89R11000 BCH-F
By: Bryant H.B. No. 2997
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the temperature at which certain facilities operated by
the Texas Department of Criminal Justice are maintained.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 501, Government Code, is
amended by adding Sections 501.028 and 501.029 to read as follows:
Sec. 501.028. TEMPERATURE REQUIREMENTS AT DEPARTMENT
FACILITIES. (a) The department shall ensure that the temperature
in each facility operated by the department and used to house
inmates or in which department staff regularly work is maintained
at not less than 65 degrees Fahrenheit or more than 85 degrees
Fahrenheit.
(b) The department shall install and maintain an electronic
temperature gauge in the following areas of each facility described
by Subsection (a):
(1) hospitals;
(2) visiting areas;
(3) housing or dormitory areas;
(4) trustee areas;
(5) areas used for medical treatment or care,
including areas used for dispensing medication to inmates;
(6) kitchens or dining areas;
(7) food preparation areas;
(8) community areas, including dayrooms;
(9) laundry areas;
(10) areas used for work stations;
(11) indoor recreational areas, including gymnasiums;
(12) restroom and shower areas and other areas related
to inmate hygiene;
(13) administrative areas;
(14) correctional officer stations, including guard
post areas;
(15) commissary areas;
(16) areas used for programmatic, educational, or
vocational purposes;
(17) chapels or churches;
(18) libraries; and
(19) maintenance areas.
(c) The department shall:
(1) maintain a log of the temperatures recorded by
each electronic temperature gauge under Subsection (b) on an hourly
basis in an electronic format; and
(2) publish the log, at least quarterly, on the
department's publicly accessible Internet website.
Sec. 501.029. REPORT REGARDING AIR CONDITIONING. Not later
than December 1 of each year, the department shall submit to the
governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of
representatives, and each standing committee of the legislature
with primary jurisdiction over the department a report regarding
air conditioning in facilities operated by the department and used
to house inmates or in which department staff regularly work. The
report must include the following information for the preceding
12-month period:
(1) the number of facilities in which the air
conditioning system has failed;
(2) the number of incidents in which the air
conditioning in a facility was not operational and the reason for
each incident;
(3) the number of incidents in which the temperature
was not maintained at the temperature range required under Section
501.028(a) and the reason for each incident;
(4) for each incident described by Subdivision (2)
that was due to an equipment malfunction, a summary of the steps
taken by the department to address the malfunction and ensure the
well-being of inmates and staff at the facility; and
(5) for each incident described by Subdivision (3), a
summary of the steps taken by the department to address the cause of
the incident and ensure the well-being of inmates and staff at the
facility.
SECTION 2. (a) The Texas Department of Criminal Justice is
not required to fully comply with the requirements of Section
501.028, Government Code, as added by this Act, until September 1,
2026.
(b) Not later than September 1, 2026, the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice shall submit to the governor, the lieutenant
governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and each
standing committee of the legislature with primary jurisdiction
over the department a report regarding the department's progress
toward complying with Section 501.028, Government Code, as added by
this Act, in all facilities to which that section applies.
(c) The Texas Department of Criminal Justice shall submit
the first report required by Section 501.029, Government Code, as
added by this Act, not later than December 1, 2027.
SECTION 3. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
section, 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, 2025.
(b) Section 501.029, Government Code, as added by this Act,
takes effect September 1, 2027.