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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the employment of honorably retired peace officers as |
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school district security personnel and the applicability to those |
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officers of certain law governing private security. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 37.081(a), Education Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(a) The board of trustees of any school district may employ |
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security personnel, enter into a memorandum of understanding with a |
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local law enforcement agency for the provision of school resource |
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officers, and commission peace officers to carry out this |
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subchapter. If a board of trustees authorizes a person employed as |
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security personnel to carry a weapon, the person must be a |
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commissioned peace officer or an honorably retired peace officer, |
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as that term is defined by Section 614.121, Government Code. The |
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jurisdiction of a peace officer, a school resource officer, or |
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security personnel under this section shall be determined by the |
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board of trustees and may include all territory in the boundaries of |
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the school district and all property outside the boundaries of the |
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district that is owned, leased, or rented by or otherwise under the |
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control of the school district and the board of trustees that employ |
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the peace officer or security personnel or that enter into a |
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memorandum of understanding for the provision of a school resource |
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officer. |
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SECTION 2. Section 1702.322, Occupations Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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Sec. 1702.322. LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONNEL. This chapter |
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does not apply to: |
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(1) a person who is a peace officer or an honorably |
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retired peace officer, as that term is defined by Section 614.121, |
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Government Code, [has full-time employment as a peace officer] and |
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who receives compensation for private employment on an individual |
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or an independent contractor basis as a patrolman, guard, extra job |
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coordinator, or watchman if the officer: |
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(A) is employed in an employee-employer |
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relationship or employed on an individual contractual basis: |
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(i) directly by the recipient of the |
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services; or |
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(ii) by a company licensed under this |
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chapter; |
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(B) is not in the employ of another peace |
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officer; |
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(C) [is not a reserve peace officer; and |
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[(D) works as a peace officer on the average of at |
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least 32 hours a week,] is compensated [by the state or a political |
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subdivision of the state] at least at the minimum wage by: |
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(i) for a peace officer, the state or a |
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political subdivision of the state; or |
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(ii) for an honorably retired peace |
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officer, a school district; and |
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(D) is entitled to all employee benefits offered |
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to a peace officer by the state or political subdivision described |
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by Paragraph (C); |
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(2) a reserve peace officer while the reserve officer |
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is performing guard, patrolman, or watchman duties for a county and |
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is being compensated solely by that county; |
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(3) a peace officer acting in an official capacity in |
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responding to a burglar alarm or detection device; or |
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(4) a person engaged in the business of electronic |
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monitoring of an individual as a condition of that individual's |
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community supervision, parole, mandatory supervision, or release |
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on bail, if the person does not perform any other service that |
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requires a license under this chapter. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |