By: West S.B. No. 1664
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the establishment of the school safety technical
advisory committee and the school safety accountability program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 37, Education Code, is amended by adding
Subchapter H to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER H. SCHOOL SAFETY ACCOUNTABILITY PROGRAM
Sec. 37.251. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Advisory committee" means the school safety
technical advisory committee established under Section 37.252.
(2) "Chief of school safety and security" means the
individual appointed by the governor as chief of school safety and
security for the agency.
(3) "Law enforcement leadership officer" means:
(A) the chief of police of a school district
police department;
(B) the chief or deputy chief of police of a
municipality;
(C) a sheriff;
(D) a constable; or
(E) a highway patrol officer:
(i) designated by the public safety
director of the Department of Public Safety; and
(ii) who holds a rank of lieutenant or
higher.
(4) "Program" means the school safety accountability
program established under this subchapter.
(5) "School exterior" means the outer walls, doors,
and windows of a school district or open-enrollment charter school
facility.
(6) "School guardian" means a person who, pursuant to
the written regulations or written authorization of a school
district or open-enrollment charter school under Section
46.03(a)(1)(A), Penal Code, is authorized to carry or possess a
specified weapon for the purpose of providing safety and security
on the physical premises of a school, any grounds or building on
which an activity sponsored by a school is being conducted, or a
passenger transportation vehicle of a school.
(7) "School interior" means the area inside of a
school district or open-enrollment charter school facility's outer
walls, including the facility's interior doors.
(8) "School perimeter" means the boundaries of the
real property or site on which a school district or open-enrollment
charter school campus is located.
(9) "School safety rating" means a school safety
accountability rating assigned under Section 37.258 to a school
district or open-enrollment charter school campus based on the
campus's school safety score.
(10) "School safety score" means the numeric school
safety score assigned to a school district or open-enrollment
charter school campus under Section 37.254.
Sec. 37.252. SCHOOL SAFETY TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
(a) The agency shall establish the school safety technical
advisory committee to advise the agency regarding the school safety
accountability program established under this subchapter. The
committee is composed of:
(1) the following nine members, with the governor, the
lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
representatives each appointing one member from each of the
following three categories:
(A) public school superintendents;
(B) law enforcement leadership officers; and
(C) persons serving in a school safety leadership
capacity other than as a law enforcement leadership officer; and
(2) two additional members appointed by the
commissioner, one of whom must be a teacher at a school district or
open-enrollment charter school.
(b) An individual may not be appointed under Subsection (a)
to serve on the committee as a law enforcement leadership officer
unless the individual has completed the initial training program
required by police chiefs under Section 96.641 and any continuing
education required for police chiefs under that section.
(c) A committee member serves a two-year term and may be
reappointed.
Sec. 37.253. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM. (a) The agency
shall establish a school safety accountability program to ensure
school district and open-enrollment charter school campuses
provide safe and secure environments.
(b) The chief of school safety and security shall oversee
and administer the program.
(c) The chief of school safety and security may lower a
school safety score assigned under Section 37.254 or school safety
rating based on a final audit report prepared by the agency under
Section 37.255. A decision by the chief of school safety and
security under this subsection is final and not subject to appeal.
Sec. 37.254. SCHOOL SAFETY SCORE. (a) Not later than
January 30 of each year, the agency shall assign each school
district and open-enrollment charter school campus a school safety
score. The school safety score must be:
(1) a number between zero and 100, with 100
representing a perfect score; and
(2) determined by an audit of campus school safety
based on the metrics of assessment developed under Section 37.256
conducted by:
(A) the district or school under Subsection (b);
or
(B) the agency under Section 37.255.
(b) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school
shall annually conduct an audit of the safety of each campus of the
district or school applying the metrics of assessment developed
under Section 37.256 to assign a school safety score to each campus.
The district or school shall submit the campus school safety score
assigned for each campus under this subsection to the agency in the
manner and form required by the commissioner.
Sec. 37.255. AGENCY AUDIT OF SCHOOL SAFETY. (a) The agency
shall annually conduct an audit of the school safety of 25 percent
of school district and open-enrollment charter school campuses in
this state. The audit must:
(1) apply the metrics of assessment developed under
Section 37.256; and
(2) assess the accuracy of school safety scores
submitted for the audited campus by a school district or
open-enrollment charter school under Section 37.254 for the
preceding three years.
(b) After completing an audit of a school district or
open-enrollment charter school campus under this section, the
agency shall provide a preliminary school safety audit report to
the district or school. The audited district or school may respond
in writing to the preliminary audit report.
(c) After issuing a preliminary audit report and
considering any response submitted by the school district or
open-enrollment charter school, the agency shall issue to the
district or school a final audit report of each audited campus that
includes a school safety score. A final audit report issued under
this section is not subject to appeal.
Sec. 37.256. METRICS OF ASSESSMENT. (a) The agency, in
consultation with the advisory committee, the Texas School Safety
Center, the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center
at Texas State University--San Marcos, and other appropriate
stakeholders designated by the commissioner, shall develop
criteria for metrics of assessment to be applied in calculating
school safety scores under Sections 37.254 and 37.255 for each
school district and open-enrollment charter school campus.
(b) The metrics of assessment must, with respect to each
school district and open-enrollment charter school campus:
(1) evaluate separately each school perimeter,
exterior, and interior at the district or school; and
(2) include metrics for evaluating:
(A) whether all classroom and exterior doors
lock;
(B) the type of glass used in interior and
exterior windows, which may be divided into further categories
requiring the application of additional metrics;
(C) the type and location of exterior cameras
installed at the campus;
(D) the type and location of interior cameras
installed at the campus;
(E) the features of any school safety Internet
application used by the school, including if:
(i) a school lockdown or threat
automatically triggers the application to call or make a digital
directive announcement to the local 9-1-1 emergency call center;
(ii) the application integrates with
information reported through the Public Education Information
Management System (PEIMS); or
(iii) the application integrates with the
health information of school staff and students as necessary for
providing effective emergency medical treatment following a
disaster or emergency situation, including a staff member's or
student's blood type, medication allergies, and significant
diseases or health conditions;
(F) the frequency and type of active shooter and
other disaster drills;
(G) the security of exterior gates and fencing;
(H) the ease of access to the campus for an
intruder;
(I) safety procedures for student pick-up and
drop-off at the campus;
(J) the safety of campus parking lots used by
visitors and faculty;
(K) severe weather and disaster alerts and
preparedness;
(L) the availability of devices allowing for
two-way communication between campus administrators or campus
police, if applicable, and each classroom;
(M) the safety and storage of firearms at each
campus;
(N) the provision of security services at each
campus for which a school marshal is appointed or at which a school
guardian is authorized;
(O) for a campus at which a school resource
officer is assigned, coverage of school resource officers;
(P) for a campus at which peace officers
commissioned and employed by the district or school provide
services, data related to commissioned district or school peace
officers, including demographic information and information
concerning training and experience;
(Q) wireless Internet access, speed, and
availability on campus;
(R) information regarding the campus reported to
the agency under Section 38.0141; and
(S) any other safety criteria required by the
agency.
(c) In developing criteria for the metrics of assessment
under Subsection (a), the agency shall account for differences
among school district and open-enrollment charter school campuses
located in rural, urban, and suburban areas, including by
differentiating how metrics evaluated under Subsection (b)(2) are
applied in determining those differences.
Sec. 37.257. SCHOOL SAFETY MOBILE INTERNET APPLICATION
REQUIREMENTS. If a school district or open-enrollment charter
school provides a school safety mobile Internet application, the
application:
(1) must comply with the Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. Section 1320d et seq.) and
the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C.
Section 1232g); and
(2) may only contain health information voluntarily
provided for integration in the application:
(A) for a student, by the student's parent or
guardian; or
(B) by an educator or other campus staff.
Sec. 37.258. SCHOOL SAFETY RATING. (a) The agency, with
input from the advisory committee, shall adopt a method for
converting a school safety score assigned under Section 37.254 to a
school safety rating for purposes of this section.
(b) Not later than January 30 of each year, the agency shall
assign each school district and open-enrollment charter school
campus, based on that campus's school safety score, a preliminary
school safety rating of:
(1) exceeds standards;
(2) meets standards; or
(3) does not meet standards.
(c) Not later than March 1, the agency shall assign a final
school safety rating of "exceeds standards," "meets standards," or
"does not meet standards" to each school district and
open-enrollment charter school campus, except a campus
implementing a remediation plan under a deadline established by
Section 37.259(e).
Sec. 37.259. CAMPUS REMEDIATION PLAN. (a) The principal of
a school district or open-enrollment charter school campus assigned
a preliminary school safety rating under Section 37.258 of "does
not meet standards" shall prepare a campus remediation plan.
(b) A campus remediation plan must:
(1) specifically address improvements to school
safety to be made at the campus prior to the beginning of the
following school year;
(2) for a school district campus, be prepared in
coordination with the board of trustees of the district;
(3) be approved by the board of trustees of the school
district or the governing body of the open-enrollment charter
school in which the campus is located, as applicable; and
(4) be submitted to the agency not later than the 45th
day after the date on which the preliminary school safety rating was
assigned.
(c) The chief of school safety and security shall evaluate
each campus remediation plan submitted under Subsection (b). If
the chief of school safety and security determines that a plan is
sufficient, the chief of school safety and security shall revise
the school safety rating assigned to the campus to the rating of
"meets standards."
(d) The agency shall notify the principal of the campus
whether the remediation plan is sufficient for the campus to be
assigned a revised school safety rating of "meets standards."
(e) After a remediation plan is determined to be sufficient
under this section, the advisory committee shall establish a
deadline by which the principal of a school district or
open-enrollment charter school must submit to the board of trustees
of the district or governing board of the school, as applicable,
documentation showing that the campus has implemented the
remediation plan.
(f) The chief of school safety and security has the sole
authority to revise a school safety rating under this section.
Sec. 37.260. CONFIDENTIALITY. The following information
produced under this subchapter is confidential and not subject to
disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code:
(1) a school safety score, including data collected or
an audit report prepared by or in connection with determining or
assigning the school safety score;
(2) a preliminary school safety rating assigned under
Section 37.258; and
(3) a campus remediation plan prepared by a school
district or open-enrollment charter school under Section 37.259.
Sec. 37.261. RULES; DEADLINES. (a) The commissioner shall
adopt rules necessary to implement this subchapter, including rules
regarding requirements for further remediation by a school district
or open-enrollment charter school campus that submits a remediation
plan that is determined to be insufficient for purposes of Section
37.259.
(b) The commissioner may extend or modify a timeline or
deadline established by this subchapter.
Sec. 37.262. TEXAS SCHOOL SAFETY REPORT CARD. (a) Not
later than August 15 of each year, the agency shall publish on the
agency's Internet website the school safety report card, which
consists of a list of the most recently assigned final school safety
ratings under Section 37.258 for each school district and
open-enrollment charter school campus in the state.
(b) Each school district and open-enrollment charter school
shall annually provide either a copy of the school safety report
card or a link to the report card on the agency's Internet website
to each parent, guardian, or person standing in parental relation
to a student in the district or school.
SECTION 2. (a) Not later than October 1, 2023, the
commissioner of education shall establish the school safety
technical advisory committee required under Section 37.252,
Education Code, as added by this Act.
(b) Not later than January 30, 2026, the Texas Education
Agency shall assign each school district and open-enrollment
charter school campus:
(1) a school safety score under Section 37.254,
Education Code, as added by this Act; and
(2) a school safety rating under Section 37.258,
Education Code, as added by this Act.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2023.