Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1309 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R12521 CAE-D
2	2	By: Hall S.B. No. 1309
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to state requirements for teacher training and student
8	8	instruction regarding certain subjects in public schools.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 21.451, Education Code, is amended by
11	11	adding Subsection (h) to read as follows:
12	12	(h) Notwithstanding any other law, a school district may not
13	13	be required to provide staff training regarding:
14	14	(1) Internet safety;
15	15	(2) teen dating violence;
16	16	(3) bullying;
17	17	(4) student parenthood;
18	18	(5) child abuse; or
19	19	(6) school bus transportation safety.
20	20	SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 28, Education Code, is
21	21	amended by adding Section 28.0026 to read as follows:
22	22	Sec. 28.0026. INSTRUCTION NOT REQUIRED. Notwithstanding
23	23	any other law, a school district may not be required to provide
24	24	student instruction regarding:
25	25	(1) Internet safety;
26	26	(2) teen dating violence;
27	27	(3) bullying;
28	28	(4) student parenthood;
29	29	(5) child abuse; or
30	30	(6) school bus transportation safety.
31	31	SECTION 3. Section 34.008(c), Education Code, is amended to
32	32	read as follows:
33	33	(c) A mass transit authority contracting under this section
34	34	for daily transportation of pre-primary, primary, or secondary
35	35	students to or from school shall conduct, in a manner and on a
36	36	schedule approved by the county or district school board, the
37	37	following education programs:
38	38	(1) a program to inform the public that public school
39	39	students will be riding on the authority's or company's buses; and
40	40	(2) a program to educate the drivers of the buses to be
41	41	used under the contract of the special needs and problems of public
42	42	school students riding on the buses[; and
43	43	[(3) a program to educate public school students on
44	44	bus riding safety and any special considerations arising from the
45	45	use of the authority's or company's buses].
46	46	SECTION 4. Section 37.001(a), Education Code, as amended by
47	47	Chapters 487 (S.B. 1541) and 1409 (S.B. 1114), Acts of the 83rd
48	48	Legislature, Regular Session, 2013, is reenacted and amended to
49	49	read as follows:
50	50	(a) The board of trustees of an independent school district
51	51	shall, with the advice of its district-level committee established
52	52	under Subchapter F, Chapter 11, adopt a student code of conduct for
53	53	the district. The student code of conduct must be posted and
54	54	prominently displayed at each school campus or made available for
55	55	review at the office of the campus principal. In addition to
56	56	establishing standards for student conduct, the student code of
57	57	conduct must:
58	58	(1) specify the circumstances, in accordance with this
59	59	subchapter, under which a student may be removed from a classroom,
60	60	campus, disciplinary alternative education program, or vehicle
61	61	owned or operated by the district;
62	62	(2) specify conditions that authorize or require a
63	63	principal or other appropriate administrator to transfer a student
64	64	to a disciplinary alternative education program;
65	65	(3) outline conditions under which a student may be
66	66	suspended as provided by Section 37.005 or expelled as provided by
67	67	Section 37.007;
68	68	(4) specify that consideration will be given, as a
69	69	factor in each decision concerning suspension, removal to a
70	70	disciplinary alternative education program, expulsion, or
71	71	placement in a juvenile justice alternative education program,
72	72	regardless of whether the decision concerns a mandatory or
73	73	discretionary action, to:
74	74	(A) self-defense;
75	75	(B) intent or lack of intent at the time the
76	76	student engaged in the conduct;
77	77	(C) a student's disciplinary history; or
78	78	(D) a disability that substantially impairs the
79	79	student's capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's
80	80	conduct;
81	81	(5) provide guidelines for setting the length of a
82	82	term of:
83	83	(A) a removal under Section 37.006; and
84	84	(B) an expulsion under Section 37.007;
85	85	(6) address the notification of a student's parent or
86	86	guardian of a violation of the student code of conduct committed by
87	87	the student that results in suspension, removal to a disciplinary
88	88	alternative education program, or expulsion;
89	89	(7) prohibit bullying, harassment, and making hit
90	90	lists and ensure that district employees enforce those
91	91	prohibitions; and
92	92	(8) provide, as appropriate for students at each grade
93	93	level, methods, including options, for:
94	94	(A) managing students in the classroom, on school
95	95	grounds, and on a vehicle owned or operated by the district;
96	96	(B) disciplining students; and
97	97	(C) preventing and intervening in student
98	98	discipline problems[, including bullying, harassment, and making
99	99	hit lists].
100	100	SECTION 5. Section 37.0831(b), Education Code, is amended
101	101	to read as follows:
102	102	(b) A dating violence policy must:
103	103	(1) include a definition of dating violence that
104	104	includes the intentional use of physical, sexual, verbal, or
105	105	emotional abuse by a person to harm, threaten, intimidate, or
106	106	control another person in a dating relationship, as defined by
107	107	Section 71.0021, Family Code; and
108	108	(2) address safety planning, enforcement of
109	109	protective orders, school-based alternatives to protective orders,
110	110	and [training for teachers and administrators,] counseling for
111	111	affected students[, and awareness education for students and
112	112	parents].
113	113	SECTION 6. The following provisions of the Education Code
114	114	are repealed:
115	115	(1) Sections 28.002(p), (p-2), (p-3), (p-4), and (s);
116	116	and
117	117	(2) Section 38.004(b).
118	118	SECTION 7. This Act applies beginning with the 2017-2018
119	119	school year.
120	120	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
121	121	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
122	122	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
123	123	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
124	124	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.