By: Bowers H.B. No. 5591
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to opioid overdose training for peace officers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 1701.253, Occupations Code, is amended
by adding Subsection (u) to read as follows:
(u) As part of the minimum curriculum requirements, the
commission shall require an officer to complete the training
program established under Section 1701.273.
SECTION 2. Subchapter F, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 1701.273 to read as follows:
Sec. 1701.273. TRAINING PROGRAM ON OPIOID OVERDOSES. The
commission by rule shall establish and maintain a training program
on opioid overdoses. The program must include instruction on:
(1) recognizing the signs and symptoms of an opioid
overdose; and
(2) administering all types of opioid antagonists,
including injectable and nasal opioid antagonists.
SECTION 3. Subchapter H, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 1701.3526 to read as follows:
Sec. 1701.3526. CONTINUING EDUCATION ON OPIOID OVERDOSES.
As part of the continuing education programs under Section
1701.351(a), an officer shall complete the training program on
opioid overdoses established under Section 1701.273.
SECTION 4. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement shall adopt
rules to implement the changes in law made by this Act.
SECTION 5. The minimum curriculum requirements under
Section 1701.253(u), Occupations Code, as added by this Act, apply
only to an officer who first begins to satisfy those requirements on
or after January 1, 2026.
SECTION 6. Section 1701.3526, Occupations Code, as added by
this Act, applies only with respect to a 24-month continuing
education training unit that begins on or after the effective date
of this Act. A training unit that begins before the effective date
of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the training
unit began, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.