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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to student information required to be provided at the time |
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of enrollment in public schools. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 25, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 25.0022 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 25.0022. FOOD ALLERGY INFORMATION REQUESTED UPON |
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ENROLLMENT. (a) In this section, "severe food allergy" means a |
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dangerous or life-threatening reaction of the human body to a |
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food-borne allergen introduced by inhalation, ingestion, or skin |
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contact that requires immediate medical attention. |
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(b) On enrollment of a child in a public school, a school |
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district shall request, by providing a form or otherwise, that a |
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parent or other person with legal control of the child under a court |
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order: |
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(1) disclose whether the child has a food allergy or a |
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severe food allergy that, in the judgment of the parent or other |
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person with legal control, should be disclosed to the district to |
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enable the district to take any necessary precautions regarding the |
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child's safety; and |
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(2) specify the food to which the child is allergic and |
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the nature of the allergic reaction. |
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(c) A school district shall maintain the confidentiality of |
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information provided under this section, and may disclose the |
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information to teachers, school counselors, school nurses, and |
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other appropriate school personnel only to the extent consistent |
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with district policy under Section 38.009 and permissible under the |
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Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (20 U.S.C. |
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Section 1232g). |
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(d) Information regarding a child's food allergy, |
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regardless of how it is received by the school or school district, |
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shall be placed in the child's medical records. |
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SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 38, Education Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 38.0092 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 38.0092. CLASSROOM SIGNS INDICATING SEVERE FOOD |
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ALLERGY. (a) In this section, "severe food allergy" has the |
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meaning assigned by Section 25.0022. |
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(b) The school shall post a sign in each elementary school |
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classroom in which a child with a severe food allergy is placed if: |
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(1) a parent or a person with legal control of a child |
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under a court order indicates to the school district under Section |
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25.0022 that the child has a severe food allergy; or |
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(2) a parent, a person with legal control of a child, a |
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caregiver of the child, or the child notifies a school |
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administrator, nurse, or teacher that the child has a severe food |
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allergy. |
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(c) The sign under Subsection (b) shall conspicuously |
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include the phrase "Severe Food Allergy." |
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(d) The sign under Subsection (b) may not identify a child |
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in the classroom with a severe food allergy, the food or foods to |
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which a child is allergic, or the nature of the allergic reaction. |
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SECTION 3. This Act applies beginning with the 2011-2012 |
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school year. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |