
82	80		information, including research, training, and technical
83	81		assistance related to successful school safety and security
84	82		programs;
85	83		(2) a central registry of persons providing school
86	84		safety and security consulting services in the state; [and]
87	85		(3) a resource for the prevention of youth violence
88	86		and the promotion of safety in the state; and
89	87		(4) a central location for the collection of
90	88		information concerning research and best practices for threat
91	89		awareness, campus safety and security assessments, and
92	90		cross-jurisdictional sharing of information.
93	91		SECTION 4. Sections 37.203(a) and (b), Education Code, are
94	92		amended to read as follows:
95	93		(a) The center is advised by a board of directors composed
96	94		of:
97	95		(1) the attorney general, or the attorney general's
98	96		designee;
99	97		(2) the commissioner, or the commissioner's designee;
100	98		(3) the executive director of the Texas Juvenile
101	99		Justice Department [Probation Commission], or the executive
102	100		director's designee;
103	101		(4) [the executive commissioner of the Texas Youth
104	102		Commission, or the executive commissioner's designee;
105	103		[(5)] the commissioner of the Department of State
106	104		Health Services, or the commissioner's designee;
107	105		(5) [(6)] the commissioner of higher education, or the
108	106		commissioner's designee; and
109	107		(6) [(7)] the following members appointed by the
110	108		governor with the advice and consent of the senate:
111	109		(A) a juvenile court judge;
112	110		(B) a member of a school district's board of
113	111		trustees;
114	112		(C) an administrator of a public primary school;
115	113		(D) an administrator of a public secondary
116	114		school;
117	115		(E) a member of the state parent-teacher
118	116		association;
119	117		(F) a teacher from a public primary or secondary
120	118		school;
121	119		(G) a public school superintendent who is a
122	120		member of the Texas Association of School Administrators;
123	121		(H) a school district police officer or a peace
124	122		officer whose primary duty consists of working in a public school;
125	123		[and]
126	124		(I) an individual who has experience and
127	125		expertise in information technology security;
128	126		(J) a school district employee whose primary duty
129	127		consists of managing transportation logistics for a public school
130	128		district;
131	129		(K) an architect with experience in school
132	130		facility design; and
133	131		(L) two members of the public who are a parent or
134	132		guardian of a public school student.
135	133		(b) Members of the board appointed under Subsection (a)(6)
136	134		[(a)(7)] serve staggered two-year terms, with the terms of the
137	135		members described by Subsections (a)(6)(A)-(F) [(a)(7)(A)-(E)]
138	136		expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered year and the terms of
139	137		the members described by Subsections (a)(6)(G)-(L) [(a)(7)(F)-(I)]
140	138		expiring on February 1 of each even-numbered year. A member may
141	139		serve more than one term.
142	140		SECTION 5. Section 37.205, Education Code, is amended to
143	141		read as follows:
144	142		Sec. 37.205. SAFETY TRAINING PROGRAMS. The center shall
145	143		conduct for school districts a safety training program that
146	144		includes:
147	145		(1) development of a positive school environment and
148	146		proactive safety measures designed to address local concerns;
149	147		(2) school safety courses for law enforcement
150	148		officials, with a focus on school district police officers and
151	149		school resource officers;
152	150		(3) discussion of school safety issues with parents
153	151		and community members; [and]
154	152		(4) assistance in developing a multihazard emergency
155	153		operations plan for adoption under Section 37.108; and
156	154		(5) training in best practices for threat awareness,
157	155		implementation of campus safety and security assessments, and
158	156		cross-jurisdictional sharing of information.
159	157		SECTION 6. Section 421.901, Government Code, is amended to
160	158		read as follows:
161	159		Sec. 421.901. INTEROPERABILITY OF CRITICAL INFORMATION
162	160		SYSTEMS. The office of the governor shall develop a plan for
163	161		appropriate entities to use information systems that:
164	162		(1) employ underlying computer equipment and software
165	163		required to establish interoperable communication between computer
166	164		systems used by local, state, and federal agencies and first
167	165		responders; [and]
168	166		(2) provide a single point of entry to disseminate
169	167		information, applications, processes, and communications;
170	168		(3) provide threat awareness information that may
171	169		affect campus security and student safety in the Texas-Mexico
172	170		border region and is obtained through cross-jurisdictional sharing
173	171		of information; and
174	172		(4) include school security information that may be
175	173		obtained through school district incident reporting, school safety
176	174		audits, and campus safety and security assessments.
177	175		SECTION 7. Sections 37.1081(c) and 37.1082, Education Code,
178	176		are repealed.
179	177		SECTION 8. (a) Not later than February 1, 2016, the
180	178		governor shall appoint new members to the board of directors of the
181	179		Texas School Safety Center as required by Sections
182	180		37.203(a)(6)(I)-(K), Education Code, as added by this Act.
183	181		(b) Section 37.203, Education Code, as amended by this Act,
184	182		does not affect the term of the member appointed under Section
185	183		37.203(a)(6)(F), Education Code, as amended by this Act, and
186	184		serving on the board immediately before the effective date of this
187	185		Act. After the term of that member expires on February 1, 2016, the
188	186		governor shall appoint a member who meets the requirements under
189	187		Section 37.203(a)(6)(F), Education Code, as amended by this Act, to
190	188		a term expiring February 1, 2017.
191	189		(c) Section 37.203, Education Code, as amended by this Act,
192	190		does not affect the terms of the members appointed under Section
193	191		37.203(a)(6)(L), Education Code, as amended by this Act, and
194	192		serving on the board immediately before the effective date of this
195	193		Act. After the terms of those members expire, the governor shall
196	194		appoint members who meet the requirements under Section
197	195		37.203(a)(6)(L), Education Code, as amended by this Act.
198	196		SECTION 9. This Act applies beginning with the 2015-2016
199	197		school year.
200	198		SECTION 10. This Act takes effect immediately if it
201	199		receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
202	200		house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
203	201		If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
204	202		effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2015.