Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB396 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R2582 PAM-D
2	2	By: Allen H.B. No. 396
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to corporal punishment in public schools.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Chapter 37, Education Code, is amended by adding
10	10	Subchapter Z to read as follows:
11	11	SUBCHAPTER Z. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
12	12	RELATING TO DISCIPLINE
13	13	Sec. 37.901. CORPORAL PUNISHMENT. (a) In this section,
14	14	"corporal punishment" includes hitting, spanking, paddling, or
15	15	deliberately inflicting physical pain by any means on the whole or
16	16	any part of a student's body as a penalty or punishment for the
17	17	student's behavior on or off campus.
18	18	(b) A school district employee or a volunteer or independent
19	19	contractor of a district may not administer corporal punishment or
20	20	cause corporal punishment to be administered to a student. This
21	21	subsection does not apply to corporal punishment administered off
22	22	campus by a parent to the parent's child.
23	23	(c) A school district employee or a volunteer or independent
24	24	contractor of a district may use reasonable and necessary
25	25	restraint, as defined by Section 37.0021.
26	26	(d) Section 9.62, Penal Code, and Section 22.0511(a) do not
27	27	apply to an action of a school district employee or a volunteer or
28	28	independent contractor of a district that violates Subsection (b).
29	29	SECTION 2. Section 22.0512(c), Education Code, is amended
30	30	to read as follows:
31	31	(c) This section does not prohibit a school district from[:
32	32	[(1) enforcing a policy relating to corporal
33	33	punishment; or
34	34	[(2) notwithstanding Subsection (a),] bringing a
35	35	disciplinary proceeding against a professional employee of the
36	36	district who violates the prohibition on [district policy relating
37	37	to] corporal punishment under Section 37.901.
38	38	SECTION 3. Section 25.007(b), Education Code, as amended by
39	39	Chapters 746 (H.B. 1804), 822 (H.B. 3748), and 1206 (S.B. 1494),
40	40	Acts of the 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, is reenacted
41	41	and amended to read as follows:
42	42	(b) In recognition of the challenges faced by students who
43	43	are homeless or in substitute care, the agency shall assist the
44	44	transition of students who are homeless or in substitute care from
45	45	one school to another by:
46	46	(1) ensuring that school records for a student who is
47	47	homeless or in substitute care are transferred to the student's new
48	48	school not later than the 10th working day after the date the
49	49	student begins enrollment at the school;
50	50	(2) developing systems to ease transition of a student
51	51	who is homeless or in substitute care during the first two weeks of
52	52	enrollment at a new school;
53	53	(3) developing procedures for awarding credit,
54	54	including partial credit if appropriate, for course work, including
55	55	electives, completed by a student who is homeless or in substitute
56	56	care while enrolled at another school;
57	57	(4) promoting practices that facilitate access by a
58	58	student who is homeless or in substitute care to extracurricular
59	59	programs, summer programs, credit transfer services, electronic
60	60	courses provided under Chapter 30A, and after-school tutoring
61	61	programs at nominal or no cost;
62	62	(5) establishing procedures to lessen the adverse
63	63	impact of the movement of a student who is homeless or in substitute
64	64	care to a new school;
65	65	(6) entering into a memorandum of understanding with
66	66	the Department of Family and Protective Services regarding the
67	67	exchange of information as appropriate to facilitate the transition
68	68	of students in substitute care from one school to another;
69	69	(7) encouraging school districts and open-enrollment
70	70	charter schools to provide services for a student who is homeless or
71	71	in substitute care in transition when applying for admission to
72	72	postsecondary study and when seeking sources of funding for
73	73	postsecondary study;
74	74	(8) requiring school districts, campuses, and
75	75	open-enrollment charter schools to accept a referral for special
76	76	education services made for a student who is homeless or in
77	77	substitute care by a school previously attended by the student;
78	78	(9) requiring school districts, campuses, and
79	79	open-enrollment charter schools to provide notice to the child's
80	80	educational decision-maker and caseworker regarding events that
81	81	may significantly impact the education of a child, including:
82	82	(A) requests or referrals for an evaluation under
83	83	Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794), or
84	84	special education under Section 29.003;
85	85	(B) admission, review, and dismissal committee
86	86	meetings;
87	87	(C) manifestation determination reviews required
88	88	by Section 37.004(b);
89	89	(D) any disciplinary actions under Chapter 37 for
90	90	which parental notice is required;
91	91	(E) citations issued for Class C misdemeanor
92	92	offenses on school property or at school-sponsored activities; and
93	93	(F) reports of restraint and seclusion required
94	94	by Section 37.0021;[ and
95	95	[(G) use of corporal punishment as provided by
96	96	Section 37.0011;]
97	97	(10) developing procedures for allowing a student who
98	98	is homeless or in substitute care who was previously enrolled in a
99	99	course required for graduation the opportunity, to the extent
100	100	practicable, to complete the course, at no cost to the student,
101	101	before the beginning of the next school year;
102	102	(11) ensuring that a student who is homeless or in
103	103	substitute care who is not likely to receive a high school diploma
104	104	before the fifth school year following the student's enrollment in
105	105	grade nine, as determined by the district, has the student's course
106	106	credit accrual and personal graduation plan reviewed;
107	107	(12) ensuring that a student in substitute care who is
108	108	in grade 11 or 12 be provided information regarding tuition and fee
109	109	exemptions under Section 54.366 for dual-credit or other courses
110	110	provided by a public institution of higher education for which a
111	111	high school student may earn joint high school and college credit;
112	112	[and]
113	113	(13) designating at least one agency employee to act
114	114	as a liaison officer regarding educational issues related to
115	115	students in the conservatorship of the Department of Family and
116	116	Protective Services; and
117	117	(14) [(13)] providing other assistance as identified
118	118	by the agency.
119	119	SECTION 4. Section 37.0011, Education Code, is repealed.
120	120	SECTION 5. This Act applies beginning with the 2017-2018
121	121	school year.
122	122	SECTION 6. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
123	123	over another Act of the 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017,
124	124	relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
125	125	codes.
126	126	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
127	127	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
128	128	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
129	129	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
130	130	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.