Bill Text: TX SB1967 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to the duties of the Texas School Safety Center and school districts regarding public school safety and security.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-03-19 - Referred to Education [SB1967 Detail]

Download: Texas-2019-SB1967-Introduced.html

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86R6153 TSS-D
By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 1967

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the duties of the Texas School Safety Center and school
districts regarding public school safety and security.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 11.159, Education Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
(e) The State Board of Education shall require a trustee to
complete the online training provided by the Texas School Safety
Center on school safety and security under Section 37.205 not later
than the 30th day after the trustee's election or appointment.
SECTION 2. Section 37.0812, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.0812. TRAINING POLICY: SCHOOL DISTRICT PEACE
OFFICERS AND SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS. A school district [with an
enrollment of 30,000 or more students] that commissions a school
district peace officer or at which a school resource officer
provides law enforcement shall adopt a policy requiring the officer
to complete the education and training program required by Section
1701.263, Occupations Code.
SECTION 3. Sections 37.108(a), (b), and (c), Education
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) Each school district or public junior college district
shall adopt and implement a multihazard emergency operations plan
for use in the district's facilities. The plan must address
mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery as defined by the
commissioner of education or commissioner of higher education in
conjunction with the governor's office of homeland security. The
plan must provide for:
(1) district employee training in responding to an
emergency;
(2) if the plan applies to a school district:
(A) [,] mandatory school drills and exercises to
prepare district students and employees for responding to an
emergency; and
(B) establishment of memoranda of understanding
or mutual aid agreements with entities identified in accordance
with Section 37.2121(a) that comply with the guidelines developed
by the Texas School Safety Center under Section 37.2121(b);
(3) measures to ensure coordination with the
Department of State Health Services and local emergency management
agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire
departments in the event of an emergency; and
(4) the implementation of a safety and security audit
as required by Subsection (b).
(b) At least once every two [three] years, each school
district or public junior college district shall conduct a safety
and security audit of the district's facilities. To the extent
possible, a district shall follow safety and security audit
procedures developed by the Texas School Safety Center or a
comparable public or private entity.
(c) A school district or public junior college district
shall report the results of the safety and security audit conducted
under Subsection (b) to the district's board of trustees and, in the
manner required by the Texas School Safety Center, to the Texas
School Safety Center. The report provided under this subsection
must include the information required by Section 37.2121(d)
regarding each memorandum of understanding or mutual aid agreement
entered into by the district addressing school safety and security.
SECTION 4. Section 37.205, Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 37.205. SAFETY TRAINING PROGRAMS. The center shall
conduct for school districts a safety training program that
includes:
(1) development of a positive school environment and
proactive safety measures designed to address local concerns;
(2) school safety courses for law enforcement
officials, with a focus on school district police officers and
school resource officers;
(3) discussion of school safety issues with parents
and community members; [and]
(4) assistance in developing a multihazard emergency
operations plan for adoption under Section 37.108;
(5) courses and other training materials and resources
for school counselors regarding the role of student mental health
in providing a safe school environment; and
(6) an online training course for members of a school
district board of trustees that includes information regarding:
(A) a trustee's responsibilities for school
safety and security; and
(B) the resources available from the center to
assist districts with school safety and security.
SECTION 5. Section 37.207(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) Each school district shall report the results of its
audits and the information required by Section 37.2121(d) to the
center in the manner required by the center.
SECTION 6. Subchapter G, Chapter 37, Education Code, is
amended by adding Sections 37.2071 and 37.2072 to read as follows:
Sec. 37.2071. SAFETY AND SECURITY AUDIT REVIEW. (a) The
center shall review the results of each school district's audit and
determine if a school district is:
(1) using best practices regarding the safety and
security of district facilities; and
(2) complying with all applicable standards.
(b) If the center makes a determination under Subsection (a)
that a school district is not using best practices or is not in
compliance with applicable standards, the center shall:
(1) notify the district and provide specific
information explaining the reasons for the center's determination;
(2) provide recommendations for the improvement of the
district's facilities; and
(3) provide technical and on-site assistance to the
district in making improvements.
(c) If a school district has, within the previous four
years, failed to comply with applicable standards, as determined by
the center under Subsection (a)(2), the center may:
(1) conduct periodic on-site visits to ensure the
district is making necessary changes; and
(2) provide recommendations to the district for
further improvement.
Sec. 37.2072. STUDY ON AVAILABILITY OF SCHOOL SAFETY AND
SECURITY INFORMATION. (a) The center shall conduct a study to
determine the appropriate method for a school district to provide
the district's safety and security standards and plans to a student
or a student's parent or guardian without exposing the district's
security vulnerabilities or any confidential details.
(b) Not later than September 1, 2020, the center shall
submit a report to the legislature that includes the results of the
study and any recommendations for legislative or other action.
(c) This section expires September 1, 2021.
SECTION 7. Section 37.2121, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (d-1) to read as
follows:
(d) Each school district shall include with the district's
safety and security audit report required by Section 37.108(c), or
provide at any time requested by the center, information regarding
any [that enters into a] memorandum of understanding or mutual aid
agreement adopted by the district addressing [issues that affect]
school safety and security. The report must include [shall, at the
center's request, provide] the following information [to the
center]:
(1) the name of each entity with which the school
district has entered into a memorandum of understanding or mutual
aid agreement;
(2) the effective date of each memorandum or
agreement; and
(3) a summary of each memorandum or agreement.
(d-1) If, based on information provided by a school district
under Subsection (d), the center determines that a school district
has not entered into an appropriate memorandum of understanding or
mutual aid agreement with entities identified in accordance with
Subsection (a) that complies with the guidelines developed under
Subsection (b), the center shall notify the district and assist the
district in establishing an appropriate memorandum of
understanding or mutual aid agreement.
SECTION 8. Section 1701.263(b), Occupations Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) The commission by rule shall require a school district
peace officer or a school resource officer who is commissioned by or
who provides law enforcement at a school district [with an
enrollment of 30,000 or more students] to successfully complete an
education and training program described by this section before or
within 120 days of the officer's commission by or placement in the
district or a campus of the district. The program must:
(1) consist of at least 16 hours of training;
(2) be approved by the commission; and
(3) provide training in accordance with the curriculum
developed under Section 1701.262 in each subject area listed in
Subsection (c) of that section.
SECTION 9. Section 37.2121(c), Education Code, is repealed.
SECTION 10. (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
date of this Act, the Texas School Safety Center shall develop and
make available the online training course for members of a school
district board of trustees as required by Section 37.205, Education
Code, as amended by this Act.
(b) A person elected or appointed to the board of trustees
of a school district on a date occurring before the online training
course is made available must complete the training required by
Section 11.159(e), Education Code, as added by this Act, not later
than the 30th day after the date on which the Texas School Safety
Center makes the online training course available.
SECTION 11. (a) Notwithstanding Section 1701.263(b),
Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, a school district peace
officer or school resource officer who commences employment with or
commences providing law enforcement at a school district with an
enrollment of fewer than 30,000 students on a date occurring before
September 1, 2019, shall complete the training required by Section
1701.263, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, as soon as
practicable and not later than August 31, 2020. This subsection
does not apply to an officer who is exempt from the training
established under Section 1701.263, Occupations Code, as amended by
this Act, because the officer has completed the training described
by Subsection (b-1) of that section.
(b) Not later than October 1, 2019, a school district with
an enrollment of fewer than 30,000 students shall adopt the
training policy for school district peace officers and school
resource officers required by Section 37.0812, Education Code, as
amended by this Act.
SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.