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Senate Bill 1480 |
Senate Author: Johnson |
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Effective: 9-1-21 |
House Sponsor: Guillen |
Senate Bill 1480 amends the Alcoholic Beverage Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, Family Code, Government Code, Health and Safety Code, and Transportation Code to provide for the licensing and regulation by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) of the providers of drug and alcohol court‑ordered educational programs, defined by the bill as the alcohol educational program for minors described by the Alcoholic Beverage Code, the drug offense educational program described by the Transportation Code, and the educational and intervention programs for intoxication offenses described by the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Senate Bill 1480 establishes the powers and duties of the Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation (TCLR), TDLR, and the executive director of TDLR with respect to administering and enforcing the bill's provisions regarding the regulation of the court-ordered programs, including the duty to establish license eligibility requirements and criteria for the program providers and for program instructors. In addition, the bill requires TCLR to set fees to cover the costs of administering such regulation and to adopt and publish a code of ethics for license holders. The bill establishes program provider endorsements and instructor license endorsements and prohibits the respective license holder from providing or instructing a court‑ordered program for which the person's license is not endorsed.
Senate Bill 1480 sets out related provisions, among others, regarding the following: prohibited practices by all license holders; grounds for disciplinary actions; administrative penalties; audits and investigations of providers and programs; misdemeanor offenses involving the unlawful transfer or possession of a certificate of program completion or of a certificate number; the determination of a juvenile's residence for purposes of an alcohol awareness program; and a requirement for a judge to consider Internet access in determining whether to waive a defendant's educational program requirement. The bill also repeals the provision authorizing an alcohol awareness program, when requested, to be taught in languages other than English.