By Wilson                                              H.B. No. 941
         76R4758 DLF-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the liability of school districts for certain conduct
 1-3     of employees who come in contact with students.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 101, Civil Practice and
 1-6     Remedies Code, is amended by adding Section 101.0216 to read as
 1-7     follows:
 1-8           Sec. 101.0216.  LIABILITY OF SCHOOL DISTRICT.  (a)  In this
 1-9     section, "sexual misconduct" includes any conduct that violates
1-10     Chapter 21, Penal Code, and the victim of which is a child younger
1-11     than 18 years of age, without regard to whether the person is
1-12     convicted of an offense with respect to the conduct.
1-13           (b)  A school district is liable for damages for personal
1-14     injury or death if:
1-15                 (1)  the personal injury or death is proximately caused
1-16     by the sexual misconduct of an employee with respect to a student
1-17     of the school district;
1-18                 (2)  the employee comes in contact with students of the
1-19     school district in the scope of the employee's employment; and
1-20                 (3)  because of specific facts known to the school
1-21     district, the school district knew or should have known that the
1-22     employee posed a risk to students.
1-23           (c)  Sections 101.023, 101.024, and 101.106 do not apply to
1-24     the liability of a school district under this section.
 2-1           SECTION 2.  Section 101.051, Civil Practice and Remedies
 2-2     Code, is amended to read as follows:
 2-3           Sec. 101.051.  SCHOOL AND JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICTS PARTIALLY
 2-4     EXCLUDED.  (a)  Except as to motor vehicles, this chapter does not
 2-5     apply [to a school district or] to a junior college district.
 2-6           (b)  Except as to motor vehicles and as provided by Section
 2-7     101.0216, this chapter does not apply to a school district.
 2-8           SECTION 3.  Section 22.051(b), Education Code, is amended to
 2-9     read as follows:
2-10           (b)  This section does not apply to the operation, use, or
2-11     maintenance of any motor vehicle or to any act for which a school
2-12     district may be liable under Section 101.0216, Civil Practice and
2-13     Remedies Code.
2-14           SECTION 4.  This Act applies only to a cause of action that
2-15     accrues on or after the effective date of this Act.  A cause of
2-16     action that accrues before the effective date of this Act is
2-17     governed by the law as it existed immediately before the effective
2-18     date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that
2-19     purpose.
2-20           SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-21           SECTION 6.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-22     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-23     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-24     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-25     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.