| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to immunity from liability of public and private schools |
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| 8 | 8 | | and security personnel employed by those schools for certain |
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| 9 | 9 | | actions of security personnel. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 37, Education Code, is |
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| 12 | 12 | | amended by adding Section 37.088 to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | Sec. 37.088. IMMUNITY FROM LIABILITY. (a) In this |
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| 14 | 14 | | section: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (1) "Retired peace officer" has the meaning assigned |
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| 16 | 16 | | by Section 1701.3161, Occupations Code. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (2) "Security personnel" includes: |
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| 18 | 18 | | (A) a school district peace officer; |
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| 19 | 19 | | (B) a school marshal; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (C) a school resource officer; and |
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| 21 | 21 | | (D) a retired peace officer who: |
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| 22 | 22 | | (i) has been hired by a school district, |
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| 23 | 23 | | open-enrollment charter school, or private school to provide |
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| 24 | 24 | | security services; or |
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| 25 | 25 | | (ii) volunteers to provide security |
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| 26 | 26 | | services to the school district, open-enrollment charter school, or |
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| 27 | 27 | | private school. |
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| 28 | 28 | | (b) A school district, open-enrollment charter school, or |
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| 29 | 29 | | private school is immune from liability for any damages resulting |
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| 30 | 30 | | from any reasonable action taken by security personnel to maintain |
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| 31 | 31 | | the safety of the school campus, including action relating to |
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| 32 | 32 | | possession or use of a firearm. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (c) A school district, open-enrollment charter school, or |
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| 34 | 34 | | private school is immune from liability as provided by Subsection |
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| 35 | 35 | | (b) for any damages resulting from any reasonable action taken by a |
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| 36 | 36 | | school district, open-enrollment charter school, or private school |
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| 37 | 37 | | employee who has written permission from the board of trustees of |
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| 38 | 38 | | the school district or the governing body of the open-enrollment |
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| 39 | 39 | | charter school or the private school to carry a firearm on campus. |
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| 40 | 40 | | (d) Any security personnel employed by a school district, |
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| 41 | 41 | | open-enrollment charter school, or private school is immune from |
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| 42 | 42 | | liability for any damages resulting from any reasonable action |
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| 43 | 43 | | taken by the security personnel to maintain the safety of the school |
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| 44 | 44 | | campus, including action relating to possession or use of a |
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| 45 | 45 | | firearm. |
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| 46 | 46 | | (e) The statutory immunity provided by this section is in |
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| 47 | 47 | | addition to and does not preempt the common law doctrine of official |
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| 48 | 48 | | and governmental immunity. To the extent that another statute |
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| 49 | 49 | | provides greater immunity to a school district, open-enrollment |
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| 50 | 50 | | charter school, or private school than this section, that statute |
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| 51 | 51 | | prevails. |
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| 52 | 52 | | SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2019-2020 |
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| 53 | 53 | | school year. |
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| 54 | 54 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 55 | 55 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 56 | 56 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 57 | 57 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 58 | 58 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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