| 1 | 1 | | 88R9185 PRL-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Leo-Wilson H.B. No. 2659 |
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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 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to protection for a public school employee's refusal to |
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| 8 | 8 | | participate in certain inclusivity policies. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 22, Education Code, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended by adding Section 22.903 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 22.903. PROTECTION FOR REFUSAL TO PARTICIPATE IN |
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| 13 | 13 | | CERTAIN INCLUSIVITY POLICIES. A school district or open-enrollment |
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| 14 | 14 | | charter school may not discipline, retaliate against, or otherwise |
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| 15 | 15 | | discriminate against a district or school employee who, because of |
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| 16 | 16 | | the employee's sincerely held religious beliefs, refuses to: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) complete the LGBTQ Inclusivity in Schools: A |
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| 18 | 18 | | Self-Assessment Tool published by the Centers for Disease Control |
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| 19 | 19 | | and Prevention; or |
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| 20 | 20 | | (2) implement a district or school policy based on a |
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| 21 | 21 | | recommendation provided by that publication. |
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| 22 | 22 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 23 | 23 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 24 | 24 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 25 | 25 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 26 | 26 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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