By: Zaffirini, Campbell S.B. No. 57
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to provisions and plans by public schools to ensure the
safety of individuals with disabilities or impairments during a
mandatory school drill or a disaster or emergency situation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 29, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 29.0052 to read as follows:
Sec. 29.0052. INCLUSION OF ACCOMMODATIONS DURING MANDATORY
SCHOOL DRILLS IN INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM OR SECTION 504
PLAN. (a) In this section:
(1) "Committee" means a committee established under
Section 29.005(a).
(2) "Section 504 plan" means a plan created under
Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794).
(3) "Team" means a team established for a student
under Section 504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section
794).
(b) In developing or modifying an individualized education
program or a Section 504 plan for a student, the student's committee
or team, as applicable, shall consider whether the student's
disabilities or impairments would require the school district to
provide any specific accommodations for the student during a
mandatory school drill required under Section 37.114. If the
student's committee or team determines that the student would
require a specific accommodation, the committee or team shall:
(1) identify each disability or impairment that
requires accommodation; and
(2) for each disability or impairment identified under
Subdivision (1), specify the required accommodations for that
disability or impairment.
(c) In making considerations and specifying required
accommodations under Subsection (b), a committee or team must
follow the guidelines established by the commissioner under Section
37.1086.
(d) A student's committee or team shall provide to each
administrator with emergency planning responsibilities at the
school district and campus at which the student is enrolled the
information described by Subsections (b)(1) and (2).
(e) A committee or team may invite school district and
campus administrators with emergency planning responsibilities to
assist the committee or team in making the considerations and
specifying the required accommodations described by Subsection
(b).
SECTION 2. Section 37.108(f), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(f) A school district shall include in its multihazard
emergency operations plan:
(1) a chain of command that designates the individual
responsible for making final decisions during a disaster or
emergency situation and identifies other individuals responsible
for making those decisions if the designated person is unavailable;
(2) provisions that address physical and
psychological safety for responding to a natural disaster, active
shooter, and any other dangerous scenario identified for purposes
of this section by the agency or the Texas School Safety Center;
(3) provisions for ensuring the safety of students in
portable buildings;
(4) provisions for ensuring that students and district
personnel with disabilities are provided equal access to safety
during a disaster or emergency situation based on the guidelines
established by the commissioner under Section 37.1086;
(5) provisions for providing immediate notification
to parents, guardians, and other persons standing in parental
relation in circumstances involving a significant threat to the
health or safety of students, including identification of the
individual with responsibility for overseeing the notification;
(6) provisions for supporting the psychological
safety of students, district personnel, and the community during
the response and recovery phase following a disaster or emergency
situation that:
(A) are aligned with best practice-based
programs and research-based practices recommended under Section
38.351;
(B) include strategies for ensuring any required
professional development training for suicide prevention and
grief-informed and trauma-informed care is provided to appropriate
school personnel;
(C) include training on integrating
psychological safety and suicide prevention strategies into the
district's plan, such as psychological first aid for schools
training, from an approved list of recommended training established
by the commissioner and Texas School Safety Center for:
(i) members of the district's school safety
and security committee under Section 37.109;
(ii) district school counselors and mental
health professionals; and
(iii) educators and other district
personnel as determined by the district;
(D) include strategies and procedures for
integrating and supporting physical and psychological safety that
align with the provisions described by Subdivision (2); and
(E) implement trauma-informed policies;
(7) a policy for providing a substitute teacher access
to school campus buildings and materials necessary for the
substitute teacher to carry out the duties of a district employee
during an emergency or a mandatory emergency drill;
(8) the name of each individual on the district's
school safety and security committee established under Section
37.109 and the date of each committee meeting during the preceding
year; and
(9) certification that the district is in compliance
with Section 37.117.
SECTION 3. Section 37.1086, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.1086. GUIDELINES FOR SCHOOL DRILL ACCOMMODATIONS
AND MULTIHAZARD EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN PROVISIONS FOR
INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES OR IMPAIRMENTS. (a) The
commissioner by rule [agency] shall establish guidelines for:
(1) the considerations and specifications required
under Section 29.0052 regarding accommodations for a student with
an individualized education program or a plan created under Section
504, Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. Section 794); and
(2) the provisions in a school district's multihazard
emergency operations plan under Section 37.108(f)(4) to ensure the
safety of students and district personnel with disabilities or
impairments during a disaster or emergency situation.
(b) In establishing guidelines under Subsection (a), the
commissioner shall consult[, in consultation] with:
(1) the Texas School Safety Center;
(2) regional education service centers;
(3) public school educators and administrators who
work with students with disabilities or impairments; and
(4) advocacy groups representing individuals with
disabilities or impairments.
(c) [(b)] A school district must follow the guidelines
established by the commissioner [agency] under Subsection (a)(2)
[(a)] in adopting and implementing the district's multihazard
emergency operations plan under Section 37.108.
SECTION 4. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act but not later than June 1, 2026, the commissioner of
education shall adopt rules establishing the guidelines required by
Section 37.1086, Education Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 5. Section 29.0052, Education Code, as added by
this Act, applies beginning with the 2026-2027 school year.
SECTION 6. 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.