84R13196 JSL-D
By: RodrÃguez S.B. No. 1624
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a requirement that entering undergraduate students at a
public institution of higher education attend an orientation
regarding mental health and suicide prevention services.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 51.9194 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.9194. REQUIRED ORIENTATION FOR UNDERGRADUATE
STUDENTS REGARDING MENTAL HEALTH AND SUICIDE PREVENTION SERVICES.
(a) An institution of higher education shall require each entering
undergraduate student, including each undergraduate student who
transfers to the institution, to attend an orientation that
includes information about:
(1) available mental health and suicide prevention
services offered by the institution or by any associated
organizations or programs; and
(2) early warning signs that are often present in and
appropriate intervention for a person who may be considering
suicide.
(b) The orientation under this section must be in the form
of a live presentation.
SECTION 2. Section 51.9194, Education Code, as added by
this Act, applies beginning with entering undergraduate students
admitted to an institution of higher education beginning with the
2016 fall semester.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2015.