Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1307 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: Menéndez, et al. S.B. No. 1307
2		-	(King of Taylor)
	1	+	S.B. No. 1307
3	2
4	3
5		-	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	4		AN ACT
7	5		relating to occupational licenses for military service members,
8	6		military veterans, and military spouses.
9	7		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	8		SECTION 1. The heading to Chapter 55, Occupations Code, as
11	9		amended by Chapters 66 (S.B. 162) and 348 (H.B. 2254), Acts of the
12	10		83rd Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, is reenacted to read as
13	11		follows:
14	12		CHAPTER 55. LICENSING OF MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS, MILITARY
15	13		VETERANS, AND MILITARY SPOUSES
16	14		SECTION 2. Section 55.001, Occupations Code, is amended to
17	15		read as follows:
18	16		Sec. 55.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
19	17		(1) "Active duty" means current full-time military
20	18		service in the armed forces of the United States or active duty
21	19		military service as a member of the Texas military forces, as
22	20		defined by Section 437.001, Government Code, or similar military
23	21		service of another state.
24	22		(2) "Armed forces of the United States" means the
25	23		army, navy, air force, coast guard, or marine corps of the United
26	24		States or a reserve unit of one of those branches of the armed
27	25		forces.
28	26		(3) "License" means a license, certificate,
29	27		registration, permit, or other form of authorization required by
30	28		law or a state agency rule that must be obtained by an individual to
31	29		engage in a particular business.
32	30		(4) [(1-a)] "Military service member" means a person
33	31		who is on active duty [currently serving in the armed forces of the
34	32		United States, in a reserve component of the armed forces of the
35	33		United States, including the National Guard, or in the state
36	34		military service of any state].
37	35		(5) [(1-b)] "Military spouse" means a person who is
38	36		married to a military service member [who is currently on active
39	37		duty].
40	38		(6) [(1-c)] "Military veteran" means a person who has
41	39		served on active duty and who was discharged or released from active
42	40		duty [in the army, navy, air force, marine corps, or coast guard of
43	41		the United States, or in an auxiliary service of one of those
44	42		branches of the armed forces].
45	43		(7) [(2)] "State agency" means a department, board,
46	44		bureau, commission, committee, division, office, council, or
47	45		agency of the state.
48	46		SECTION 3. Section 55.002, Occupations Code, is amended to
49	47		read as follows:
50	48		Sec. 55.002. EXEMPTION FROM PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO RENEW
51	49		LICENSE. A state agency that issues a license shall adopt rules to
52	50		exempt an individual who holds a license issued by the agency from
53	51		any increased fee or other penalty imposed by the agency for failing
54	52		to renew the license in a timely manner if the individual
55	53		establishes to the satisfaction of the agency that the individual
56	54		failed to renew the license in a timely manner because the
57	55		individual was serving as a military service member [on active duty
58	56		in the United States armed forces serving outside this state].
59	57		SECTION 4. Section 55.003, Occupations Code, is amended to
60	58		read as follows:
61	59		Sec. 55.003. EXTENSION OF LICENSE RENEWAL [CERTAIN]
62	60		DEADLINES FOR [ACTIVE DUTY] MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS [PERSONNEL].
63	61		A military service member [person] who holds a license[, is a member
64	62		of the state military forces or a reserve component of the armed
65	63		forces of the United States, and is ordered to active duty by proper
66	64		authority] is entitled to two years of [an] additional [amount of]
67	65		time[, equal to the total number of years or parts of years that the
68	66		person serves on active duty,] to complete:
69	67		(1) any continuing education requirements; and
70	68		(2) any other requirement related to the renewal of
71	69		the military service member's [person's] license.
72	70		SECTION 5. Section 55.004, Occupations Code, is amended to
73	71		read as follows:
74	72		Sec. 55.004. ALTERNATIVE LICENSING [LICENSE PROCEDURE] FOR
75	73		MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS, MILITARY VETERANS, AND MILITARY SPOUSES
76	74		[SPOUSE]. (a) A state agency that issues a license shall adopt
77	75		rules for the issuance of the license to an applicant who is a
78	76		military service member, military veteran, or military spouse [the
79	77		spouse of a person serving on active duty as a member of the armed
80	78		forces of the United States] and:
81	79		(1) holds a current license issued by another
82	80		jurisdiction [state] that has licensing requirements that are
83	81		substantially equivalent to the requirements for the license in
84	82		this state; or
85	83		(2) within the five years preceding the application
86	84		date held the license in this state [that expired while the
87	85		applicant lived in another state for at least six months].
88	86		(b) [Rules adopted under this section must include
89	87		provisions to allow alternative demonstrations of competency to
90	88		meet the requirements for obtaining the license.
91	89		[(c)] The executive director of a state agency may waive any
92	90		prerequisite to obtaining a license for an applicant described by
93	91		Subsection (a) after reviewing the applicant's credentials [issue a
94	92		license by endorsement in the same manner as the Texas Commission of
95	93		Licensing and Regulation under Section 51.404 to an applicant
96	94		described by Subsection (a)].
97	95		(c) In addition to the rules adopted under Subsection (a), a
98	96		state agency that issues a license may adopt rules that would
99	97		establish alternate methods for a military service member, military
100	98		veteran, or military spouse to demonstrate competency to meet the
101	99		requirements for obtaining the license.
102	100		SECTION 6. The heading to Section 55.005, Occupations Code,
103	101		as added by Chapter 66 (S.B. 162), Acts of the 83rd Legislature,
104	102		Regular Session, 2013, is amended to read as follows:
105	103		Sec. 55.005. EXPEDITED LICENSE PROCEDURE FOR MILITARY
106	104		SERVICE MEMBERS, MILITARY VETERANS, AND MILITARY SPOUSES.
107	105		SECTION 7. Section 55.005(a), Occupations Code, as added by
108	106		Chapter 66 (S.B. 162), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, Regular
109	107		Session, 2013, is amended to read as follows:
110	108		(a) A state agency that issues a license shall, as soon as
111	109		practicable after a military service member, military veteran, or
112	110		military spouse files an application for a license:
113	111		(1) process the application; and
114	112		(2) issue the [a] license to an [a qualified military
115	113		spouse] applicant who qualifies for the license under Section
116	114		55.004 [holds a current license issued by another jurisdiction that
117	115		has licensing requirements that are substantially equivalent to the
118	116		licensing requirements in this state].
119	117		SECTION 8. Section 55.005, Occupations Code, as added by
120	118		Chapter 348 (H.B. 2254), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, Regular
121	119		Session, 2013, is redesignated as Section 55.008, Occupations Code,
122	120		and amended to read as follows:
123	121		Sec. 55.008 [55.005]. APPRENTICESHIP REQUIREMENTS FOR
124	122		APPLICANT WITH MILITARY EXPERIENCE. (a) Notwithstanding any
125	123		other law, if an apprenticeship is required for a [an occupational]
126	124		license issued by a state agency, the state agency shall credit
127	125		verified military service, training, or education that is relevant
128	126		to the occupation toward the apprenticeship requirements for the
129	127		license.
130	128		(b) The state agency shall adopt rules necessary to
131	129		implement this section.
132	130		SECTION 9. The heading to Section 55.006, Occupations Code,
133	131		is amended to read as follows:
134	132		Sec. 55.006. RENEWAL OF EXPEDITED LICENSE ISSUED TO
135	133		MILITARY SERVICE MEMBER, MILITARY VETERAN, OR MILITARY SPOUSE.
136	134		SECTION 10. Chapter 55, Occupations Code, is amended by
137	135		adding Section 55.009 to read as follows:
138	136		Sec. 55.009. NOTICE OF CHAPTER PROVISIONS. A state agency
139	137		that issues a license shall prominently post a notice on the home
140	138		page of the agency's Internet website describing the provisions of
141	139		this chapter that are available to military service members,
142	140		military veterans, and military spouses.
143	141		SECTION 11. The changes in law made by this Act apply only
144	142		to an application for an occupational license or renewal of an
145	143		occupational license filed on or after January 1, 2016. An
146	144		application for a license or for license renewal filed before
147	145		January 1, 2016, is governed by the law in effect immediately before
148	146		the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect
149	147		for that purpose.
150	148		SECTION 12. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
151	149		over another Act of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015,
152	150		relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
153	151		codes.
154	152		SECTION 13. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
	153	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	154	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	155	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1307 passed the Senate on
	156	+	April 29, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
	157	+	______________________________
	158	+	Secretary of the Senate
	159	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1307 passed the House on
	160	+	May 27, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, two
	161	+	present not voting.
	162	+	______________________________
	163	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	164	+	Approved:
	165	+	______________________________
	166	+	Date
	167	+	______________________________
	168	+	Governor