Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3942 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R13020 MCK-F
2	2	By: Rose H.B. No. 3942
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the protection of certain children through the
8	8	operation of the child safety check alert list and training for law
9	9	enforcement officers relating to the child safety check alert list.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Article 2.272, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
12	12	amended to read as follows:
13	13	Art. 2.272. LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER RESPONSE TO CHILD
14	14	SAFETY CHECK ALERT. (a) If a law enforcement [peace] officer
15	15	locates a child or other person listed on the Texas Crime
16	16	Information Center's child safety check alert list established
17	17	under Section 261.3022, Family Code, the officer shall:
18	18	(1) immediately contact the Department of Family and
19	19	Protective Services on the department's dedicated law-enforcement
20	20	telephone number for statewide intake;
21	21	(2) request information from the department regarding
22	22	the circumstances of the case involving the child or other person;
23	23	and
24	24	(3) request information from the child and the other
25	25	person regarding the child's safety, well-being, and current
26	26	residence.
27	27	(b) The law enforcement [peace] officer may temporarily
28	28	detain the child or other person to ensure the safety and well-being
29	29	of the child.
30	30	(c) If the law enforcement [peace] officer determines that
31	31	the circumstances described by Section 262.104, Family Code, exist,
32	32	the officer may take temporary possession of the child without a
33	33	court order as provided by Section 262.104, Family Code. If the law
34	34	enforcement [peace] officer does not take temporary possession of
35	35	the child, the officer shall obtain the child's current address and
36	36	any other relevant information and report that information to the
37	37	Department of Family and Protective Services.
38	38	(d) A law enforcement [peace] officer who locates a child or
39	39	other person listed on the Texas Crime Information Center's child
40	40	safety check alert list and who reports the child's or other
41	41	person's current address and other relevant information to the
42	42	Department of Family and Protective Services shall report to the
43	43	Texas Crime Information Center that the child or other person has
44	44	been located and to whom the child was released, as applicable.
45	45	(e) In this article, "law enforcement officer" means a peace
46	46	officer described by Article 2.12, a probation officer, a parole
47	47	officer, a correctional officer, or a jailer.
48	48	SECTION 2. Section 261.3023, Family Code, as amended by
49	49	Chapters 1056 (H.B. 2053) and 1202 (S.B. 1406), Acts of the 84th
50	50	Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, is reenacted and amended to
51	51	read as follows:
52	52	Sec. 261.3023. LAW ENFORCEMENT RESPONSE TO CHILD SAFETY
53	53	CHECK ALERT. If a law enforcement officer, as that term is defined
54	54	in Article 2.272, Code of Criminal Procedure, encounters a child or
55	55	other person[, including a child,] listed on the Texas Crime
56	56	Information Center's child safety check alert list, the law
57	57	enforcement officer shall follow the procedures described by
58	58	Article 2.272, Code of Criminal Procedure.
59	59	SECTION 3. Section 261.3024(a), Family Code, as amended by
60	60	Chapters 1056 (H.B. 2053) and 1202 (S.B. 1406), Acts of the 84th
61	61	Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, is reenacted to read as
62	62	follows:
63	63	(a) A law enforcement officer who locates a child listed on
64	64	the Texas Crime Information Center's child safety check alert list
65	65	shall report that the child has been located in the manner
66	66	prescribed by Article 2.272, Code of Criminal Procedure.
67	67	SECTION 4. Section 1701.352, Occupations Code, is amended
68	68	by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (j) to read as
69	69	follows:
70	70	(b) The commission shall require a state, county, special
71	71	district, or municipal agency that appoints or employs peace
72	72	officers to provide each peace officer with a training program at
73	73	least once every 48 months that is approved by the commission and
74	74	consists of:
75	75	(1) topics selected by the agency; and
76	76	(2) for an officer holding only a basic proficiency
77	77	certificate, not more than 20 hours of education and training that
78	78	contain curricula incorporating the learning objectives developed
79	79	by the commission regarding:
80	80	(A) civil rights, racial sensitivity, and
81	81	cultural diversity;
82	82	(B) de-escalation and crisis intervention
83	83	techniques to facilitate interaction with persons with mental
84	84	impairments; [and]
85	85	(C) unless determined by the agency head to be
86	86	inconsistent with the officer's assigned duties:
87	87	(i) the recognition and documentation of
88	88	cases that involve child abuse or neglect, family violence, and
89	89	sexual assault; and
90	90	(ii) issues concerning sex offender
91	91	characteristics; and
92	92	(D) appropriate use of and response to persons on
93	93	the child safety check alert list required by Section 261.3022,
94	94	Family Code.
95	95	(j) The commission shall collaborate with the Department of
96	96	Public Safety on the development of training materials for the
97	97	training required in Subsection (b)(2)(D).
98	98	SECTION 5. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
99	99	over another Act of the 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017,
100	100	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
101	101	codes.
102	102	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.