| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
| |
|
|
relating to educator misconduct and employment sanctions and a |
|
|
requirement that a school district, open-enrollment charter |
|
|
school, or shared services arrangement terminate or refuse to hire |
|
|
an employee or applicant convicted of certain offenses. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Sections 21.058(a), (c), (c-2), and (e), |
|
|
Education Code, are amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(a) The procedures described by Subsections (b) and (c) |
|
|
apply only to conviction of: |
|
|
(1) [to conviction of] a felony offense; |
|
|
(2) [under Title 5, Penal Code, or] an offense on |
|
|
conviction of which a defendant is required to register as a sex |
|
|
offender under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure; |
|
|
(3) an offense under the laws of another state or |
|
|
federal law that is equivalent to an offense under Subdivision (1) |
|
|
or (2); or |
|
|
(4) a misdemeanor offense under Chapter 21 or 43, |
|
|
Penal Code [and
|
|
|
[(2)
if the victim of the offense is under 18 years of
|
|
|
age]. |
|
|
(c) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
|
|
that receives notice under Subsection (b) of the revocation of a |
|
|
certificate issued under this subchapter shall: |
|
|
(1) immediately remove the person whose certificate |
|
|
has been revoked from campus or from an administrative office, as |
|
|
applicable, to prevent the person from having any contact with a |
|
|
student; and |
|
|
(2) if the person is employed under a probationary, |
|
|
continuing, or term contract under this chapter, on the action of |
|
|
the board of trustees or governing body or a designee of the board |
|
|
or governing body: |
|
|
(A) suspend the person without pay; |
|
|
(B) provide the person with written notice that |
|
|
the person's contract is void as provided by Subsection (c-2); and |
|
|
(C) terminate the employment of the person as |
|
|
soon as practicable. |
|
|
(c-2) A person's probationary, continuing, or term contract |
|
|
is void if, on the action of the board of trustees or governing body |
|
|
or a designee of the board or governing body, the school district or |
|
|
open-enrollment charter school takes action under Subsection (c) |
|
|
[(c)(2)(B) or (c-1)(2)]. |
|
|
(e) Action taken by a school district or open-enrollment |
|
|
charter school under Subsection (c) [or (c-1)] is not subject to |
|
|
appeal under this chapter, and the notice and hearing requirements |
|
|
of this chapter do not apply to the action. |
|
|
SECTION 2. Sections 22.085(a) and (d), Education Code, are |
|
|
amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(a) A school district, open-enrollment charter school, or |
|
|
shared services arrangement shall discharge or refuse to hire an |
|
|
employee or applicant for employment if the district, school, or |
|
|
shared services arrangement obtains information through a criminal |
|
|
history record information review that[:
|
|
|
[(1)] the employee or applicant has been convicted of: |
|
|
(1) [(A)] a felony offense [under Title 5, Penal
|
|
|
Code]; |
|
|
(2) [(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] |
|
|
(3) [(C)] an offense under the laws of another state |
|
|
or federal law that is equivalent to an offense under Subdivision |
|
|
(1) or (2) [Paragraph (A) or (B)]; or |
|
|
(4) a misdemeanor offense under Chapter 21 or 43, |
|
|
Penal Code [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]. |
|
|
(d) [A school district, open-enrollment charter school,
|
|
|
private school, regional education service center, or shared
|
|
|
services arrangement may discharge an employee if the district or
|
|
|
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 State Board for Educator Certification or the
|
|
|
district, school, service center, or shared services arrangement.] |
|
|
An employee discharged under this section is considered to have |
|
|
been discharged for misconduct for purposes of Section 207.044, |
|
|
Labor Code. |
|
|
SECTION 3. Article 42.018(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, |
|
|
is amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(a) This article applies only[:
|
|
|
[(1)] to conviction or deferred adjudication granted on |
|
|
the basis of: |
|
|
(1) a felony [(A) an] offense [under Title 5, Penal
|
|
|
Code]; |
|
|
(2) [or
|
|
|
[(B)] an offense on conviction of which a |
|
|
defendant is required to register as a sex offender under Chapter |
|
|
62; or |
|
|
(3) a misdemeanor offense under Chapter 21 or 43, |
|
|
Penal Code [and
|
|
|
[(2) if the victim of the offense is under 18 years of
|
|
|
age]. |
|
|
SECTION 4. Sections 21.058(c-1) and 22.085(b), Education |
|
|
Code, are repealed. |
|
|
SECTION 5. 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, 2015. |
|
|
|
|
|
* * * * * |