Texas 2023 - 88th 3rd C.S.

Texas House Bill HB55 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Bucy H.B. No. 55
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to requirements regarding certain behavior management for
7	7	a student enrolled in a special education program of a public
8	8	school.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 37.0021, Education Code, is amended by
11	11	amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (d-1) to read as
12	12	follows:
13	13	(d) The commissioner by rule shall adopt procedures for the
14	14	use of restraint and time-out by a school district employee or
15	15	volunteer or an independent contractor of a district in the case of
16	16	a student with a disability receiving special education services
17	17	under Subchapter A, Chapter 29. A procedure adopted under this
18	18	subsection must:
19	19	(1) be consistent with:
20	20	(A) professionally accepted practices and
21	21	standards of student discipline and techniques for behavior
22	22	management; and
23	23	(B) relevant health and safety standards;
24	24	(2) identify any discipline management practice or
25	25	behavior management technique that requires a district employee or
26	26	volunteer or an independent contractor of a district to be trained
27	27	before using that practice or technique; and
28	28	(3) require a school district to:
29	29	(A) provide written notification to the
30	30	student's parent or person standing in parental relation to the
31	31	student for each use of restraint that includes:
32	32	(i) the name of the student;
33	33	(ii) the name of the district employee or
34	34	volunteer or independent contractor of the district who
35	35	administered the restraint;
36	36	(iii) the date of the restraint;
37	37	(iv) the time that the restraint started
38	38	and ended;
39	39	(v) the location of the restraint;
40	40	(vi) the nature of the restraint;
41	41	(vii) a description of the activity in
42	42	which the student was engaged immediately preceding the use of the
43	43	restraint;
44	44	(viii) the behavior of the student that
45	45	prompted the restraint;
46	46	(ix) any efforts made to de-escalate the
47	47	situation and any alternatives to restraint that were attempted;
48	48	(x) if the student has a behavior
49	49	improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, whether the
50	50	plan may need to be revised as a result of the behavior that led to
51	51	the restraint; [and]
52	52	(xi) if the student does not have a behavior
53	53	improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, information on
54	54	the procedure for the student's parent or person standing in
55	55	parental relation to the student to request an admission, review,
56	56	and dismissal committee meeting to discuss the possibility of
57	57	conducting a functional behavioral assessment of the student and
58	58	developing a plan for the student; and
59	59	(xii) whether a mental and physical health
60	60	screening was conducted within a reasonable amount of time after
61	61	the incident by appropriate school officials, including a nurse or
62	62	school counselor, and the results of the screening;
63	63	(B) include in a student's special education
64	64	eligibility school records:
65	65	(i) a copy of the written notification
66	66	provided to the student's parent or person standing in parental
67	67	relation to the student under Paragraph (A);
68	68	(ii) information on the method by which the
69	69	written notification was sent to the parent or person; [and]
70	70	(iii) the contact information for the
71	71	parent or person to whom the district sent the notification; and
72	72	(iv) a copy of the mental and physical
73	73	health screening and the results of the screening; and
74	74	(C) if the student has a behavior improvement
75	75	plan or behavioral intervention plan, document each use of time-out
76	76	prompted by a behavior of the student specified in the student's
77	77	plan, including a description of the behavior that prompted the
78	78	time-out.
79	79	(d-1) A procedure adopted by the commissioner under
80	80	Subsection (d) must require a school district after an incident of
81	81	the use of restraint to conduct an overall health assessment for the
82	82	purpose of assessing the student's holistic well-being that:
83	83	(1) includes evidence-based assessments, as
84	84	determined by the commissioner, for a:
85	85	(A) mental health screening performed by a school
86	86	counselor, school psychologist, or similarly qualified district
87	87	professional; and
88	88	(B) physical health screening performed by a
89	89	school nurse or similarly qualified district professional; and
90	90	(2) is performed within a reasonable amount of time
91	91	after the incident, as determined by the commissioner.
92	92	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
93	93	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
94	94	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
95	95	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
96	96	Act takes effect on the 91st day after the last day of the
97	97	legislative session.