Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2542 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		87R3542 JSC-F
2		-	By: Rose~~, Reynolds, Bucy~~ H.B. No. 2542
	2	+	By: Rose H.B. No. 2542
3	3
4	4
5	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6		AN ACT
7	7		relating to considering criminal history in employment decisions;
8	8		providing an administrative penalty.
9	9		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10		SECTION 1. Title 3, Labor Code, is amended by adding Chapter
11	11		106 to read as follows:
12	12		CHAPTER 106. CRIMINAL HISTORY CONSIDERATION IN
13	13		EMPLOYMENT DECISIONS
14	14		Sec. 106.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
15	15		(1) "Adverse action" means a refusal to hire, a
16	16		refusal to promote, or the revocation of an offer of employment or
17	17		promotion.
18	18		(2) "Application" means a written or oral expression
19	19		of interest in an employment position by an individual made in
20	20		compliance with the employer's established criteria for receiving
21	21		expressions of interest.
22	22		(3) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce
23	23		Commission.
24	24		(4) "Conditional employment offer" means an oral or
25	25		written offer by an employer to employ an individual in an
26	26		employment position, or a classification or referral by an
27	27		employment agency or labor union, that may be conditioned on:
28	28		(A) the employer's evaluation of the individual's
29	29		criminal history; or
30	30		(B) any preemployment medical examination
31	31		authorized under the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C.
32	32		Section 12101 et seq.).
33	33		(5) "Criminal history" means information collected
34	34		about an individual by a criminal justice agency that consists of
35	35		identifiable descriptions and notations of arrests, detentions,
36	36		indictments, informations, and other formal criminal charges and
37	37		their disposition. The term does not include a record pertaining to
38	38		a misdemeanor punishable by fine only.
39	39		(6) "Employer" means a person who employs at least 15
40	40		individuals in this state for each working day in at least 20 or
41	41		more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year. The
42	42		term does not include a governmental body as defined by Section
43	43		552.003, Government Code.
44	44		(7) "Employment" means to work for an employer for pay
45	45		and includes full-time work, part-time work, temporary or seasonal
46	46		work, contract work, casual or contingent work, work through the
47	47		services of a temporary or other employment agency, and
48	48		participation in a vocational, apprenticeship, or educational
49	49		training program.
50	50		(8) "Employment agency" and "labor organization" have
51	51		the meanings assigned by Section 21.002.
52	52		Sec. 106.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter does not apply
53	53		to an employment position for which an individual may be
54	54		disqualified based on the individual's criminal history under a
55	55		federal, state, or local law or in compliance with a legally
56	56		mandated insurance or bond requirement.
57	57		Sec. 106.003. INDIVIDUAL ASSESSMENT. An employer may
58	58		evaluate an individual's suitability for an employment position by
59	59		performing an assessment of the individual's criminal history. The
60	60		assessment performed under this section must include an evaluation
61	61		of the:
62	62		(1) nature and gravity of any offense in the
63	63		individual's criminal history;
64	64		(2) length of time that has elapsed since the date:
65	65		(A) the offense was committed; and
66	66		(B) the individual fully discharged the
67	67		individual's sentence; and
68	68		(3) nature and duties of the employment position for
69	69		which the individual has applied.
70	70		Sec. 106.004. FAIR CHANCE HIRING PRACTICES. (a) An
71	71		employer may not publish or cause to be published information about
72	72		an employment position that states or implies that an individual's
73	73		criminal history automatically disqualifies the individual from
74	74		consideration for the position.
75	75		(b) An employer may not solicit or otherwise inquire about
76	76		the criminal history of an individual in an application for an
77	77		employment position.
78	78		(c) An employer may not solicit criminal history record
79	79		information about an individual or consider an individual's
80	80		criminal history unless the employer has first made a conditional
81	81		employment offer to the individual. An employer may explain to an
82	82		applicant, in writing, the assessment system under Section 106.003
83	83		that the employer uses to consider criminal history.
84	84		(d) An employer may not refuse to make a conditional
85	85		employment offer to an individual solely because the individual did
86	86		not provide criminal history record information before an offer was
87	87		made.
88	88		(e) An employer may not take an adverse action against an
89	89		individual because of the individual's criminal history unless the
90	90		employer has determined that the individual is unsuitable for the
91	91		employment position based on an assessment conducted by the
92	92		employer under Section 106.003.
93	93		(f) An employer who takes an adverse action against an
94	94		individual based on the individual's criminal history shall inform
95	95		the individual in writing that the adverse action was based on the
96	96		individual's criminal history.
97	97		Sec. 106.005. EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES AND LABOR ORGANIZATIONS.
98	98		An employment agency or labor organization may solicit criminal
99	99		history record information about an individual and make an
100	100		assessment of an individual's criminal history only after the
101	101		employment agency or labor organization has identified an
102	102		employment position for which the employment agency or labor
103	103		organization intends to classify or refer the individual.
104	104		Sec. 106.006. COMMISSION DUTIES. (a) The commission
105	105		shall:
106	106		(1) administer this chapter; and
107	107		(2) adopt rules as necessary to implement this
108	108		chapter.
109	109		(b) The commission may require reports, conduct
110	110		investigations, and take other action the commission considers
111	111		necessary to implement this chapter.
112	112		Sec. 106.007. ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY. (a) The commission
113	113		may assess an administrative penalty against an employer in an
114	114		amount not to exceed $500 for each employment position posting or
115	115		adverse action that violates this chapter.
116	116		(b) On an employer's first violation, the commission may
117	117		issue a warning notice to the employer in lieu of assessing the
118	118		administrative penalty and provide training materials to the
119	119		employer about compliance with this chapter.
120	120		SECTION 2. (a) In this section, "adverse action" and
121	121		"employer" have the meanings assigned by Section 106.001, Labor
122	122		Code, as added by this Act.
123	123		(b) The changes in law made by this Act apply only to an
124	124		adverse action taken by an employer on or after the effective date
125	125		of this Act. An adverse action taken before that date is governed
126	126		by the law in effect on the date the action was taken, and the former
127	127		law is continued in effect for that purpose.
128	128		SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.