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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to access to and review of a person's employment records |
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held by a law enforcement agency. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 143.089, Local Government Code, is |
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amended by amending Subsection (g) and adding Subsections (h) and |
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(i) to read as follows: |
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(g) A fire or police department may maintain a department |
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[personnel] file on a fire fighter or police officer employed by the |
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department for the department's use. Except as provided by |
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Subsection (h), [but] the department may not release any |
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information contained in the department file to any agency or |
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person requesting information relating to a fire fighter or police |
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officer. The department shall refer to the director or the |
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director's designee a person or agency that requests information |
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that is maintained in the fire fighter's or police officer's |
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department [personnel] file. |
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(h) A police officer is entitled to view the contents of the |
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officer's department file maintained under Subsection (g) and is |
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entitled, on request, to a copy of any document in the officer's |
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department file. |
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(i) A police department shall include in a police officer's |
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department file maintained under Subsection (g) any statement that |
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the officer requests to be included in the file. |
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SECTION 2. Section 1701.451, Occupations Code, is amended |
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by amending Subsections (a) and (a-1) and adding Subsections (d) |
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and (e) to read as follows: |
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(a) Before a law enforcement agency may hire a person |
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licensed under this chapter, the agency head or the agency head's |
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designee must: |
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(1) make a request to the commission for any |
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employment termination report regarding the person that is |
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maintained by the commission under this subchapter; and |
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(2) submit to the commission on the form prescribed by |
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the commission confirmation that the agency: |
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(A) conducted in the manner prescribed by the |
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commission a criminal background check regarding the person; |
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(B) obtained the person's written consent on a |
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form prescribed by the commission for the agency to view the |
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person's employment records; |
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(C) obtained from the commission any service or |
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education records regarding the person maintained by the |
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commission; and |
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(D) reviewed the person's employment records |
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from [contacted] each of the person's previous law enforcement |
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employers. |
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(a-1) A law enforcement agency that obtains a consent form |
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described by Subsection (a)(2)(B) shall make the person's |
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employment records available to a hiring law enforcement agency on |
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request. The commission by rule shall prescribe the manner by which |
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a law enforcement agency shall make a person's employment records |
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available to a hiring law enforcement agency. |
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(d) A law enforcement agency's failure to review a person's |
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employment records as required by Subsection (a)(2)(D) or to make a |
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person's employment records available as required by Subsection |
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(a-1) constitutes grounds for imposing an administrative penalty |
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under Section 1701.507. |
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(e) To the extent of any conflict between this section and |
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Section 143.089, Local Government Code, this section controls. |
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SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act to Section |
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143.089, Local Government Code, apply to a request to view or obtain |
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a copy of information made on or after the effective date of this |
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Act. Section 143.089(h), Local Government Code, as added by this |
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Act, applies to the entire contents of a department file regardless |
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of the date on which a document or other information was placed in |
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the department file. |
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SECTION 4. (a) Not later than December 1, 2015, the Texas |
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Commission on Law Enforcement shall adopt rules and update forms as |
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necessary to comply with Section 1701.451, Occupations Code, as |
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amended by this Act. |
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(b) Section 1701.451, Occupations Code, as amended by this |
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Act, applies only to the hiring of a person by a law enforcement |
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agency that occurs on or after December 1, 2015. The hiring of a |
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person by a law enforcement agency that occurs before that date is |
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governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective date |
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of this Act, and the former law is continued in effect for that |
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purpose. |
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SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |