82R27443 E

By: Coleman, Farrar, Marquez, et al. H.B. No. 1386

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1386:

By: Naishtat C.S.H.B. No. 1386

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the public health threat presented by youth suicide and to the prevention of associated discrimination, harassment, and bullying.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. This Act is dedicated to every child who has fallen victim to severe emotional trauma.

SECTION 2. The legislature finds that:

(1) the United States Surgeon General's Report on Children's Mental Health estimates that one in five children and adolescents will experience a significant mental health problem during their school years;

(2) during elementary school years, children are in an ongoing developmental process where it is crucial that healthy mental and behavioral development be promoted and that a solid foundation in social-emotional skills and capacities be built;

(3) adolescence is a period of significant change, during which youth are faced with a myriad of pressures;

(4) the pressures facing youth during adolescence include pressures relating to adapting to bodily changes, succeeding academically, making college and career decisions, being accepted by peers, including pressure to engage in drugs, alcohol, and sex, measuring up to expectations of others, and coping with family and peer conflicts;

(5) increased levels of victimization also lead to increased levels of depression and anxiety and decreased levels of self-esteem;

(6) emotional trauma and mental health issues, if left unaddressed, can lead and have led to life-threatening violence and suicide;

(7) suicide committed by youth continues to present a public health threat that endangers the well-being of the youth of the state;

(8) suicide is the third leading cause of death for persons who are at least 15 years of age but younger than 25 years of age and the sixth leading cause of death for persons who are at least 5 years of age but younger than 15 years of age; and

(9) it is of the utmost importance to keep children and adolescents mentally healthy and on a course to become mentally healthy adults.

SECTION 3. Chapter 161, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subchapter O-1 to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER O-1. EARLY MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTION AND PREVENTION OF

YOUTH SUICIDE

Sec. 161.325. EARLY MENTAL HEALTH INTERVENTION AND SUICIDE PREVENTION. (a) The department, in coordination with the Texas Education Agency, shall provide and annually update a list of recommended best practice-based early mental health intervention and suicide prevention programs for implementation in public elementary, junior high, middle, and high schools within the general education setting. Each school district may select from the list a program or programs appropriate for implementation in the district.

(b) The programs on the list must include components that provide for training counselors, teachers, nurses, administrators, and other staff, as well as law enforcement officers and social workers who regularly interact with students, to:

(1) recognize students at risk of committing suicide, including students who are or may be the victims of or who engage in bullying prohibited in accordance with Section 37.0832, Education Code;

(2) recognize students displaying early warning signs and a necessity for early mental health intervention, which warning signs may include declining academic performance, depression, anxiety, isolation, unexplained changes in sleep or eating habits, and destructive behavior toward self and others; and

(3) intervene effectively with students described by Subdivision (1) or (2) by providing notice and referral to a parent or guardian so appropriate action, such as seeking mental health services, may be taken by a parent or guardian.

(c) In developing the list of programs, the department and the Texas Education Agency shall consider:

(1) any existing suicide prevention method developed by a school district under Section 11.252(a)(3)(B) or 33.006(b)(1)(A), Education Code; and

(2) any Internet or online course or program developed in this state or another state that is based on best practices recognized by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration or the Suicide Prevention Resource Center.

(d) The board of trustees of each school district may adopt a policy, including any necessary procedures, concerning early mental health intervention and suicide prevention that:

(1) establishes a procedure for providing notice of a necessity for early mental health intervention regarding a student to a parent or guardian of the student within a reasonable amount of time after the identification;

(2) establishes a procedure for providing notice of a student identified as at risk of committing suicide to a parent or guardian of the student within a reasonable amount of time after the identification;

(3) establishes the actions to take to obtain assistance, intervention, and notice to a parent or guardian in response to the necessity for intervention; and

(4) sets out the available optional counseling alternatives for a parent or guardian to consider when their child is identified as possibly being in need of early mental health intervention or suicide prevention.

(e) The policy and any necessary procedures adopted under Subsection (d) must be included in:

(1) the annual student handbook; and

(2) the district improvement plan under Section 11.252, Education Code.

(f) The department may solicit and accept a gift, grant, or donation from any source for purposes of this section.

(g) Not later than January 1, 2013, the department shall submit a report to the legislature relating to the development of the list of programs and the implementation in school districts of selected programs. This subsection expires September 1, 2013.

(h) Nothing in this section is intended to interfere with the rights of parents or guardians and the decision-making regarding the best interest of the child. Policy and procedures adopted in accordance with this section are intended to notify a parent or guardian of a need for mental health intervention so that a parent or guardian may take appropriate action. Nothing in this Act shall be construed as giving school districts the authority to prescribe medications; any and all medical decisions are to be made by a parent or guardian of a student.

SECTION 4. Section 11.252(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Each school district shall have a district improvement plan that is developed, evaluated, and revised annually, in accordance with district policy, by the superintendent with the assistance of the district-level committee established under Section 11.251. The purpose of the district improvement plan is to guide district and campus staff in the improvement of student performance for all student groups in order to attain state standards in respect to the student achievement indicators adopted under Section 39.053. The district improvement plan must include provisions for:

(1) a comprehensive needs assessment addressing district student performance on the student achievement indicators, and other appropriate measures of performance, that are disaggregated by all student groups served by the district, including categories of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sex, and populations served by special programs, including students in special education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29;

(2) measurable district performance objectives for all appropriate student achievement indicators for all student populations, including students in special education programs under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, and other measures of student performance that may be identified through the comprehensive needs assessment;

(3) strategies for improvement of student performance that include:

(A) instructional methods for addressing the needs of student groups not achieving their full potential;

(B) methods for addressing the needs of students for special programs, including:

(i) [such as] suicide prevention programs, in accordance with Subchapter O-1, Chapter 161, Health and Safety Code, which includes a parental or guardian notification procedure;

(ii) [,] conflict resolution programs;

(iii) [,] violence prevention programs; and

(iv) [, or] dyslexia treatment programs;

(C) dropout reduction;

(D) integration of technology in instructional and administrative programs;

(E) discipline management;

(F) staff development for professional staff of the district;

(G) career education to assist students in developing the knowledge, skills, and competencies necessary for a broad range of career opportunities; and

(H) accelerated education;

(4) strategies for providing to middle school, junior high school, and high school students, those students' teachers and counselors, and those students' parents information about:

(A) higher education admissions and financial aid opportunities;

(B) the TEXAS grant program and the Teach for Texas grant program established under Chapter 56;

(C) the need for students to make informed curriculum choices to be prepared for success beyond high school; and

(D) sources of information on higher education admissions and financial aid;

(5) resources needed to implement identified strategies;

(6) staff responsible for ensuring the accomplishment of each strategy;

(7) timelines for ongoing monitoring of the implementation of each improvement strategy; and

(8) formative evaluation criteria for determining periodically whether strategies are resulting in intended improvement of student performance.

SECTION 5. Section 21.451(d), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(d) The staff development:

(1) may include training in:

(A) technology;

(B) conflict resolution; [and]

(C) discipline strategies, including classroom management, district discipline policies, and the student code of conduct adopted under Section 37.001 and Chapter 37; and

(D) preventing, identifying, responding to, and reporting incidents of bullying; and

(2) subject to Subsection (e), must include training based on scientifically based research, as defined by Section 9101, No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. Section 7801), that:

(A) relates to instruction of students with disabilities; and

(B) is designed for educators who work primarily outside the area of special education.

SECTION 6. Section 25.0342(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) In this section, "bullying" has the meaning assigned by Section 37.0832 [means engaging in written or verbal expression or physical conduct that a school district board of trustees or the board's designee determines:

[(1) will have the effect of physically harming a student, damaging a student's property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm to the student's person or of damage to the student's property; or

[(2) is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive enough that the action or threat creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational environment for a student].

SECTION 7. Section 28.002, Education Code, is amended by adding Subsection (s) to read as follows:

(s) In addition to any other essential knowledge and skills the State Board of Education adopts for the health curriculum under Subsection (a)(2)(B), the board, in consultation with the Texas School Safety Center, shall adopt essential knowledge and skills for the health curriculum that include evidence-based practices that will effectively address awareness, prevention, and identification of bullying and harassment and intervention in and resolution of bullying and harassment. In this subsection:

(1) "Bullying" has the meaning assigned by Section 37.0832.

(2) "Harassment" has the meaning assigned by Section 37.001.

SECTION 8. Section 37.001(b), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b) In this section:

(1) "Bullying" has the meaning assigned by Section 37.0832.

(2) "Harassment" means threatening to cause harm or bodily injury to another student, engaging in sexually intimidating conduct, causing physical damage to the property of another student, subjecting another student to physical confinement or restraint, or maliciously taking any action that substantially harms another student's physical or emotional health or safety.

(3) [(2)] "Hit list" means a list of people targeted to be harmed, using:

(A) a firearm, as defined by Section 46.01(3), Penal Code;

(B) a knife, as defined by Section 46.01(7), Penal Code; or

(C) any other object to be used with intent to cause bodily harm.

SECTION 9. Section 37.083(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Each school district shall adopt and implement a discipline management program to be included in the district improvement plan under Section 11.252. The program must provide for prevention of and education concerning unwanted physical or verbal aggression and[,] sexual harassment[, and other forms of bullying] in school, on school grounds, and in school vehicles.

SECTION 10. Subchapter C, Chapter 37, Education Code, is amended by adding Section 37.0832 to read as follows:

Sec. 37.0832. BULLYING PREVENTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES. (a) In this section, "bullying" means engaging in written or verbal expression, expression through electronic means, or physical conduct that occurs on school property, at a school-sponsored or school-related activity, or in a vehicle operated by the district and that:

(1) has the effect or will have the effect of physically harming a student, damaging a student's property, or placing a student in reasonable fear of harm to the student's person or of damage to the student's property;

(2) is sufficiently severe, persistent, and pervasive enough that the action or threat creates an intimidating, threatening, or abusive educational environment for a student;

(3) exploits an imbalance of power between the student perpetrator and the student victim through written or verbal expression, expression through electronic means, or physical conduct; and

(4) interferes with a student's education or substantially disrupts the operation of a school.

(b) The board of trustees of each school district shall adopt a policy, including any necessary procedures, concerning bullying that:

(1) prohibits the bullying of a student;

(2) prohibits retaliation against any person, including a victim, a witness, or another person, who in good faith provides information concerning an incident of bullying;

(3) establishes a procedure for providing notice of an incident of bullying to a parent or guardian of the victim of the incident and a parent or guardian of the person engaging in bullying within a reasonable amount of time after the incident;

(4) establishes the actions a student should take to obtain assistance and intervention in response to bullying;

(5) sets out the available counseling options for a student who is a victim of or a witness to bullying or who engages in bullying; and

(6) establishes procedures for reporting an incident of bullying, investigating a reported incident of bullying, and determining whether the reported incident of bullying occurred.

(c) The policy and any necessary procedures adopted under Subsection (b) must be included in:

(1) any student or employee school district handbook; and

(2) the district improvement plan under Section 11.252.

(d) The procedure for reporting bullying established under Subsection (b) must be posted on the district's Internet website to the extent practicable.

(e) This section and any other change in law made by H.B. 1386, Acts of the 82nd Legislature, Regular Session, 2011, may not be construed as reducing existing state and federal rights of students receiving special education services under Subchapter A, Chapter 29. Any act of bullying committed by a student receiving special education services must be addressed through the admission, review, and dismissal committee process and the student's individualized education program plan. The student's admission, review, and dismissal committee must consider the relationship between the behavior and the disability and whether the disability contributed to the manifestation of the behavior. Any change in placement of a student receiving special education services must be considered in accordance with Section 37.004.

SECTION 11. This Act applies beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.

SECTION 12. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.