| 1 | 1 | | 88R6144 DIO-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Hall S.B. No. 1152 |
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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 requirements regarding certain student resources |
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| 8 | 8 | | provided to public and private school students by a public or |
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| 9 | 9 | | private primary or secondary school, institution of higher |
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| 10 | 10 | | education, state agency, or public library. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 38, Education Code, is |
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| 13 | 13 | | amended by adding Section 38.043 to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | Sec. 38.043. REQUIREMENTS REGARDING CERTAIN STUDENT |
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| 15 | 15 | | RESOURCES. (a) In this section: |
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| 16 | 16 | | (1) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning |
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| 17 | 17 | | assigned by Section 61.003. |
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| 18 | 18 | | (2) "Library" means: |
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| 19 | 19 | | (A) a public library or a library system, as |
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| 20 | 20 | | defined by Section 441.122, Government Code; |
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| 21 | 21 | | (B) a library operated by an institution of |
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| 22 | 22 | | higher education, a school district, or an open-enrollment charter |
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| 23 | 23 | | school; or |
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| 24 | 24 | | (C) a library operated by a state agency or |
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| 25 | 25 | | political subdivision. |
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| 26 | 26 | | (3) "Provider" means a person, including a vendor, who |
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| 27 | 27 | | provides student resources. |
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| 28 | 28 | | (4) "Student" means a child enrolled as a student in |
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| 29 | 29 | | prekindergarten through 12th grade in a public or private school in |
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| 30 | 30 | | this state. |
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| 31 | 31 | | (5) "Student resources" means physical, digital, or |
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| 32 | 32 | | online library resources, access to databases, and curriculum and |
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| 33 | 33 | | supportive materials for use by a student. |
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| 34 | 34 | | (b) A school district, open-enrollment charter school, |
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| 35 | 35 | | private school, institution of higher education, state agency, or |
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| 36 | 36 | | library may not provide student resources to a student unless the |
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| 37 | 37 | | resource has been verified by the provider of the resource for |
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| 38 | 38 | | compliance with Subsection (c). |
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| 39 | 39 | | (c) A provider shall adopt safety policies and technology |
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| 40 | 40 | | protections to verify that the student resources the provider |
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| 41 | 41 | | provides to a school district, open-enrollment charter school, |
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| 42 | 42 | | private school, institution of higher education, state agency, or |
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| 43 | 43 | | library: |
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| 44 | 44 | | (1) do not contain or allow access to a communication, |
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| 45 | 45 | | written description, photographic image, video image, or audio |
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| 46 | 46 | | file, that relates to, depicts, or describes: |
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| 47 | 47 | | (A) a material or performance that is obscene, as |
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| 48 | 48 | | defined by Section 43.21, Penal Code; |
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| 49 | 49 | | (B) child pornography, as described by Section |
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| 50 | 50 | | 43.26, Penal Code; or |
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| 51 | 51 | | (C) sexual exploitation, as defined by Section |
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| 52 | 52 | | 81.001, Civil Practice and Remedies Code; |
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| 53 | 53 | | (2) do not allow a student to receive, send, upload, or |
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| 54 | 54 | | download a communication, written description, photographic image, |
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| 55 | 55 | | video image, or audio file described by Subdivision (1); and |
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| 56 | 56 | | (3) filter or block a student's access to an item |
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| 57 | 57 | | described by Subdivisions (1) and (2). |
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| 58 | 58 | | (d) Before providing any student resources to a school |
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| 59 | 59 | | district, open-enrollment charter school, private school, |
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| 60 | 60 | | institution of higher education, state agency, or library, a |
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| 61 | 61 | | provider shall notify the receiving entity regarding whether those |
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| 62 | 62 | | student resources comply with Subsection (c). |
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| 63 | 63 | | (e) If a contract between a provider and a school district, |
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| 64 | 64 | | open-enrollment charter school, private school, institution of |
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| 65 | 65 | | higher education, state agency, or library for the provision of |
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| 66 | 66 | | student resources is in effect, failure by a provider to comply with |
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| 67 | 67 | | Subsections (c) and (d) entitles the representative of a school |
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| 68 | 68 | | district, open-enrollment charter school, private school, |
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| 69 | 69 | | institution of higher education, state agency, or library to: |
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| 70 | 70 | | (1) terminate the contract for nonperformance or |
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| 71 | 71 | | breach of contract; or |
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| 72 | 72 | | (2) withhold any further payments, if any, to the |
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| 73 | 73 | | provider pending verification and notice of compliance with |
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| 74 | 74 | | Subsections (c) and (d). |
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| 75 | 75 | | (f) This section may not be construed to limit or otherwise |
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| 76 | 76 | | affect a person's criminal liability under other law. |
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| 77 | 77 | | SECTION 2. Not later than December 1 of each year, each |
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| 78 | 78 | | entity that receives "student resources" from a "provider," as |
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| 79 | 79 | | those terms are defined by Section 38.043, Education Code, as added |
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| 80 | 80 | | by this Act, shall report to the legislature regarding any issues |
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| 81 | 81 | | with provider compliance related to the requirements of that |
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| 82 | 82 | | section. |
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| 83 | 83 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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