89R1629 KJE-F

By: Lalani H.B. No. 850

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the availability of automatic external defibrillators and a cardiac emergency response plan at public schools and certain private schools in this state.

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

SECTION 1. Section 38.017(a), Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) Each school district shall make available at each campus in the district the number of [at least one] automated external defibrillators [defibrillator], as defined by Section 779.001, Health and Safety Code, necessary for a defibrillator to be accessible from any location on campus so that a person may provide emergency care to a person in cardiac arrest within three minutes of being notified of a possible medical emergency involving cardiac arrest. A campus defibrillator must be readily available during any University Interscholastic League athletic competition held on the campus. In determining the placement of [location at which to store] a campus defibrillator, the principal of the campus shall consider the guidelines from the American Heart Association or another organization with expertise in emergency cardiovascular care and ensure that the defibrillator is clearly marked [primary location on campus where students engage in athletic activities].

SECTION 2. Section 38.018, Education Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 38.018. [PROCEDURES REGARDING RESPONSE TO] CARDIAC EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN [ARREST]. (a) Each school district and private school shall develop and implement a cardiac emergency response plan that establishes safety procedures for a district or school employee or other appropriate personnel [student] to follow in responding to a medical emergency involving cardiac arrest on district or school grounds[, including the appropriate response time in administering cardiopulmonary resuscitation, using an automated external defibrillator, as defined by Section 779.001, Health and Safety Code, or calling a local emergency medical services provider].

(b) In developing the plan, the district or school shall:

(1) work directly with local emergency services providers to integrate the plan with the providers' protocols; and

(2) incorporate evidence-based practices, such as the American Heart Association's guidelines for cardiac emergency response plans.

(c) The plan must include at a minimum:

(1) the establishment of a cardiac emergency response team;

(2) procedures for activating the cardiac emergency response team in response to a medical emergency involving cardiac arrest;

(3) the dissemination of the plan throughout each district or school campus;

(4) ongoing training in first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and the use of automated external defibrillators, as defined by Section 779.001, Health and Safety Code, using evidence-based guidelines, for appropriate district or school employees, including school coaches, school nurses, and athletic trainers;

(5) annual practice drills in responding to a medical emergency involving cardiac arrest; and

(6) annual review, evaluation, and, if necessary, modification of the plan.

(d) A private school is required to develop a cardiac emergency response plan [safety procedures] under this section only if the school receives an automated external defibrillator from the agency or receives funding from the agency to purchase or lease an automated external defibrillator.

(e) The commissioner shall establish a grant program to award grants to districts and schools to assist with the implementation of a cardiac emergency response plan. In awarding grants, the commissioner shall prioritize districts or schools at which at least 50 percent of enrolled students are educationally disadvantaged.

SECTION 3. Not later than the first instructional day of the 2027-2028 school year, each public school and private school to which Sections 38.017 and 38.018, Education Code, as amended by this Act, apply shall make available the number of automatic external defibrillators and implement a cardiac emergency response plan as required by those sections.

SECTION 4. 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, 2025.