BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 961

By: Howard

Public Education

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

There are concerns about school nurses being excluded from participating in concussion oversight teams despite the role the nurses play in caring for students. C.S.H.B. 961 seeks to address these concerns by authorizing the inclusion of a school nurse on a concussion oversight team if the nurse requests inclusion and completes the required training course.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 961 amends the Education Code to authorize the inclusion of a school nurse as a member of a public school district or open-enrollment charter school concussion oversight team if the district or charter school employs a school nurse and if the school nurse requests inclusion. The bill subjects a school nurse who serves as a member of a concussion oversight team to the training requirements applicable to a licensed health care professional, other than an athletic trainer, who serves on such a team and prohibits a school nurse who is not in compliance with those training requirements from serving on a concussion oversight team in any capacity.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2019.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 961 may differ from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute changes the requirement to include a school nurse as a member of a concussion oversight team on the nurse's request to an authorization to do so.