HBA-GUM C.S.H.B. 3420 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 3420 By: Maxey Public Education 4/19/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, there is no law governing the sale or endorsement of dietary supplements by school personnel to a student. Many substances categorized as dietary supplements under the federal Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act of 1994 are not regulated by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). There is no requirement that a dietary supplement's effectiveness or potential side effects be researched. Some Texas high school coaches have encouraged the use of dietary supplements, such as creatine, by their athletes, and may have in fact sold the supplements to the athletes. C.S.H.B. 3420 prohibits the sale, distribution, and endorsement of a dietary supplement that contains performance enhancing compounds to a primary or secondary student by a school district employee, except when the student is the employee's child or as part of activities that are entirely separate from any aspect of the person's school district employment. This substitute also provides that a person who violates the aforementioned prohibition commits a Class C misdemeanor. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 38, Education Code, by adding Section 38.011, as follows: Sec. 38.011. DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS. (a) Prohibits a school district employee from knowingly selling, marketing, or distributing a dietary supplement that contains performance enhancing compounds (dietary supplement) to a primary or secondary education student (student) with whom the employee has contact as part of the employee's school district duties; or knowingly endorses or suggests the ingestion, intra-nasal application, or inhalation of a dietary supplement by student with whom the employee has contact as part of the employee's school district duties. (b) Provides that this section does not prohibit a school district employee from providing or endorsing a dietary supplement, or suggesting the ingestion, intra-nasal application, or inhalation of a dietary supplement to the employee's child; or selling, marketing, or distributing a dietary supplement to, or endorsing or suggesting the use of a dietary supplement by, a student as part of activities that are entirely separate from any aspect of the school district as provided by this subsection. (c) Provides that a person who violates this section commits a Class C misdemeanor. (d) Defines "dietary supplement" and "performance enhancing compound." SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute modifies SECTION 1 (proposed Section 38.011, Education Code) of the original to conform to Legislative Council format and to clarify language in the proposed Act. The substitute qualifies the substances affected by this Act as those containing performance enhancing compounds. In proposed Subsection (a), the substitute specifies that a school district employee may not knowingly engage in certain actions, and specifically prohibits the knowing endorsement or suggestion of intra-nasal application or inhalation of a dietary supplement. As modified, Section 38.011 includes language in new Subsection (b) to provide that the section does not apply to a school district employee when the employee is dealing with his or her own children, or an employee's activities when the activities are entirely unrelated to the school district. The substitute also adds new Subsection (o) to provide that a violation of Section 38.011 is a Class C misdemeanor. New Subsection (d) is redesignated from SECTION 1 of the original, and adds a definition for "performance enhancing compound." The substitute redesignates SECTIONS 3 (effective date) and 4 (emergency clause) of the original to new SECTIONS 2 and 3, respectively.