BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 1687 By: Alonzo 04-24-95 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND Under current law, instructional and support personnel do NOT have to be notified of students who have committed crimes, even if it is common knowledge to the superintendent and the principal. Also under current law, law enforcement officials must only orally notify the superintendent or a representative of the superintendent within 24 hours after the crime has been committed by the student. However, there is no assurance that the information will filter down from the superintendent or the principal to the teachers and instructional personnel - those in closest contact with the students. Teachers and support personnel feel that they must have knowledge of this information in order to be able to maintain a safe classroom, for school employees and students alike. Year after year, we hear and read in the daily media about teachers and students being attacked by other students, and many of the victims of these incidents are innocent bystanders. Unfortunately, the only times we read about such incidents in the media is when a major crime has been committed, i.e., a teacher has been attacked or shot, a student has been killed or gang raped by a fellow student or students, or the school has been burned down by a student. In many cases, the attacker(s) had a previous record. Through this bill, teachers and support personnel must be properly notified about such information by the superintendents and principals so that they can take the necessary preventive and cautionary measures to keep additional crimes from occurring. Further crimes, especially those that typically make the headline news, can be reduced, if not totally eliminated, if teachers and support personnel know about this information immediately after it happens. Hiding the information or keeping it away from teachers or students, simply to "protect the school's image" is not a viable solution. Failure to properly and adequately notify teachers and support personnel of such information is more costly, dangerous, and detrimental to a school district and the community at large. PURPOSE The purpose of this bill is to require superintendents and school principals who are aware of students who have committed crimes to inform instructional and support personnel who have regular contact with these students. 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. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Article 15.27(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, to require superintendents who are aware of students who have been detained or arrested for certain offenses to inform all personnel who have regular contact with these students. SECTION 2. Effective beginning with the 1995-1996 school year. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION H.B. 1687 was considered in a public hearing on 15 March 1995. No one testified for, against or neutrally on the bill. On 19 April 1995, in a public hearing, H.B. 1687 was reported favorably without amendment with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed by a record vote of 6 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv and 3 absent.