By: Bettencourt S.B. No. 1437
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the eligibility of certain individuals for
certification as certain juvenile officers or employees of a
juvenile facility.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 222.054, Human Resources Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (a-1) and amending Subsections (b),
(c), and (d) to read as follows:
(a-1) This section applies to an individual, regardless of
whether the individual holds a certification under this chapter,
who is or was employed by, under contract with, or volunteering for:
(1) the department;
(2) a juvenile probation department; or
(3) a juvenile facility registered with the
department.
(b) Subject to Subsection (d), the [The] department may
designate as permanently ineligible for certification under this
chapter an individual to whom this section applies if:
(1) while employed by, under contract with, or
volunteering for an entity described by Subsection (a-1), the
individual engaged [who has been terminated from employment with
the department for engaging] in conduct that:
(A) violates this chapter or a department rule;
or
(B) demonstrates the individual is not suitable
for certification under this chapter; or
(2) a panel under Subsection (c) determines the
individual's certification would threaten juveniles in the
juvenile justice system.
(c) The executive director may convene, in person or
telephonically, a panel of three board members to determine if the
[a former department employee's] continued eligibility of an
individual to whom this section applies to obtain a certification
under this chapter threatens juveniles in the juvenile justice
system. If the panel determines an individual's eligibility for
certification threatens juveniles in the juvenile justice system,
the department shall temporarily designate the individual as
ineligible for certification until an administrative hearing is
held under Subsection (d). The hearing must be held as soon as
possible following the temporary designation. The executive
director may convene a panel under this subsection only if the
danger posed by the person's continued eligibility for
certification is imminent. The panel may hold a telephonic meeting
only if immediate action is required and convening the panel at one
location is inconvenient for any member of the panel.
(d) A person is entitled to a hearing before the State
Office of Administrative Hearings if the department proposes to
designate a person as permanently ineligible for certification as
provided by Subsection (b).
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.