Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB4873 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R25604 JCG-D
2	2	By: Holland H.B. No. 4873
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 4873:
4	4	By: Guillen C.S.H.B. No. 4873
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the licensing and regulation of peace officers.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Sections 1701.165 and 1701.166 to read as
13	13	follows:
14	14	Sec. 1701.165. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT. (a) The commission by
15	15	rule shall prescribe standards of conduct for officers.
16	16	(b) The standards of conduct must establish minimum
17	17	standards with respect to the following:
18	18	(1) pursuit of a suspect;
19	19	(2) arrest and control tactics;
20	20	(3) executing high-risk warrants; and
21	21	(4) conducting traffic stops, including a uniform
22	22	standard for conducting a traffic stop for an offense punishable by
23	23	fine only.
24	24	(c) The commission shall biennially review and update the
25	25	standards of conduct as necessary.
26	26	Sec. 1701.166. SUBMISSION OF REVOKED LICENSE TO NATIONAL
27	27	DATABASE. (a) In this section, "national misconduct database"
28	28	means the National Decertification Index maintained by the
29	29	International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement
30	30	Standards and Training, or a similar database selected by the
31	31	commission that serves as a registry for the revocation of officer
32	32	licenses in several jurisdictions based on misconduct committed by
33	33	the officer.
34	34	(b) The commission shall submit to the national misconduct
35	35	database information necessary to create a record in the database
36	36	for each officer license the commission revokes under Section
37	37	1701.501(a-1) or 1701.4521.
38	38	SECTION 2. Subchapter E, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
39	39	amended by adding Sections 1701.2025 and 1701.2026 to read as
40	40	follows:
41	41	Sec. 1701.2025. PANEL TO INVESTIGATE VIOLATIONS OF
42	42	STANDARDS OF CONDUCT. (a) The governor shall appoint a panel to
43	43	investigate alleged violations of the standards of conduct adopted
44	44	under Section 1701.165.
45	45	(b) The panel consists of nine members appointed by the
46	46	governor as follows:
47	47	(1) one member of the commission, who serves as
48	48	presiding officer of the panel;
49	49	(2) one member of the Texas Indigent Defense
50	50	Commission;
51	51	(3) one peace officer licensed under this chapter
52	52	selected from a list of six names provided to the governor by the
53	53	president, or the president's designee, of the Combined Law
54	54	Enforcement Associations of Texas, or its successor organization;
55	55	(4) one peace officer licensed under this chapter
56	56	selected from a list of six names provided to the governor by the
57	57	president, or the president's designee, of the Texas Municipal
58	58	Police Association, or its successor organization;
59	59	(5) one peace officer licensed under this chapter from
60	60	a list of three names provided by the president, or the president's
61	61	designee, of the Sheriffs' Association of Texas, or its successor
62	62	organization;
63	63	(6) one peace officer licensed under this chapter from
64	64	a list of three names provided by the president, or the president's
65	65	designee, of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, or its successor
66	66	organization; and
67	67	(7) three persons, each of whom:
68	68	(A) has been a resident of this state for at least
69	69	one year before the date of appointment;
70	70	(B) meets the minimum age for obtaining a license
71	71	as an officer as provided by Section 1701.309; and
72	72	(C) is not disqualified under this chapter from
73	73	obtaining a license as an officer.
74	74	(c) Members of the panel serve two-year terms.
75	75	(d) The panel shall meet at the call of the presiding
76	76	officer.
77	77	(e) A member of the panel is not entitled to compensation
78	78	for service on the panel but is entitled to reimbursement for
79	79	expenses incurred in performing official duties as a member of the
80	80	panel, as provided by the General Appropriations Act.
81	81	Sec. 1701.2026. ADMINISTRATIVE SUBPOENA. (a) In the
82	82	investigation of an alleged violation of a standard of conduct
83	83	adopted under Section 1701.165, the commission or the panel
84	84	established under Section 1701.2025 may request and, if necessary,
85	85	compel by subpoena:
86	86	(1) the attendance of a witness for examination under
87	87	oath; and
88	88	(2) the production for inspection and copying of
89	89	records, documents, and other evidence relevant to the
90	90	investigation, including the personnel files and other employee
91	91	records regarding the person who is the subject of the
92	92	investigation.
93	93	(b) The commission or panel, as applicable, acting through
94	94	the attorney general, may bring an action to enforce a subpoena
95	95	issued under Subsection (a) against a person who fails to comply
96	96	with the subpoena.
97	97	(c) Venue for an action brought under Subsection (b) is in a
98	98	district court in:
99	99	(1) Travis County; or
100	100	(2) any county of proper venue as provided by Chapter
101	101	15, Civil Practices and Remedies Code.
102	102	(d) The court shall order compliance with the subpoena if
103	103	the court finds that good cause exists to issue the subpoena.
104	104	(e) The commission shall adopt rules for the attendance of a
105	105	witness by videoconference in response to a subpoena issued under
106	106	this section.
107	107	SECTION 3. Subchapter G, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
108	108	amended by adding Section 1701.3135 to read as follows:
109	109	Sec. 1701.3135. DISQUALIFICATION: REVOCATION OR SUSPENSION
110	110	IN ANOTHER STATE. A person is disqualified to be an officer, and
111	111	the commission may not issue an officer license to the person, if
112	112	the person has been issued a license or other authorization to act
113	113	as an officer in another state and the license or authorization was
114	114	revoked or suspended.
115	115	SECTION 4. Section 1701.501, Occupations Code, is amended
116	116	by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
117	117	(a-1) Except as provided by Subsection (d) and Section
118	118	1701.5015, the commission may revoke or suspend a license, place on
119	119	probation a person whose license has been suspended, or reprimand a
120	120	license holder for violating a standard of conduct adopted under
121	121	Section 1701.165.
122	122	SECTION 5. Subchapter K, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
123	123	amended by adding Section 1701.5015 to read as follows:
124	124	Sec. 1701.5015. PANEL APPROVAL REQUIRED FOR CERTAIN
125	125	DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS. The commission may not take disciplinary
126	126	action against an officer for an alleged violation of a standard of
127	127	conduct adopted under Section 1701.165 unless the panel established
128	128	under Section 1701.2025, by a two-thirds vote, determines the
129	129	violation occurred and recommends the disciplinary action.
130	130	SECTION 6. Not later than January 1, 2024, the Texas
131	131	Commission on Law Enforcement shall:
132	132	(1) prescribe the standards of conduct required by
133	133	Section 1701.165, Occupations Code, as added by this Act; and
134	134	(2) adopt the rules necessary to implement Chapter
135	135	1701, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act.
136	136	SECTION 7. Not later than January 1, 2024, the governor
137	137	shall appoint members to the panel established under Section
138	138	1701.2025, Occupations Code, as added by this Act.
139	139	SECTION 8. Section 1701.3135, Occupations Code, as added by
140	140	this Act, applies only to an application for an officer license
141	141	submitted under Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, on or after the
142	142	effective date of this Act. An application submitted before the
143	143	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
144	144	date the application was submitted, and the former law is continued
145	145	in effect for that purpose.
146	146	SECTION 9. The standards of conduct required by Section
147	147	1701.165, Occupations Code, as added by this Act, apply only to
148	148	conduct that occurs on or after January 1, 2024. Conduct that
149	149	occurs before January 1, 2024, is governed by the law in effect on
150	150	the date the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in
151	151	effect for that purpose.
152	152	SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.