By Ogden S.B. No. 1038
76R4247 BDH-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to application of the Private Investigators and Private
1-3 Security Agencies Act to reserve peace officers in certain
1-4 counties.
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 who is a reserve peace officer for a
2-12 county with a population of less than 50,000 or for a department,
2-13 precinct, or political subdivision in a county with a population of
2-14 less than 50,000;
2-15 (5) a person engaged exclusively in the business of
2-16 obtaining and furnishing information for purposes of credit
2-17 worthiness or collecting debts or ascertaining the financial
2-18 responsibility of applicants for property insurance and for
2-19 indemnity or surety bonds, with respect to persons, firms, and
2-20 corporations;
2-21 (6) [(5)] an attorney-at-law in performing his duties;
2-22 (7) [(6)] admitted insurers, insurance adjusters,
2-23 agents, and insurance brokers licensed by the State, performing
2-24 duties in connection with insurance transacted by them;
2-25 (8) [(7)] a person who engages exclusively in the
2-26 business of repossessing property that is secured by a mortgage or
2-27 other security interest;
3-1 (9) [(8)] a locksmith who does not install or service
3-2 detection devices, does not conduct investigations, and is not a
3-3 security service contractor;
3-4 (10) [(9)] a person who owns and installs burglar
3-5 detection or alarm devices on his own property or, if he does not
3-6 charge for the device or its installation, installs it for the
3-7 protection of his personal property located on another's property,
3-8 and does not install the devices as a normal business practice on
3-9 the property of another;
3-10 (11) [(10)] an employee of a cattle association who is
3-11 engaged in inspection of brands of livestock under the authority
3-12 granted to that cattle association by the Packers and Stockyards
3-13 Division of the United States Department of Agriculture;
3-14 (12) [(11)] a common carrier by rail engaged in
3-15 interstate commerce and regulated by state and federal authorities
3-16 and transporting commodities essential to the national defense and
3-17 to the general welfare and safety of the community;
3-18 (13) [(12)] a registered professional engineer
3-19 practicing in accordance with the provisions of the Texas
3-20 Engineering Practice Act that does not install or service detection
3-21 devices, does not conduct nonengineering investigations, is
3-22 performing forensic engineering studies, and is not a security
3-23 services contractor;
3-24 (14) [(13)] a person whose sale of burglar alarm
3-25 signal devices, burglary alarms, television cameras, still cameras,
3-26 or other electrical, mechanical, or electronic devices used for
3-27 preventing or detecting burglary, theft, shoplifting, pilferage, or
4-1 other losses is exclusively over-the-counter or by mail order;
4-2 (15) [(14)] a person who holds a license or other form
4-3 of permission issued by an incorporated city or town to practice as
4-4 an electrician and who installs fire or smoke detectors in no
4-5 building other than a single family or multifamily residence;
4-6 (16) [(15)] a person or organization in the business
4-7 of building construction that installs electrical wiring and
4-8 devices that may include in part the installation of a burglar
4-9 alarm or detection device if:
4-10 (A) the person or organization is a party to a
4-11 contract that provides that the installation will be performed
4-12 under the direct supervision of and inspected and certified by a
4-13 person or organization licensed to install and certify such an
4-14 alarm or detection device and that the licensee assumes full
4-15 responsibility for the installation of the alarm or detection
4-16 device; and
4-17 (B) the person or organization does not service
4-18 or maintain burglar alarms or detection devices;
4-19 (17) [(16)] a reserve peace officer while the reserve
4-20 officer is performing guard, patrolman, or watchman duties for a
4-21 county and is being compensated solely by that county;
4-22 (18) [(17)] response to a burglar alarm or detection
4-23 device by a law enforcement agency or by a law enforcement officer
4-24 acting in an official capacity;
4-25 (19) [(18)] a person who, by education, experience, or
4-26 background has specialized expertise or knowledge such as that
4-27 which would qualify or tend to qualify such person as an expert
5-1 witness, authorized to render opinions in proceedings conducted in
5-2 a court, administrative agency, or governing body of this state or
5-3 of the United States, in accordance with applicable rules and
5-4 regulations and who does not perform any other service for which a
5-5 license is required by provisions of this Act;
5-6 (20) [(19)] an officer, employee, or agent of a common
5-7 carrier, as defined by Section 153(10), Communications Act of 1934
5-8 (47 U.S.C.A. Sec. 151 et seq.), while protecting the carrier or a
5-9 user of the carrier's long-distance services from a fraudulent,
5-10 unlawful, or abusive use of those long-distance services;
5-11 (21) [(20)] a person who sells or installs automobile
5-12 burglar alarm devices and that does not perform any other act that
5-13 requires a license under this Act;
5-14 (22) [(21)] a manufacturer, or a manufacturer's
5-15 authorized distributor, who sells to the holder of a license under
5-16 this Act equipment used in the operations for which the holder is
5-17 required to be licensed;
5-18 (23) [(22)] a person employed as a noncommissioned
5-19 security officer by a political subdivision of this state;
5-20 (24) [(23)] a person whose activities are regulated
5-21 under Article 5.43-2, Insurance Code, except to the extent that
5-22 those activities are specifically regulated under this Act;
5-23 (25) [(24)] a landman performing activities in the
5-24 course and scope of the landman's business;
5-25 (26) [(25)] a hospital or a wholly owned subsidiary or
5-26 affiliate of a hospital that provides medical alert services for
5-27 persons who are sick or disabled, if the hospital, subsidiary, or
6-1 affiliate is licensed under Chapter 241, Health and Safety Code,
6-2 and the hospital does not perform any other service that requires a
6-3 license under this Act;
6-4 (27) [(26)] a charitable, nonprofit organization that
6-5 provides medical alert services for persons who are sick or
6-6 disabled, if the organization:
6-7 (A) is exempt from taxation under Section
6-8 501(c)(3), Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
6-9 (B) has its monitoring services provided by a
6-10 licensed person, licensed nurse, licensed physician assistant, or
6-11 hospital or a wholly owned subsidiary or affiliate of a hospital
6-12 licensed under Chapter 241, Health and Safety Code; and
6-13 (C) does not perform any other service that
6-14 requires a license under this Act;
6-15 (28) [(27)] a person engaged in the business of
6-16 electronic monitoring of a person as a condition of that person's
6-17 probation, parole, mandatory supervision, or release on bail, if
6-18 the person does not perform any other service that requires a
6-19 license under this Act;
6-20 (29) [(28)] a nonprofit business or civic organization
6-21 that:
6-22 (A) employs one or more peace officers meeting
6-23 the qualifications of Subdivision (3) of this subsection as
6-24 patrolmen, guards, or watchmen;
6-25 (B) provides the services of these peace
6-26 officers only to:
6-27 (i) its members; or
7-1 (ii) if the organization does not have
7-2 members, the members of the communities served by the organization
7-3 as described in its articles of incorporation or other
7-4 organizational documents;
7-5 (C) devotes the net receipts from all charges
7-6 for the services exclusively to the cost of providing the services
7-7 or to the costs of other services for the enhancement of the
7-8 security or safety of:
7-9 (i) its members; or
7-10 (ii) if the organization does not have
7-11 members, the members of the communities served by the organization
7-12 as described in its articles of incorporation or other
7-13 organizational documents; and
7-14 (D) does not perform any other service that
7-15 requires a license under this Act;
7-16 (30) [(29)] a charitable, nonprofit organization that
7-17 maintains a system of records to aid in the location of missing
7-18 children if the organization:
7-19 (A) is exempt from federal taxation under
7-20 Section 501(c)(3), Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and its
7-21 subsequent amendments;
7-22 (B) exclusively provides services related to
7-23 locating missing children; and
7-24 (C) does not perform any other service that
7-25 requires a license under this Act;
7-26 (31) [(30)] a person engaged in the business of
7-27 psychological testing or other testing and interviewing services
8-1 (to include but not limited to attitudes, honesty, intelligence,
8-2 personality, and skills) for preemployment purposes, if the person
8-3 does not perform any other service that requires a license under
8-4 this Act;
8-5 (32) [(31)] a person who does not perform any other
8-6 act that requires a license under this Act, and who is engaged in
8-7 obtaining information classified as a public record under Chapter
8-8 552, Government Code, regardless of whether for compensation,
8-9 unless the person is a full-time employee, as defined by Section
8-10 61.001, Labor Code, of a person licensed under this Act; or
8-11 (33) [(32)] a person who obtains a document for use in
8-12 litigation under an authorization or subpoena issued for a written
8-13 or oral deposition.
8-14 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
8-15 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
8-16 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
8-17 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
8-18 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
8-19 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.