By Naishtat                                     H.B. No. 1097

      75R4219 PB-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to an exemption from regulation under the Private

 1-3     Investigators and Private Security Agencies Act for certain

 1-4     persons.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Section 3(a), Private Investigators and Private

 1-7     Security Agencies Act (Article 4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil

 1-8     Statutes), is amended to read as follows:

 1-9           (a)  This Act does not apply to:

1-10                 (1)  a person employed exclusively and regularly by one

1-11     employer in connection with the affairs of an employer only and

1-12     where there exists an employer-employee relationship;  provided,

1-13     however, any person who shall carry a firearm in the course of his

1-14     employment shall be required to obtain a private security officer

1-15     commission under the provisions of this Act;

1-16                 (2)  except as provided by Subsection (d) of this

1-17     Section, an officer or employee of the United States of America, or

1-18     of this State or political subdivision of either, while the

1-19     employee or officer is engaged in the performance of official

1-20     duties;

1-21                 (3)  a person who has full-time employment as a peace

1-22     officer, who receives compensation for private employment on an

1-23     individual or an independent contractor basis as a patrolman,

1-24     guard, or watchman if the officer:

 2-1                       (A)  is employed in an employee-employer

 2-2     relationship or employed on an individual contractual basis;

 2-3                       (B)  is not in the employ of another peace

 2-4     officer;

 2-5                       (C)  is not a reserve peace officer;  and

 2-6                       (D)  works as a peace officer on the average of

 2-7     at least 32 hours a week, is compensated by the state or a

 2-8     political subdivision of the state at the rate of the minimum wage

 2-9     or higher, and is entitled to all employee benefits offered to a

2-10     peace officer by the state or political subdivision;

2-11                 (4)  a person engaged exclusively in the business of

2-12     obtaining and furnishing information for purposes of credit

2-13     worthiness or collecting debts or ascertaining the financial

2-14     responsibility of applicants for property insurance and for

2-15     indemnity or surety bonds, with respect to persons, firms, and

2-16     corporations;

2-17                 (5)  an attorney-at-law in performing his duties;

2-18                 (6)  admitted insurers, insurance adjusters, agents,

2-19     and insurance brokers licensed by the State, performing duties in

2-20     connection with insurance transacted by them;

2-21                 (7)  a person who engages exclusively in the business

2-22     of repossessing property that is secured by a mortgage or other

2-23     security interest;

2-24                 (8)  a locksmith who does not install or service

2-25     detection devices, does not conduct investigations, and is not a

2-26     security service contractor;

2-27                 (9)  a person who owns and installs burglar detection

 3-1     or alarm devices on his own property or, if he does not charge for

 3-2     the device or its installation, installs it for the protection of

 3-3     his personal property located on another's property, and does not

 3-4     install the devices as a normal business practice on the property

 3-5     of another;

 3-6                 (10)  an employee of a cattle association who is

 3-7     engaged in inspection of brands of livestock under the authority

 3-8     granted to that cattle association by the Packers and Stockyards

 3-9     Division of the United States Department of Agriculture;

3-10                 (11)  a [the provisions of this Act shall not apply to]

3-11     common carrier [carriers] by rail engaged in interstate commerce

3-12     and regulated by state and federal authorities and transporting

3-13     commodities essential to the national defense and to the general

3-14     welfare and safety of the community;

3-15                 (12)  a registered professional engineer practicing in

3-16     accordance with the provisions of the Texas Engineering Practice

3-17     Act  that does not install or service detection devices, does not

3-18     conduct nonengineering investigations, is performing forensic

3-19     engineering studies, and is not a security services contractor;

3-20                 (13)  a person whose sale of burglar alarm signal

3-21     devices, burglary alarms, television cameras, still cameras, or

3-22     other electrical, mechanical, or electronic devices used for

3-23     preventing or detecting burglary, theft, shoplifting, pilferage, or

3-24     other losses is exclusively over-the-counter or by mail order;

3-25                 (14)  a person who holds a license or other form of

3-26     permission issued by an incorporated city or town to practice as an

3-27     electrician and who installs fire or smoke detectors in no building

 4-1     other than a single family or multifamily residence;

 4-2                 (15)  a person or organization in the business of

 4-3     building construction that installs electrical wiring and devices

 4-4     that may include in part the installation of a burglar alarm or

 4-5     detection device if:

 4-6                       (A)  the person or organization is a party to a

 4-7     contract that provides that the installation will be performed

 4-8     under the direct supervision of and inspected and certified by a

 4-9     person or organization licensed to install and certify such an

4-10     alarm or detection device and that the licensee assumes full

4-11     responsibility for the installation of the alarm or detection

4-12     device;  and

4-13                       (B)  the person or organization does not service

4-14     or maintain burglar alarms or detection devices;

4-15                 (16)  a reserve peace officer while the reserve officer

4-16     is performing guard, patrolman, or watchman duties for a county and

4-17     is being compensated solely by that county;

4-18                 (17)  response to a burglar alarm or detection device

4-19     by a law enforcement agency or by a law enforcement officer acting

4-20     in an official capacity;

4-21                 (18)  a person who, by education, experience, or

4-22     background has specialized expertise or knowledge such as that

4-23     which would qualify or tend to qualify such person as an expert

4-24     witness, authorized to render opinions in proceedings conducted in

4-25     a court, administrative agency, or governing body of this state or

4-26     of the United States, in accordance with applicable rules and

4-27     regulations and who does not perform any other service for which a

 5-1     license is required by provisions of this Act;

 5-2                 (19)  an officer, employee, or agent of a common

 5-3     carrier, as defined by Section 153(10) [153(h)], Communications Act

 5-4     of 1934 (47 U.S.C.A. Sec. 151 et seq.), while protecting the

 5-5     carrier or a user of the carrier's long-distance services from a

 5-6     fraudulent, unlawful, or abusive use of those long-distance

 5-7     services;

 5-8                 (20)  a person who sells or installs automobile burglar

 5-9     alarm devices and that does not perform any other act that requires

5-10     a license under this Act;

5-11                 (21)  a manufacturer, or a manufacturer's authorized

5-12     distributor, who sells to the holder of a license under this Act

5-13     equipment used in the operations for which the holder is required

5-14     to be licensed;

5-15                 (22)  a person employed as a noncommissioned security

5-16     officer by a political subdivision of this state;

5-17                 (23)  a person whose activities are regulated under

5-18     Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, except to the extent that those

5-19     activities are specifically regulated under this Act;

5-20                 (24)  a landman performing activities in the course and

5-21     scope of the landman's business;

5-22                 (25)  a hospital or a wholly owned subsidiary or

5-23     affiliate of a hospital that provides medical alert services for

5-24     persons who are sick or disabled, if the hospital, subsidiary, or

5-25     affiliate is licensed under Chapter 241, Health and Safety Code,

5-26     and the hospital does not perform any other service that requires a

5-27     license under this Act;

 6-1                 (26)  a charitable, nonprofit organization that

 6-2     provides medical alert services for persons who are sick or

 6-3     disabled, if the organization:

 6-4                       (A)  is exempt from taxation under Section

 6-5     501(c)(3), Internal Revenue Code of 1986;

 6-6                       (B)  has its monitoring services provided by a

 6-7     licensed person or hospital or a wholly owned subsidiary or

 6-8     affiliate of a hospital licensed under Chapter 241, Health and

 6-9     Safety Code;  and

6-10                       (C)  does not perform any other service that

6-11     requires a license under this Act;

6-12                 (27)  a person engaged in the business of electronic

6-13     monitoring of a person as a condition of that person's probation,

6-14     parole, mandatory supervision, or release on bail, if the person

6-15     does not perform any other service that requires a license under

6-16     this Act;

6-17                 (28)  a nonprofit business or civic organization that:

6-18                       (A)  employs one or more peace officers meeting

6-19     the qualifications of Subdivision (3) of this subsection as

6-20     patrolmen, guards, or watchmen;

6-21                       (B)  provides the services of these peace

6-22     officers only to:

6-23                             (i)  its members;  or

6-24                             (ii)  if the organization does not have

6-25     members, the members of the communities served by the organization

6-26     as described in its articles of incorporation or other

6-27     organizational documents;

 7-1                       (C)  devotes the net receipts from all charges

 7-2     for the services exclusively to the cost of providing the services

 7-3     or to the costs of other services for the enhancement of the

 7-4     security or safety of:

 7-5                             (i)  its members;  or

 7-6                             (ii)  if the organization does not have

 7-7     members, the members of the communities served by the organization

 7-8     as described in its articles of incorporation or other

 7-9     organizational documents;  and

7-10                       (D)  does not perform any other service that

7-11     requires a license under this Act;

7-12                 (29)  a charitable, nonprofit organization that

7-13     maintains a system of records to aid in the location of missing

7-14     children if the organization:

7-15                       (A)  is exempt from federal taxation under

7-16     Section 501(c)(3), Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and its

7-17     subsequent amendments;

7-18                       (B)  exclusively provides services related to

7-19     locating missing children;  and

7-20                       (C)  does not perform any other service that

7-21     requires a license under this Act;  [or]

7-22                 (30)  a person engaged in the business of psychological

7-23     testing or other testing and interviewing services (to include but

7-24     not limited to attitudes, honesty, intelligence, personality, and

7-25     skills) for preemployment purposes, if the person does not perform

7-26     any other service that requires a license under this Act; or

7-27                 (31)  a person engaged in obtaining information

 8-1     classified as a public record under Chapter 552, Government Code,

 8-2     whether or not for compensation, if the person does not perform any

 8-3     other act that requires a license under this Act.

 8-4           SECTION 2.  The importance of this legislation and the

 8-5     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 8-6     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 8-7     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 8-8     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

 8-9     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

8-10     passage, and it is so enacted.