Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2144 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R14512 MZM-F
2	2	By: Perry S.B. No. 2144
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the authority of a reserve peace officer.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 85.004(b), Local Government Code, is
12	12	amended to read as follows:
13	13	(b) A reserve deputy serves at the discretion of the sheriff
14	14	and may be called into service if the sheriff considers it necessary
15	15	to have additional officers to preserve the peace and enforce the
16	16	law. The sheriff may authorize a reserve deputy [who is a peace
17	17	officer as described by Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal
18	18	Procedure,] to carry a weapon or act as a peace officer at all
19	19	times, regardless of whether the reserve deputy is engaged in the
20	20	actual discharge of official duties, or may limit the authority of
21	21	the reserve deputy to carry a weapon or act as a peace officer to
22	22	only those times during which the reserve deputy is engaged in the
23	23	actual discharge of official duties. Notwithstanding Section
24	24	1702.322, Occupations Code, a reserve deputy may not perform an
25	25	action for which a license is required under Chapter 1702 of that
26	26	code unless the deputy is licensed in accordance with that chapter.
27	27	The sheriff may not authorize a reserve deputy to perform an
28	28	activity requiring the use of a police vehicle outside the county if
29	29	the activity is for private gain. The sheriff may authorize a
30	30	reserve deputy to conduct a police escort as defined by Section
31	31	546.002, Transportation Code, only if the escort begins or ends in
32	32	the county. A reserve deputy [who is not a peace officer as
33	33	described by Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure, may act as
34	34	a peace officer only during the actual discharge of official
35	35	duties. A reserve deputy, regardless of whether the reserve deputy
36	36	is a peace officer as described by Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal
37	37	Procedure,] is not[:
38	38	[(1)] eligible for participation in any program
39	39	provided by the county that is normally considered a financial
40	40	benefit of full-time employment or for any pension fund created by
41	41	statute for the benefit of full-time paid peace officers[; or
42	42	[(2) exempt from Chapter 1702, Occupations Code].
43	43	SECTION 2. Section 86.012(b), Local Government Code, is
44	44	amended to read as follows:
45	45	(b) A reserve deputy constable serves at the discretion of
46	46	the constable and may be called into service at any time that the
47	47	constable considers it necessary to have additional officers to
48	48	preserve the peace and enforce the law. The constable may authorize
49	49	a reserve deputy constable [who is a peace officer as described by
50	50	Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure,] to carry a weapon or
51	51	act as a peace officer at all times, regardless of whether the
52	52	reserve deputy constable is engaged in the actual discharge of
53	53	official duties, or may limit the authority of the reserve deputy
54	54	constable to carry a weapon or act as a peace officer to only those
55	55	times during which the reserve deputy constable is engaged in the
56	56	actual discharge of official duties. Notwithstanding Section
57	57	1702.322, Occupations Code, a reserve deputy constable may not
58	58	perform an action for which a license is required under Chapter 1702
59	59	of that code unless the deputy is licensed in accordance with that
60	60	chapter. The constable may not authorize a reserve deputy
61	61	constable to perform an activity requiring the use of a police
62	62	vehicle outside the county if the activity is for private gain. The
63	63	constable may authorize a reserve deputy constable to conduct a
64	64	police escort as defined by Section 546.002, Transportation Code,
65	65	only if the escort begins or ends in the county. A reserve deputy
66	66	constable [who is not a peace officer as described by Article
67	67	2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure, may act as a peace officer only
68	68	during the actual discharge of official duties. A reserve deputy
69	69	constable, regardless of whether the reserve deputy constable is a
70	70	peace officer as described by Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal
71	71	Procedure,] is not[:
72	72	[(1)] eligible for participation in any program
73	73	provided by the county that is normally considered a financial
74	74	benefit of full-time employment or for any pension fund created by
75	75	statute for the benefit of full-time paid peace officers[; or
76	76	[(2) exempt from Chapter 1702, Occupations Code].
77	77	SECTION 3. Sections 341.012(g) and (h), Local Government
78	78	Code, are amended to read as follows:
79	79	(g) An appointment to the reserve force must be approved by
80	80	the governing body before the person appointed may carry a weapon or
81	81	otherwise act as a peace officer. [On approval of the appointment
82	82	of a member who is not a peace officer as described by Article
83	83	2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure, the person appointed may carry
84	84	a weapon only when authorized to do so by the chief of police and
85	85	only when discharging official duties as a peace officer.]
86	86	(h) Reserve police officers may act only in a supplementary
87	87	capacity to the regular police force and may not assume the
88	88	full-time duties of regular police officers without complying with
89	89	the requirements for regular police officers. On approval of the
90	90	appointment of a member [who is a peace officer as described by
91	91	Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure], the chief of police
92	92	may authorize the person appointed to carry a weapon or act as a
93	93	peace officer at all times, regardless of whether the person is
94	94	engaged in the actual discharge of official duties, or may limit the
95	95	authority of the person to carry a weapon or act as a peace officer
96	96	to only those times during which the person is engaged in the actual
97	97	discharge of official duties. Notwithstanding Section 1702.322,
98	98	Occupations Code, a reserve police officer may not perform an
99	99	action for which a license is required under Chapter 1702 of that
100	100	code unless the officer is licensed in accordance with that
101	101	chapter. The chief of police may not authorize a reserve police
102	102	officer to perform an activity requiring the use of a police vehicle
103	103	outside a county in which the municipality is wholly or partly
104	104	located if the activity is for private gain. The chief of police
105	105	may authorize a reserve police officer to conduct a police escort as
106	106	defined by Section 546.002, Transportation Code, only if the escort
107	107	begins or ends in a county in which the municipality is wholly or
108	108	partly located. A reserve police officer[, regardless of whether
109	109	the reserve police officer is a peace officer as described by
110	110	Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure,] is not[:
111	111	[(1)] eligible for participation in any program
112	112	provided by the governing body that is normally considered a
113	113	financial benefit of full-time employment or for any pension fund
114	114	created by statute for the benefit of full-time paid peace
115	115	officers[; or
116	116	[(2) exempt from Chapter 1702, Occupations Code].
117	117	SECTION 4. Section 1702.322, Occupations Code, is amended
118	118	to read as follows:
119	119	Sec. 1702.322. LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL. This chapter
120	120	does not apply to:
121	121	(1) a person who has full-time employment as a peace
122	122	officer and who receives compensation for private employment on an
123	123	individual or an independent contractor basis as a patrolman,
124	124	guard, extra job coordinator, or watchman if the officer:
125	125	(A) is employed in an employee-employer
126	126	relationship or employed on an individual contractual basis:
127	127	(i) directly by the recipient of the
128	128	services; or
129	129	(ii) by a company licensed under this
130	130	chapter;
131	131	(B) is not in the employ of another peace
132	132	officer;
133	133	(C) is not a reserve peace officer; and
134	134	(D) works as a peace officer on the average of at
135	135	least 32 hours a week, is compensated by the state or a political
136	136	subdivision of the state at least at the minimum wage, and is
137	137	entitled to all employee benefits offered to a peace officer by the
138	138	state or political subdivision;
139	139	(2) [a reserve peace officer while the reserve officer
140	140	is performing guard, patrolman, or watchman duties for a county and
141	141	is being compensated solely by that county;
142	142	[(3)] a peace officer acting in an official capacity
143	143	in responding to a burglar alarm or detection device; or
144	144	(3) [(4)] a person engaged in the business of
145	145	electronic monitoring of an individual as a condition of that
146	146	individual's community supervision, parole, mandatory supervision,
147	147	or release on bail, if the person does not perform any other service
148	148	that requires a license under this chapter.
149	149	SECTION 5. Sections 60.0775(f), (g), (h), and (i), Water
150	150	Code, are amended to read as follows:
151	151	(f) A reserve force member [who is not a peace officer as
152	152	described by Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure, may act as
153	153	a peace officer only during the discharge of official duties. A
154	154	reserve force member who is a peace officer under that article] must
155	155	hold a permanent peace officer license issued under Chapter 1701,
156	156	Occupations Code.
157	157	(g) The commission must approve an appointment to the
158	158	reserve force before the person appointed may carry a weapon or
159	159	otherwise act as a peace officer. [On approval of the appointment
160	160	of a person who is not a peace officer as described by Article
161	161	2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure, the person appointed may carry
162	162	a weapon only when authorized to do so by the chief of police and
163	163	only when discharging official duties as a peace officer.] On
164	164	approval of the appointment of a person [who is a peace officer as
165	165	described by Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure], the chief
166	166	of police may:
167	167	(1) authorize the person appointed to carry a weapon
168	168	or act as a peace officer at all times, regardless of whether the
169	169	person is engaged in the discharge of official duties; or
170	170	(2) limit the person's authority to carry a weapon or
171	171	act as a peace officer to only those times during which the person
172	172	is engaged in the discharge of official duties.
173	173	(h) Reserve police officers may act only to supplement the
174	174	district's regular police force and may not assume the full-time
175	175	duties of regular police officers without complying with the
176	176	requirements for regular police officers. Notwithstanding Section
177	177	1702.322, Occupations Code, a reserve police officer may not
178	178	perform an action for which a license is required under Chapter 1702
179	179	of that code unless the officer is licensed in accordance with that
180	180	chapter. The chief of police may not authorize a reserve police
181	181	officer to perform an activity requiring the use of a police vehicle
182	182	outside a county in which the district is wholly or partly located
183	183	if the activity is for private gain. The chief of police may
184	184	authorize a reserve police officer to conduct a police escort as
185	185	defined by Section 546.002, Transportation Code, only if the escort
186	186	begins or ends in a county in which the district is wholly or partly
187	187	located.
188	188	(i) A reserve police officer[, regardless of whether the
189	189	reserve police officer is a peace officer as described by Article
190	190	2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure,] is not[:
191	191	[(1)] eligible for participation in:
192	192	(1) [(A)] a program provided by the commission that is
193	193	normally considered a financial benefit of full-time employment; or
194	194	(2) [(B)] a pension fund created by statute for the
195	195	benefit of full-time paid peace officers[; or
196	196	[(2) exempt from Chapter 1702, Occupations Code].
197	197	SECTION 6. Section 341.012(f), Local Government Code, is
198	198	repealed.
199	199	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.