Texas 2019 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2145 Introduced / Bill

Filed 02/21/2019

                    86R8443 JES-D
 By: Turner of Dallas H.B. No. 2145


 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 AN ACT
 relating to continuing education requirements for public educators
 regarding suicide prevention training.
 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 SECTION 1.  Section 21.451(d), Education Code, is amended to
 read as follows:
 (d)  The staff development:
 (1)  may include training in:
 (A)  technology;
 (B)  conflict resolution;
 (C)  discipline strategies, including classroom
 management, district discipline policies, and the student code of
 conduct adopted under Section 37.001 and Chapter 37;
 (D)  preventing, identifying, responding to, and
 reporting incidents of bullying; and
 (E)  digital learning;
 (2)  subject to Subsection (e) and to Section 21.3541
 and rules adopted under that section, must include training that is
 evidence-based, as defined by Section 8101, Every Student Succeeds
 Act (20 U.S.C. Section 7801), that:
 (A)  relates to instruction of students with
 disabilities; and
 (B)  is designed for educators who work primarily
 outside the area of special education; and
 (3)  must include suicide prevention training that must
 be provided:
 (A)  on an annual basis, as part of a new employee
 orientation, to all new school district and open-enrollment charter
 school educators; and
 (B)  to existing school district and
 open-enrollment charter school educators on a schedule adopted by
 the agency by rule that requires an educator to be trained at least
 once every five years.
 SECTION 2.  An educator subject to continuing education
 requirements immediately before the effective date of this Act is
 not required to comply with the continuing education requirements
 described by Section 21.451(d)(3)(B), Education Code, as amended by
 this Act, for any continuing education requirement period that ends
 before June 1, 2020.
 SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.