By: Bucy H.B. No. 55

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to requirements regarding certain behavior management for a student enrolled in a special education program of a public school.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 37.0021, Education Code, is amended by amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (d-1) to read as follows:

(d) The commissioner by rule shall adopt procedures for the use of restraint and time-out by a school district employee or volunteer or an independent contractor of a district in the case of a student with a disability receiving special education services under Subchapter A, Chapter 29. A procedure adopted under this subsection must:

(1) be consistent with:

(A) professionally accepted practices and standards of student discipline and techniques for behavior management; and

(B) relevant health and safety standards;

(2) identify any discipline management practice or behavior management technique that requires a district employee or volunteer or an independent contractor of a district to be trained before using that practice or technique; and

(3) require a school district to:

(A) provide written notification to the student's parent or person standing in parental relation to the student for each use of restraint that includes:

(i) the name of the student;

(ii) the name of the district employee or volunteer or independent contractor of the district who administered the restraint;

(iii) the date of the restraint;

(iv) the time that the restraint started and ended;

(v) the location of the restraint;

(vi) the nature of the restraint;

(vii) a description of the activity in which the student was engaged immediately preceding the use of the restraint;

(viii) the behavior of the student that prompted the restraint;

(ix) any efforts made to de-escalate the situation and any alternatives to restraint that were attempted;

(x) if the student has a behavior improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, whether the plan may need to be revised as a result of the behavior that led to the restraint; [and]

(xi) if the student does not have a behavior improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, information on the procedure for the student's parent or person standing in parental relation to the student to request an admission, review, and dismissal committee meeting to discuss the possibility of conducting a functional behavioral assessment of the student and developing a plan for the student; and

(xii) whether a mental and physical health screening was conducted within a reasonable amount of time after the incident by appropriate school officials, including a nurse or school counselor, and the results of the screening;

(B) include in a student's special education eligibility school records:

(i) a copy of the written notification provided to the student's parent or person standing in parental relation to the student under Paragraph (A);

(ii) information on the method by which the written notification was sent to the parent or person; [and]

(iii) the contact information for the parent or person to whom the district sent the notification; and

(iv) a copy of the mental and physical health screening and the results of the screening; and

(C) if the student has a behavior improvement plan or behavioral intervention plan, document each use of time-out prompted by a behavior of the student specified in the student's plan, including a description of the behavior that prompted the time-out.

(d-1) A procedure adopted by the commissioner under Subsection (d) must require a school district after an incident of the use of restraint to conduct an overall health assessment for the purpose of assessing the student's holistic well-being that:

(1) includes evidence-based assessments, as determined by the commissioner, for a:

(A) mental health screening performed by a school counselor, school psychologist, or similarly qualified district professional; and

(B) physical health screening performed by a school nurse or similarly qualified district professional; and

(2) is performed within a reasonable amount of time after the incident, as determined by the commissioner.

SECTION 2. 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 on the 91st day after the last day of the legislative session.