By: Smith of Tarrant H.B. No. 2678
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to driver training and education.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 1001.001, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subdivision (14-a) to read as follows:
               (14-a)  "National criminal history record information" 
  has the meaning assigned by Section 22.081.
         SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 1001, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Section 1001.006 to read as follows:
         Sec. 1001.006.  REVIEW OF AGENCY JURISDICTION AND CONTROL
  OVER DRIVER EDUCATION AND DRIVING SAFETY SCHOOLS.  During the
  Sunset Advisory Commission's review of the agency under Section
  7.004 concerning abolition of the agency on September 1, 2013, the
  commission shall review the agency's jurisdiction and control over
  driver education and driving safety schools and include in its
  report to the legislature and governor under Section 325.010,
  Government Code, a recommendation as to whether another state
  agency should have jurisdiction and control over those schools.  
  This section expires January 1, 2014.
         SECTION 3.  Section 1001.055, Education Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 1001.055.  DRIVER EDUCATION CERTIFICATES AND
  CERTIFICATE NUMBERS.  (a)  The agency shall provide [print and
  supply] to each licensed or exempt driver education school driver
  education certificates or certificate numbers to enable the school
  and each approved parent-taught course provider (approved by the
  Texas Department of Public Safety under Section 521.205 of the
  Transportation Code) to print and issue agency-approved driver
  education certificates with the certificate numbers to be used for
  certifying completion of an approved driver education course to
  satisfy the requirements of Sections 521.204(a)(2) and 521.1601,
  Transportation Code.  [The certificates must be numbered serially.]
         (a-1)  A certificate printed and issued by a driver education
  school or Department of Public Safety approved course provider
  must:
               (1)  be in a form required by the agency; and
               (2)  include an identifying certificate number
  provided by the agency that may be used to verify the authenticity
  of the certificate with the driver education school or Department
  of Public Safety approved course provider.
         (a-2)  A driver education school or Department of Public
  Safety approved course provider that purchases driver education
  certificate numbers shall provide for the printing and issuance of
  original and duplicate certificates in a manner that, to the
  greatest extent possible, prevents the unauthorized production or
  the misuse of the certificates. The driver education school or
  Department of Public Safety approved course provider shall
  electronically submit to the agency in the manner established by
  the agency data identified by the agency relating to issuance of
  agency-approved driver education certificates with the certificate
  numbers.
         (a-3)  Certificate numbers must be in serial order so that
  the number on each issued certificate is unique.
         (b)  The agency by rule shall provide for the design and
  distribution of the certificates and certificate numbers in a
  manner that, to the greatest extent possible, prevents the
  unauthorized reproduction or misuse of the certificates or
  certificate numbers.
         (c)  The agency may charge a fee of not more than $4 for each
  certificate or certificate number.
         SECTION 4.  Subchapter F, Chapter 1001, Education Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 1001.2511, 1001.2512, 1001.2513, and
  1001.2514 to read as follows:
         Sec. 1001.2511.  NATIONAL CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD
  INFORMATION REVIEW FOR DRIVER EDUCATION INSTRUCTORS.  (a)  This
  section applies to a person who is an applicant for or holder of:
               (1)  a driver education instructor license; or
               (2)  a license issued under Section 1001.255.
         (b)  The agency shall review the national criminal history
  record information of a person who holds a license described by
  Subsection (a).
         (c)  The agency shall place a license described by Subsection
  (a) on inactive status for the license holder's failure to comply
  with a deadline for submitting information required under this
  section.
         (d)  The agency may allow a person who is applying for a
  license described by Subsection (a) and who currently resides in
  another state to submit the person's fingerprints and other
  required information in a manner that does not impose an undue
  hardship on the person.
         (e)  The commissioner may adopt rules to administer this
  section, including rules establishing:
               (1)  deadlines for a person to submit fingerprints and
  photographs in compliance with this section;
               (2)  sanctions for a person's failure to comply with the
  requirements of this section, including suspension or revocation of
  or refusal to issue a license described by Subsection (a); and
               (3)  notification to a driver education school of
  relevant information obtained by the agency under this section.
         (f)  The agency is not civilly or criminally liable for an
  action taken in compliance with this section.
         (g)  The commissioner by rule shall establish a schedule for
  obtaining and reviewing the information a person must provide the
  agency under this section.  Not later than September 1, 2013, the
  agency must obtain all national criminal history record information
  on all holders of licenses described by Subsection (a).  This
  subsection expires October 1, 2013.
         Sec. 1001.2512.  FEES FOR CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD
  INFORMATION REVIEW. The commissioner by rule shall require a
  person submitting to a national criminal history record information
  review under Section 1001.2511 or the driver education school
  employing the person, as determined by the agency, to pay a fee for
  the review in an amount not to exceed the amount of any fee imposed
  on an application for certification under Subchapter B, Chapter 21,
  for a national criminal history record information review under
  Section 22.0837.
         Sec. 1001.2513.  CONFIDENTIALITY OF INFORMATION.
  Information collected about a person to comply with Section
  1001.2511, including the person's name, address, phone number,
  social security number, driver's license number, other
  identification number, and fingerprint records:
               (1)  may not be released except:
                     (A)  to provide relevant information to driver
  education schools or otherwise to comply with Section 1001.2511;
                     (B)  by court order; or
                     (C)  with the consent of the person who is the
  subject of the information;
               (2)  is not subject to disclosure as provided by
  Chapter 552, Government Code; and
               (3)  shall be destroyed by the requestor or any
  subsequent holder of the information not later than the first
  anniversary of the date the information is received.
         Sec. 1001.2514.  LICENSE HOLDERS AND APPLICANTS CONVICTED OF
  CERTAIN OFFENSES. (a) A driver education school shall discharge or
  refuse to hire as an instructor an employee or applicant for
  employment if the agency obtains information through a criminal
  history record information review that:
               (1)  the employee or applicant has been convicted of:
                     (A)  a felony offense under Title 5, Penal Code;
                     (B)  an offense on conviction of which a defendant
  is required to register as a sex offender under Chapter 62, Code of
  Criminal Procedure; or
                     (C)  an offense under the laws of another state or
  federal law that is equivalent to an offense under Paragraph (A) or
  (B); and
               (2)  at the time the offense occurred, the victim of the
  offense described by Subdivision (1) was under 18 years of age or
  was enrolled in a public school.
         (b)  The agency shall suspend or revoke a license described
  by Section 1001.2511(a) held by a person under this subchapter and
  shall refuse to issue or renew a license described by Section
  1001.2511(a) to a person under this subchapter if the person has
  been convicted of an offense described by Subsection (a) of this
  section.
         (c)  Subsections (a) and (b) do not apply to an offense under
  Title 5, Penal Code, if:
               (1)  more than 30 years have elapsed since the offense
  was committed; and
               (2)  the person convicted has satisfied all terms of
  the court order entered on conviction.
         (d)  A driver education school may discharge an employee who
  serves as an instructor if the school obtains information of the
  employee's conviction of a felony or of a misdemeanor involving
  moral turpitude that the employee did not disclose to the school or
  the agency.  An employee discharged under this subsection is
  considered to have been discharged for misconduct for purposes of
  Section 207.044, Labor Code.
         SECTION 5.  Section 1001.253, Education Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (g) to read as
  follows:
         (d)  Except as provided by Subsection (g) or Section
  1001.254, a driver education instructor license authorizing a
  person to teach or provide classroom training may not be issued
  unless the person:
               (1)  has completed nine semester hours of driver and
  traffic safety education or a program of study in driver education
  approved by the commissioner from an approved driver education
  school; and
               (2)  holds a teaching certificate and any additional
  certification required to teach driver education.
         (g)  A driver education instructor license authorizing a
  person to teach or provide classroom training may be issued to a
  person who satisfies the requirements of Subsection (d)(1) but does
  not satisfy the requirements of Subsection (d)(2), except that such
  a license may authorize the license holder to teach or provide
  classroom training only for a driver education school that is
  located in a county that has a population of at least 275,000 but
  not more than 285,000 and is operated by a private primary or
  secondary school or open-enrollment charter school. This section
  does not affect any law or school policy that requires a review of
  criminal history record information.
         SECTION 6.  As soon as practicable after the effective date
  of this Act, the Texas Education Agency shall begin obtaining
  national criminal history record information for persons subject to
  a national criminal history record review under Section 1001.2511,
  Education Code, as added by this Act.
         SECTION 7.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.