Bill Text: TX HB4873 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relating to the licensing and regulation of peace officers.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-05-11 - Postponed 6/7/23 10:00 AM [HB4873 Detail]

Download: Texas-2023-HB4873-Introduced.html

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88R9627 JCG-D
By: Holland H.B. No. 4873

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the licensing and regulation of peace officers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter D, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Sections 1701.165 and 1701.166 to read as
follows:
Sec. 1701.165. STANDARDS OF CONDUCT. (a) The commission by
rule shall prescribe standards of conduct for officers.
(b) The standards of conduct must establish minimum
standards with respect to the following:
(1) pursuit of a suspect;
(2) arrest and control tactics;
(3) executing high-risk warrants; and
(4) conducting traffic stops, including a uniform
standard for conducting a traffic stop for an offense punishable by
fine only.
(c) The commission shall biennially review and update the
standards of conduct as necessary.
Sec. 1701.166. SUBMISSION OF REVOKED LICENSE TO NATIONAL
DATABASE. (a) In this section, "national misconduct database"
means the National Decertification Index maintained by the
International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement
Standards and Training, or a similar database selected by the
commission that serves as a registry for the revocation of officer
licenses in several jurisdictions based on misconduct committed by
the officer.
(b) The commission shall submit to the national misconduct
database information necessary to create a record in the database
for each officer license the commission revokes under Section
1701.501(a-1) or 1701.4521.
SECTION 2. Subchapter G, Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 1701.3135 to read as follows:
Sec. 1701.3135. DISQUALIFICATION: REVOCATION OR SUSPENSION
IN ANOTHER STATE. A person is disqualified to be an officer, and
the commission may not issue an officer license to the person, if
the person has been issued a license or other authorization to act
as an officer in another state and the license or authorization was
revoked or suspended.
SECTION 3. Section 1701.501, Occupations Code, is amended
by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a-1) Except as provided by Subsection (d), the commission
may revoke or suspend a license, place on probation a person whose
license has been suspended, or reprimand a license holder for
violating a standard of conduct prescribed under Section 1701.165.
SECTION 4. Not later than January 1, 2024, the Texas
Commission on Law Enforcement shall:
(1) prescribe the standards of conduct required by
Section 1701.165, Occupations Code, as added by this Act; and
(2) adopt the rules necessary to implement Chapter
1701, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 5. Section 1701.3135, Occupations Code, as added by
this Act, applies only to an application for an officer license
submitted under Chapter 1701, Occupations Code, on or after the
effective date of this Act. An application submitted before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the application was submitted, and the former law is continued
in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 6. The standards of conduct required by Section
1701.165, Occupations Code, as added by this Act, apply only to
conduct that occurs on or after January 1, 2024. Conduct that
occurs before January 1, 2024, is governed by the law in effect on
the date the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.