BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 857
86R12990 JCG-D	By: Lucio
	Intergovernmental Relations
	3/15/2019
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

Currently, Texas' Emergency Management Training (which is governed by Chapter 418, Government Code) only applies to an elected law enforcement officer, county judge, or an appointed public officer of the state or of a political subdivision, who has management (or supervisory responsibilities) and whose position, job duties or assignments include emergency management responsibilities, or who play a role in emergency preparedness, response, or recovery.

Under current law (Section 418.1015), emergency management directors (the presiding officer of the governing body of an incorporated city or a county) may designate a person to serve as an "emergency management coordinator."  Although a coordinator serves as an assistant to the director for emergency management purposes, they are not covered by the provisions or requirements of being trained in emergency management.

S.B. 857 addresses this concern by providing that the state's Emergency Management Training requirements apply to emergency management coordinators of counties of 500,000 more in population.

As proposed, S.B. 857 amends current law relating to requiring training for certain emergency management coordinators.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Sections 418.005(a), (b), (c), and (e), Government Code, as follows:

(a) Provides that this section applies only to:

(1) creates this subdivision from existing text and makes nonsubstantive changes; and�

(2) an emergency management coordinator designated under Section 418.1015(c) (relating to authorizing an emergency management director to designate a person to serve as an emergency management coordinator) by the emergency management director of a county with a population of 500,000 or more.

(b) Requires each person described by Subsection (a) to complete a course of training provided or approved by the Texas Division of Emergency Management (TDEM) of not less than three hours regarding the responsibilities of state and local governments under this chapter not later than the 180th day after the date the person:

(1)�(2) makes nonsubstantive changes; or

(3) is designated as an emergency management coordinator under Section 418.1015(c).

(c) Requires TDEM to develop and provide a training course related to the emergency management responsibilities of state-level officers and a training course related to the emergency management responsibilities of officers and emergency management coordinators of political subdivisions.

(e) Requires TDEM or the other entity providing the training to provide a certificate of course completion to a person, rather than to public officers, who complete the training required by this section. Requires a person, rather than a public officer, who completes this training� required by this section to maintain and make available for public inspection the record of the person's, rather than the public officer's, completion of the training. Makes a nonsubstantive change.

SECTION 2. Requires each person who is required to complete a course of training under Section 418.005, Government Code, as amended by this Act, to complete the training, not later than March 1, 2020.

SECTION 3. �Effective date: September 1, 2019.