Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB917 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R15383 GCB-D
2	2	By: Villalba H.B. No. 917
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 917:
4	4	By: Aycock C.S.H.B. No. 917
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to school marshals for private schools, notifying a parent
10	10	or guardian whether an employee of a public or private school is
11	11	appointed school marshal, and the confidentiality of information
12	12	submitted to or collected by the Texas Commission on Law
13	13	Enforcement in connection with a certification for appointment as
14	14	school marshal.
15	15	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
16	16	SECTION 1. Article 2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
17	17	amended by amending Subsections (a) and (d) and adding Subsection
18	18	(a-1) to read as follows:
19	19	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a school marshal
20	20	may:
21	21	(1) make arrests and exercise all authority given
22	22	peace officers under this code, subject to written regulations
23	23	adopted by:
24	24	(A) the board of trustees of a school district or
25	25	the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school under
26	26	Section 37.0811, Education Code; or
27	27	(B) the governing body of a private school under
28	28	Section 37.0812, Education Code;[,] and
29	29	(2) only act as necessary to prevent or abate the
30	30	commission of an offense that threatens serious bodily injury or
31	31	death of students, faculty, or visitors on school premises.
32	32	(a-1) In this section, "private school" means a school that:
33	33	(1) offers a course of instruction for students in one
34	34	or more grades from prekindergarten through grade 12;
35	35	(2) is not operated by a governmental entity; and
36	36	(3) is not a home school.
37	37	(d) A person may not serve as a school marshal unless the
38	38	person is:
39	39	(1) licensed under Section 1701.260, Occupations
40	40	Code; and
41	41	(2) appointed by:
42	42	(A) the board of trustees of a school district or
43	43	the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school under
44	44	Section 37.0811, Education Code; or
45	45	(B) the governing body of a private school under
46	46	Section 37.0812, Education Code.
47	47	SECTION 2. The heading to Section 37.0811, Education Code,
48	48	is amended to read as follows:
49	49	Sec. 37.0811. SCHOOL MARSHALS: PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
50	50	SECTION 3. Section 37.0811, Education Code, is amended by
51	51	adding Subsection (h) to read as follows:
52	52	(h) If a parent or guardian of a student enrolled at a school
53	53	inquires in writing, the school district or open-enrollment charter
54	54	school shall provide the parent or guardian written notice
55	55	indicating whether any employee of the school is currently
56	56	appointed a school marshal. The notice may not disclose information
57	57	that is confidential under Subsection (g).
58	58	SECTION 4. Subchapter C, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
59	59	amended by adding Section 37.0812 to read as follows:
60	60	Sec. 37.0812. SCHOOL MARSHALS: PRIVATE SCHOOLS. (a) The
61	61	governing body of a private school may appoint not more than one
62	62	school marshal per 400 students enrolled in the school.
63	63	(b) The governing body of a private school may select for
64	64	appointment as a school marshal under this section an applicant who
65	65	is an employee of the school and certified as eligible for
66	66	appointment under Section 1701.260, Occupations Code.
67	67	(c) A school marshal appointed by the governing body of a
68	68	private school may carry or possess a handgun on the physical
69	69	premises of a school, but only in the manner provided by written
70	70	regulations adopted by the governing body.
71	71	(d) Any written regulations adopted for purposes of
72	72	Subsection (c) must provide that a school marshal may carry a
73	73	concealed handgun as described by Subsection (c), except that if
74	74	the primary duty of the school marshal involves regular, direct
75	75	contact with students, the marshal may not carry a concealed
76	76	handgun but may possess a handgun on the physical premises of a
77	77	school in a locked and secured safe within the marshal's immediate
78	78	reach when conducting the marshal's primary duty. The written
79	79	regulations must also require that a handgun carried by or within
80	80	access of a school marshal may be loaded only with frangible
81	81	ammunition designed to disintegrate on impact for maximum safety
82	82	and minimal danger to others.
83	83	(e) A school marshal may access a handgun under this section
84	84	only under circumstances that would justify the use of deadly force
85	85	under Section 9.32 or 9.33, Penal Code.
86	86	(f) A private school employee's status as a school marshal
87	87	becomes inactive on:
88	88	(1) expiration of the employee's school marshal
89	89	license under Section 1701.260, Occupations Code;
90	90	(2) suspension or revocation of the employee's license
91	91	to carry a concealed handgun issued under Subchapter H, Chapter
92	92	411, Government Code;
93	93	(3) termination of the employee's employment with the
94	94	private school; or
95	95	(4) notice from the governing body that the employee's
96	96	services as school marshal are no longer required.
97	97	(g) The identity of a school marshal appointed under this
98	98	section is confidential, except as provided by Section 1701.260(j),
99	99	Occupations Code, and is not subject to a request under Chapter 552,
100	100	Government Code.
101	101	(h) If a parent or guardian of a student enrolled at a
102	102	private school inquires in writing, the school shall provide the
103	103	parent or guardian written notice indicating whether any employee
104	104	of the school is currently appointed a school marshal. The notice
105	105	may not disclose information that is confidential under Subsection
106	106	(g).
107	107	(i) This section does not apply to a home school.
108	108	SECTION 5. Section 1701.001(8), Occupations Code, is
109	109	amended to read as follows:
110	110	(8) "School marshal" means a person who:
111	111	(A) is employed and appointed to serve as a
112	112	school marshal by:
113	113	(i) the board of trustees of a school
114	114	district or the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school
115	115	under [Article 2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure, and in accordance
116	116	with and having the rights provided by] Section 37.0811, Education
117	117	Code; or
118	118	(ii) the governing body of a private school
119	119	under Section 37.0812, Education Code;
120	120	(B) is licensed under Section 1701.260; and
121	121	(C) has powers and duties described by Article
122	122	2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure.
123	123	SECTION 6. Section 1701.260, Occupations Code, is amended
124	124	by amending Subsections (a), (j), and (l) and adding Subsection
125	125	(a-1) to read as follows:
126	126	(a) The commission shall establish and maintain a training
127	127	program open to any employee of a school district, [or]
128	128	open-enrollment charter school, or private school who holds a
129	129	license to carry a concealed handgun issued under Subchapter H,
130	130	Chapter 411, Government Code. The training may be conducted only by
131	131	the commission staff or a provider approved by the commission.
132	132	(a-1) In this section, "private school" has the meaning
133	133	assigned by Article 2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure.
134	134	(j) The commission shall submit the identifying information
135	135	collected under Subsection (b) for each person licensed by the
136	136	commission under this section to:
137	137	(1) the director of the Department of Public Safety;
138	138	(2) the person's employer, if the person is employed by
139	139	a school district, [or] open-enrollment charter school, or private
140	140	school;
141	141	(3) the chief law enforcement officer of the local
142	142	municipal law enforcement agency if the person is employed at a
143	143	campus of a school district, [or] open-enrollment charter school,
144	144	or private school located within a municipality;
145	145	(4) the sheriff of the county if the person is employed
146	146	at a campus of a school district, [or] open-enrollment charter
147	147	school, or private school that is not located within a
148	148	municipality; and
149	149	(5) the chief administrator of any peace officer
150	150	commissioned under Section 37.081, Education Code, if the person is
151	151	employed at a school district that has commissioned a peace officer
152	152	under that section.
153	153	(l) All [Identifying] information [about a person]
154	154	collected or submitted under this section is confidential, except
155	155	as provided by Subsection (j), and is not subject to disclosure
156	156	under Chapter 552, Government Code.
157	157	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
158	158	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
159	159	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
160	160	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
161	161	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.