Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB444 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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1	1	By: Taylor of Collin S.B. No. 444
2	2	(In the Senate - Filed January 9, 2017; February 6, 2017,
3	3	read first time and referred to Committee on Education;
4	4	May 3, 2017, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 11,
5	5	Nays 0; May 3, 2017, sent to printer.)
6	6	Click here to see the committee vote
7	7
8	8
9	9	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
10	10	AN ACT
11	11	relating to school marshals for private schools.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Article 2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
14	14	amended by amending Subsections (a) and (d) and adding Subsection
15	15	(a-1) to read as follows:
16	16	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a school marshal
17	17	may:
18	18	(1) make arrests and exercise all authority given
19	19	peace officers under this code, subject to written regulations
20	20	adopted by:
21	21	(A) the board of trustees of a school district or
22	22	the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school under
23	23	Section 37.0811, Education Code;
24	24	(B) the governing body of a private school under
25	25	Section 37.0813, Education Code; [,] or
26	26	(C) the governing board of a public junior
27	27	college under Section 51.220, Education Code; [,] and
28	28	(2) only act as necessary to prevent or abate the
29	29	commission of an offense that threatens serious bodily injury or
30	30	death of students, faculty, or visitors on school premises.
31	31	(a-1) In this section, "private school" means a school that:
32	32	(1) offers a course of instruction for students in one
33	33	or more grades from prekindergarten through grade 12;
34	34	(2) is not operated by a governmental entity; and
35	35	(3) is not a school whose students meet the definition
36	36	provided by Section 29.916(a)(1), Education Code.
37	37	(d) A person may not serve as a school marshal unless the
38	38	person is:
39	39	(1) licensed under Section 1701.260, Occupations
40	40	Code; and
41	41	(2) appointed by:
42	42	(A) the board of trustees of a school district or
43	43	the governing body of an open-enrollment charter school under
44	44	Section 37.0811, Education Code;
45	45	(B) the governing body of a private school under
46	46	Section 37.0813, Education Code; [,] or
47	47	(C) the governing board of a public junior
48	48	college under Section 51.220, Education Code.
49	49	SECTION 2. The heading to Section 37.0811, Education Code,
50	50	is amended to read as follows:
51	51	Sec. 37.0811. SCHOOL MARSHALS: PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
52	52	SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
53	53	amended by adding Section 37.0813 to read as follows:
54	54	Sec. 37.0813. SCHOOL MARSHALS: PRIVATE SCHOOLS. (a) The
55	55	governing body of a private school may appoint not more than the
56	56	greater of:
57	57	(1) one school marshal per 200 students enrolled in
58	58	the school; or
59	59	(2) one school marshal per building of the school at
60	60	which students regularly receive classroom instruction.
61	61	(b) The governing body of a private school may select for
62	62	appointment as a school marshal under this section an applicant who
63	63	is an employee of the school and certified as eligible for
64	64	appointment under Section 1701.260, Occupations Code.
65	65	(c) A school marshal appointed by the governing body of a
66	66	private school may carry or possess a handgun on the physical
67	67	premises of a school, but only in the manner provided by written
68	68	regulations adopted by the governing body.
69	69	(d) Any written regulations adopted for purposes of
70	70	Subsection (c) must provide that a school marshal may carry a
71	71	concealed handgun as described by Subsection (c), except that if
72	72	the primary duty of the school marshal involves regular, direct
73	73	contact with students in a classroom setting, the marshal may not
74	74	carry a concealed handgun but may possess a handgun on the physical
75	75	premises of a school in a locked and secured safe within the
76	76	marshal's immediate reach when conducting the marshal's primary
77	77	duty. The written regulations must also require that a handgun
78	78	carried by or within access of a school marshal may be loaded only
79	79	with frangible duty ammunition approved for that purpose by the
80	80	Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.
81	81	(e) A school marshal may access a handgun under this section
82	82	only under circumstances that would justify the use of deadly force
83	83	under Section 9.32 or 9.33, Penal Code.
84	84	(f) A private school employee's status as a school marshal
85	85	becomes inactive on:
86	86	(1) expiration of the employee's school marshal
87	87	license under Section 1701.260, Occupations Code;
88	88	(2) suspension or revocation of the employee's license
89	89	to carry a handgun issued under Subchapter H, Chapter 411,
90	90	Government Code;
91	91	(3) termination of the employee's employment with the
92	92	private school; or
93	93	(4) notice from the governing body that the employee's
94	94	services as school marshal are no longer required.
95	95	(g) The identity of a school marshal appointed under this
96	96	section is confidential, except as provided by Section 1701.260(j),
97	97	Occupations Code, and is not subject to a request under Chapter 552,
98	98	Government Code.
99	99	(h) If a parent or guardian of a student enrolled at a
100	100	private school inquires in writing, the school shall provide the
101	101	parent or guardian written notice indicating whether any employee
102	102	of the school is currently appointed a school marshal. The notice
103	103	may not disclose information that is confidential under Subsection
104	104	(g).
105	105	(i) This section does not apply to a school whose students
106	106	meet the definition provided by Section 29.916(a)(1).
107	107	SECTION 4. Section 1701.001(8), Occupations Code, is
108	108	amended to read as follows:
109	109	(8) "School marshal" means a person who:
110	110	(A) is [employed and] appointed to serve as a
111	111	school marshal by:
112	112	(i) the board of trustees of a school
113	113	district or[,] the governing body of an open-enrollment charter
114	114	school under Section 37.0811, Education Code;
115	115	(ii) the governing body of a private school
116	116	under Section 37.0813, Education Code; [,] or
117	117	(iii) the governing board of a public
118	118	junior college under [Article 2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure,
119	119	and in accordance with and having the rights provided by] Section
120	120	[37.0811 or] 51.220, Education Code;
121	121	(B) is licensed under Section 1701.260; and
122	122	(C) has powers and duties described by Article
123	123	2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure.
124	124	SECTION 5. Section 1701.260, Occupations Code, is amended
125	125	by amending Subsections (a) and (j) and adding Subsection (a-1) to
126	126	read as follows:
127	127	(a) The commission shall establish and maintain a training
128	128	program open to any employee of a school district, open-enrollment
129	129	charter school, private school, or public junior college who holds
130	130	a license to carry a handgun issued under Subchapter H, Chapter 411,
131	131	Government Code. The training may be conducted only by the
132	132	commission staff or a provider approved by the commission.
133	133	(a-1) In this section, "private school" has the meaning
134	134	assigned by Article 2.127, Code of Criminal Procedure.
135	135	(j) The commission shall submit the identifying information
136	136	collected under Subsection (b) for each person licensed by the
137	137	commission under this section to:
138	138	(1) the director of the Department of Public Safety;
139	139	(2) the person's employer, if the person is employed by
140	140	a school district, open-enrollment charter school, private school,
141	141	or public junior college;
142	142	(3) the chief law enforcement officer of the local
143	143	municipal law enforcement agency if the person is employed at a
144	144	campus of a school district, open-enrollment charter school,
145	145	private school, or public junior college located within a
146	146	municipality;
147	147	(4) the sheriff of the county if the person is employed
148	148	at a campus of a school district, open-enrollment charter school,
149	149	private school, or public junior college that is not located within
150	150	a municipality; and
151	151	(5) the chief administrator of any peace officer
152	152	commissioned under Section 37.081 or 51.203, Education Code, if the
153	153	person is employed at a school district or public junior college
154	154	that has commissioned a peace officer under either section.
155	155	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
156	156	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
157	157	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
158	158	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
159	159	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
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