HBA-CMT H.B. 2777 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2777
By: Talton
Urban Affairs
4/22/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, large police departments with their own training facilities
offer required continuing education every year for their officers.  The
curriculum developed by the Texas Commission for Law Enforcement Standards
and Education (TCLEOSE) only requires that officers be trained up to 40
hours every other year.  As a result, larger police departments are
training officers at a more advanced level, and for those departments the
curriculum developed by TCLEOSE has become redundant.  House Bill 2777
authorizes police departments in municipalities with a population of
500,000 or more to develop their own continuing education classes to serve
their training needs.  

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. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2777 amends the Occupations Code to provide that a specific
continuing education requirement prescribed by the provisions for
continuing education and yearly weapons proficiency or adopted by the
Commission on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Education does not
apply to a municipal agency that appoints or employs peace officers in a
municipality with a population of 500,000 or more, except as provided in
this bill.  Provisions requiring continuing education and continued
demonstration of weapons proficiency apply to a peace officer appointed or
employed by the municipal agency.  The bill requires the municipal agency
to ensure that a continuing education program approved by the municipal
agency is available for its peace officers, and that peace officers
appointed or employed by the agency comply with continuing education
requirements.     

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.