78R1823 JMM-D
By: Allen H.B. No. 435
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to certain notification requirements for an employer of a
child, a person with mental retardation, or a person who is mentally
incapacitated.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. The heading for Subtitle B, Title 2, Labor Code,
is amended to read as follows:
SUBTITLE B. LABOR REQUIREMENTS AND RESTRICTIONS [ON LABOR]
SECTION 2. Subtitle B, Title 2, Labor Code, is amended by
adding Chapter 53 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 53. EMPLOYER NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
Sec. 53.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Child" means an individual under 18 years of age.
(2) "Employer" means a person who employs one or more
employees and who receives a subsidy from the federal government,
the state, or a public agency or political subdivision, including
an appropriation, grant, allocation, guaranty, aid, or other
contribution.
Sec. 53.002. NOTIFICATION TO EMPLOYEE'S PARENT OR GUARDIAN.
(a) An employer who employs a person who is a child, a person with
mental retardation, or a person who is mentally incapacitated shall
notify that person's parent or legal guardian, on receipt of a
request in writing, if the employer also employs a person who the
employer knows is:
(1) a releasee under the supervision of the pardons
and paroles division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice;
or
(2) under community supervision for an offense under
Title 5, Penal Code.
(b) Notice provided by an employer under this section must
be in writing and delivered personally to the parent or legal
guardian or, if personal delivery is not possible, by certified
mail.
Sec. 53.003. CAUSE OF ACTION FOR FAILURE TO NOTIFY.
(a) Failure by an employer to notify a person entitled to notice
under this chapter may be made the basis for a statutory cause of
action under this chapter on proof that:
(1) the person is the parent or legal guardian of an
employee who suffered an injury or damages resulting from an action
by a person described by Section 53.002(a)(1) or (2); and
(2) the employer's failure to provide the notice was a
proximate cause of the injury or damages.
(b) This section does not affect the right of any person to
bring a common law cause of action against another person whose
conduct resulted in personal injury or damages to the person
bringing the action.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.