Texas 2023 - 88th 2nd C.S.

Texas House Bill HB67 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Flores H.B. No. 67
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to certain heat safety protections; providing
7	7	administrative and civil penalties.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 2, Labor Code, is amended by
10	10	adding Chapter 53 to read as follows:
11	11	CHAPTER 53. HEAT SAFETY
12	12	Sec. 53.001. DEFINITIONS. In this section:
13	13	(1) "Commission" means the Texas Workforce
14	14	Commission.
15	15	(2) "Heat illness" means a serious medical condition
16	16	resulting from the body's inability to cope with a particular heat
17	17	load and includes heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat syncope, and
18	18	heat stroke.
19	19	(3) "Heat safety expert" means a person that:
20	20	(A) possesses a certification or educational
21	21	degree in public health, medicine, occupational safety,
22	22	environmental science, human physiology, or a related field; and
23	23	(B) performs work focused on heat safety in the
24	24	workplace.
25	25	Sec. 53.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies to the
26	26	mitigation and control of risks related to heat illness, regardless
27	27	of the location of employment, type of employment, or type of
28	28	employer.
29	29	Sec. 53.003. HEAT ILLNESS PREVENTION ADVISORY BOARD;
30	30	STANDARDS. (a) The commission shall appoint an advisory board
31	31	consisting of the following seven members:
32	32	(1) two heat safety experts;
33	33	(2) two persons employed as construction workers;
34	34	(3) one employer;
35	35	(4) one representative of a non-profit organization
36	36	engaged in worker safety issues; and
37	37	(5) one representative of a construction worker labor
38	38	union.
39	39	(b) The advisory board appointed under this section shall
40	40	develop and recommend heat illness prevention standards consistent
41	41	with this chapter and designed to protect employees from heat
42	42	illness in indoor and outdoor work. The commission shall review and
43	43	adopt the standards recommended by the advisory board under this
44	44	section for use by employers to the extent that the standards are
45	45	consistent with this chapter and other applicable law.
46	46	(c) The standards recommended by the advisory board and
47	47	adopted by the commission under this section must:
48	48	(1) be developed in a manner consistent with "Criteria
49	49	for a Recommended Standard: Occupational Exposure to Heat and Hot
50	50	Environments" published by the National Institute for Occupational
51	51	Safety and Health;
52	52	(2) include requirements related to the provision of
53	53	drinking water, access to nearby shade or climate-controlled
54	54	environments, access to nearby restrooms and handwashing stations,
55	55	rest periods, effective emergency response procedures,
56	56	acclimatization to working in heat, training procedures for
57	57	employees and supervisors, and related standards for protection
58	58	against heat illness; and
59	59	(3) include mandatory administrative penalties of not
60	60	less than $1,000 per violation per employee for an employer's
61	61	failure to comply with heat illness prevention standards adopted
62	62	under this section, to be assessed and administered by the
63	63	commission.
64	64	Sec. 53.004. SIGNAGE REQUIRED. (a) The commission shall
65	65	produce signage in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and any other
66	66	languages that the commission determines to be appropriate
67	67	outlining:
68	68	(1) the heat illness prevention standards adopted by
69	69	the commission under this chapter; and
70	70	(2) an employee's rights under this chapter.
71	71	(b) The commission shall make the signage available for free
72	72	download by employers and the public on the commission's website.
73	73	(c) An employer shall post a copy of the signage described
74	74	by this section at its place of business in a place accessible by
75	75	the employer's employees.
76	76	Sec. 53.005. EMPLOYEE TRAINING REQUIRED. An employer is
77	77	required to provide training to each of its employees about the heat
78	78	illness prevention standards adopted under this chapter as they
79	79	relate to employees, supervisors, and employers. The training,
80	80	including any related written materials, must be provided to each
81	81	employee in a language that the employee understands.
82	82	Sec. 53.006. UNLAWFUL EMPLOYMENT PRACTICE. An employer
83	83	commits an unlawful employment practice under this chapter if the
84	84	employer retaliates or discriminates against an employee that:
85	85	(1) experiences heat illness;
86	86	(2) reports heat illness or a violation of this
87	87	chapter or other applicable standards to their employer;
88	88	(3) files a complaint with the Texas Workforce
89	89	Commission;
90	90	(4) files a lawsuit; or
91	91	(5) testifies, assists, or participates in any manner
92	92	in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this chapter.
93	93	Sec. 53.007. LIABILITY. (a) In addition to any
94	94	administrative penalties assessed under this chapter, an employee
95	95	is entitled to a private right of action in a court of appropriate
96	96	jurisdiction for an employer's failure to comply with heat illness
97	97	prevention standards adopted under this chapter. An employee is
98	98	not required to exhaust applicable alternative administrative
99	99	remedies before pursuing a private right of action under this
100	100	section.
101	101	(b) An employee that prevails in an action against an
102	102	employer under this section is entitled to recover from the
103	103	employer all court costs and reasonable attorney fees related to
104	104	the action.
105	105	(c) If the court presiding over an action filed by an
106	106	employee under this section finds that an employer knowingly
107	107	violated the heat illness prevention standards adopted under this
108	108	chapter, the court shall award the employee an amount equal to
109	109	triple the amount of damages otherwise due to the employee.
110	110	Sec. 53.008. DEADLINES FOR CERTAIN ACTIONS. (a) The
111	111	commission shall appoint the advisory board described by Section
112	112	53.003 as soon as reasonably possible after the effective date of
113	113	this Act, but not later than October 1, 2023.
114	114	(b) The advisory board shall submit recommended standards
115	115	to the commission under Section 53.003 not later than January 1,
116	116	2024.
117	117	(c) The commission shall adopt and publish the standards
118	118	described by Section 53.003 not later than March 1, 2024.
119	119	(d) This section expires and is repealed on January 1, 2025.
120	120	SECTION 2. Chapter 53, Labor Code, as added by this Act,
121	121	applies only to work performed on or after the adoption and
122	122	publication of the standards described by Section 53.003, Labor
123	123	Code, as added by this Act.
124	124	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
125	125	a vote of two-thirds of all members elected to each house, as
126	126	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
127	127	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
128	128	Act takes effect September 1, 2023.