89R5376 PRL-D
By: González of El Paso H.B. No. 4193
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to measures for ensuring safety and security in public
schools, including certain training for school district personnel
and parents of certain students.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 21.044(a-1), Education Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a-1) Any training requirements for a certificate specified
under Subsection (a) must require that the person demonstrate:
(1) basic knowledge of:
(A) each disability category under the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 U.S.C. Section 1400
et seq.) and how each category can affect student learning and
development; and
(B) conditions that may be considered a
disability under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C.
Section 794), and how a condition covered by that section can affect
student learning and development;
(2) competence in the use of proactive instructional
planning techniques that:
(A) provide flexibility in the ways:
(i) information is presented;
(ii) students respond or demonstrate
knowledge and skills; and
(iii) students are engaged;
(B) reduce barriers in instruction;
(C) provide appropriate accommodations,
supports, and challenges; and
(D) maintain high achievement expectations for
all students, including students with disabilities and students of
limited English proficiency;
(3) competence in the use of evidence-based inclusive
instructional practices, including:
(A) general and special education collaborative
and co-teaching models and approaches;
(B) multitiered systems of support, including
response to intervention strategies, classroom and school level
data-based collaborative structures, and evidence-based strategies
for intervention and progress monitoring systems in academic areas;
(C) classroom management techniques using
evidence-based behavioral intervention strategies and supports and
de-escalation techniques; and
(D) appropriate adaptation strategies, including
accommodations, modifications, and instruction in the use of
assistive technology for instruction; and
(4) thorough understanding of and competence in the
use of open education resource instructional materials included on
the list of approved instructional materials maintained by the
State Board of Education under Section 31.022 in each subject area
and grade level covered by the person's certificate.
SECTION 2. Section 29.041(3), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(3) "Supplemental special education services" means
an additive service that provides an educational benefit to a
student receiving special education services under Subchapter A,
including:
(A) occupational therapy, physical therapy, and
speech therapy; [and]
(B) private tutoring and other supplemental
private instruction or programs; and
(C) crisis intervention training for the
student's parent.
SECTION 3. Section 37.0021, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsections (k) and (l) to read as follows:
(k) Subject to Subsection (l), the commissioner by rule
shall adopt procedures relating to training for school district
personnel in de-escalation techniques. The procedures must
include:
(1) standards for determining:
(A) which personnel, including support staff and
law enforcement, should receive the training; and
(B) the amount of training the personnel should
receive, with priority for a higher degree of training that
includes physical interventions given to personnel who are exposed
to the greatest risk of student-involved crisis; and
(2) recommendations regarding the minimum frequency
of retraining necessary, which may be:
(A) an annual course; or
(B) as needed, based on the students served by
the personnel.
(l) Notwithstanding any other law, any de-escalation
technique training requirement adopted under Subsection (k) is not
an additional training requirement and may be combined with or
substituted, provided the de-escalation training addresses a
majority of the content covered in the substituted training, for
other related trainings, including:
(1) trauma-informed care training required under
Section 38.036(c); and
(2) training on strategies for establishing and
maintaining positive relationships among students, including
conflict resolution, required as part of a school district's staff
development under Section 21.451(d).
SECTION 4. Section 37.115(c), Education Code, as amended by
Chapters 896 (H.B. 3) and 948 (S.B. 1720), Acts of the 88th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, is reenacted and amended to
read as follows:
(c) The board of trustees of each school district shall
establish a threat assessment and safe and supportive school team
to serve at each campus of the district and shall adopt policies and
procedures for the teams. The team is responsible for developing
and implementing the safe and supportive school program under
Subsection (b) at the district campus served by the team. The
policies and procedures adopted under this section must:
(1) be consistent with the model policies and
procedures developed by the Texas School Safety Center;
(2) require each team to complete training provided by
the Texas School Safety Center or a regional education service
center regarding evidence-based threat assessment programs;
(3) require each team established under this section
to report the information required under Subsection (k) regarding
the team's activities to the agency; [and]
(4) provide for:
(A) a district employee who reports a potential
threat to a team to elect for the employee's identity to be
confidential and not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552,
Government Code, except as necessary for the team, the district, or
law enforcement to investigate the potential threat; and
(B) the district to maintain a record of the
identity of a district employee who elects for the employee's
identity to be confidential under Paragraph (A);
(5) [(4)] require each district campus to establish a
clear procedure for a student to report concerning behavior
exhibited by another student for assessment by the team or other
appropriate school employee; and
(6) encourage each team established under this section
to form an incident reduction committee to develop and implement
preventative and proactive incident reduction measures.
SECTION 5. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
over another Act of the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025,
relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
codes.
SECTION 6. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the commissioner of education shall adopt the rules
required by Section 37.0021(k), Education Code, as added by this
Act.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.