| 1 | 1 | | 87R1748 CAE-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Miles S.B. No. 78 |
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| 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 | | relating to a notification requirement if a public school, |
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| 7 | 7 | | including an open-enrollment charter school, does not have a nurse, |
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| 8 | 8 | | school counselor, or librarian assigned to the school during all |
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| 9 | 9 | | instructional hours. |
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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 25, Education Code, is |
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| 12 | 12 | | amended by adding Section 25.096 to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | Sec. 25.096. PARENTAL NOTIFICATION CONCERNING NURSES, |
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| 14 | 14 | | SCHOOL COUNSELORS, AND LIBRARIANS. (a) In this section: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (1) "Librarian" means a person certified as a |
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| 16 | 16 | | librarian under Subchapter B, Chapter 21. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (2) "Nurse" means a person licensed under Chapter 301, |
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| 18 | 18 | | Occupations Code. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (3) "School counselor" means a person certified as a |
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| 20 | 20 | | school counselor under Subchapter B, Chapter 21. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (b) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (i), a public |
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| 22 | 22 | | school, including an open-enrollment charter school, that does not |
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| 23 | 23 | | have a full-time nurse, school counselor, or librarian or the |
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| 24 | 24 | | equivalent of a full-time nurse, school counselor, or librarian |
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| 25 | 25 | | assigned to be present at the school for more than 30 consecutive |
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| 26 | 26 | | instructional days during the same school year shall provide |
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| 27 | 27 | | written notice of the absence to the parent of or other person |
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| 28 | 28 | | standing in parental relation to each student enrolled in the |
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| 29 | 29 | | school. |
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| 30 | 30 | | (c) A school has the equivalent of a full-time nurse under |
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| 31 | 31 | | Subsection (b) if the school has two or more nurses assigned to the |
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| 32 | 32 | | school and all regular student instructional hours at the campus |
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| 33 | 33 | | during the regular school day are covered by the assignment of at |
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| 34 | 34 | | least one nurse. |
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| 35 | 35 | | (d) A school has the equivalent of a full-time school |
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| 36 | 36 | | counselor under Subsection (b) if the school has two or more school |
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| 37 | 37 | | counselors assigned to the school and all regular student |
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| 38 | 38 | | instructional hours at the campus during the regular school day are |
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| 39 | 39 | | covered by the assignment of at least one school counselor. |
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| 40 | 40 | | (e) A school has the equivalent of a full-time librarian |
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| 41 | 41 | | under Subsection (b) if the school has two or more librarians |
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| 42 | 42 | | assigned to the school and all regular student instructional hours |
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| 43 | 43 | | at the campus during the regular school day are covered by the |
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| 44 | 44 | | assignment of at least one librarian. |
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| 45 | 45 | | (f) The principal of the school shall provide the notice |
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| 46 | 46 | | required by Subsection (b) not later than the 30th instructional |
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| 47 | 47 | | day after the first day the school does not have a full-time nurse, |
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| 48 | 48 | | school counselor, or librarian assigned to be present at the |
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| 49 | 49 | | school. |
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| 50 | 50 | | (g) The school shall: |
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| 51 | 51 | | (1) make a good faith effort to ensure that the notice |
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| 52 | 52 | | required by this section is provided in a bilingual form to any |
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| 53 | 53 | | parent or other person standing in parental relation whose primary |
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| 54 | 54 | | language is not English; and |
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| 55 | 55 | | (2) retain a copy of any notice provided under this |
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| 56 | 56 | | section. |
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| 57 | 57 | | (h) A school may satisfy the notice requirement under |
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| 58 | 58 | | Subsection (f) by posting the notice on the school's Internet |
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| 59 | 59 | | website. Notice posted under this subsection must be accessible |
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| 60 | 60 | | from the home page of the Internet website by use of not more than |
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| 61 | 61 | | three links. |
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| 62 | 62 | | (i) This section does not apply to a school district or |
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| 63 | 63 | | open-enrollment charter school with a student enrollment of less |
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| 64 | 64 | | than 10,000 students. |
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| 65 | 65 | | SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2021-2022 |
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| 66 | 66 | | school year. |
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| 67 | 67 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 68 | 68 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 69 | 69 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 70 | 70 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 71 | 71 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |
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