HB 121 House Committee Report

Relating to measures for ensuring public school safety, including the commissioning of peace officers by the Texas Education Agency, the composition of the board of directors of the Texas School Safety Center, and public school safety and security requirements and resources.

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to measures for ensuring public school safety, including

the commissioning of peace officers by the Texas Education Agency,

the composition of the board of directors of the Texas School Safety

Center, and public school safety and security requirements and

resources.

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

SECTION 1. Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure, is

amended to conform to Section 2, Chapter 624 (H.B. 4372), Section 1,

Chapter 870 (H.B. 3981), Section 1, Chapter 950 (S.B. 1727), and

Section 1, Chapter 984 (S.B. 2612), Acts of the 88th Legislature,

Regular Session, 2023, and is further amended to read as follows:

Art. 2A.001. PEACE OFFICERS GENERALLY. The following are

peace officers:

(1) a sheriff, a sheriff’s deputy, or a reserve deputy

sheriff who holds a permanent peace officer license issued under

Chapter 1701, Occupations Code;

(2) a constable, a deputy constable, or a reserve

deputy constable who holds a permanent peace officer license issued

under Chapter 1701, Occupations Code;

(3) a marshal or police officer of a municipality or a

reserve municipal police officer who holds a permanent peace

officer license issued under Chapter 1701, Occupations Code;

(4) a ranger, officer, or member of the reserve

officer corps commissioned by the Public Safety Commission and the

director of the Department of Public Safety;

(5) an investigator of a district attorney’s, criminal

district attorney’s, or county attorney’s office;

(6) a law enforcement agent of the Texas Alcoholic

Beverage Commission;

(7) a member of an arson investigating unit

commissioned by a municipality, a county, or the state;

(8) an officer commissioned under Section 37.081 or

37.0818, Education Code, or Subchapter E, Chapter 51, Education

Code;

(9) an officer commissioned by the Texas Facilities

Commission;

(10) a law enforcement officer commissioned by the

Parks and Wildlife Commission;

(11) an officer commissioned under Chapter 23,

Transportation Code;

(12) a municipal park and recreational patrol officer

or security officer;

(13) a security officer or investigator commissioned

as a peace officer by the comptroller;

(14) an officer commissioned by a water control and

improvement district under Section 49.216, Water Code;

(15) an officer commissioned by a board of trustees

under Chapter 54, Transportation Code;

(16) an investigator commissioned by the Texas Medical

Board;

(17) an officer commissioned by:

(A) the board of managers of the Dallas County

Hospital District, the Tarrant County Hospital District, the Bexar

County Hospital District, or the El Paso County Hospital District

under Section 281.057, Health and Safety Code;

(B) the board of directors of the Ector County

Hospital District under Section 1024.117, Special District Local

Laws Code;

Hospital District of Midland County, Texas, under Section 1061.121,

Special District Local Laws Code; or

(D) the board of hospital managers of the Lubbock

County Hospital District of Lubbock County, Texas, under Section

1053.113, Special District Local Laws Code;

(18) a county park ranger commissioned under

Subchapter E, Chapter 351, Local Government Code;

(19) an investigator employed by the Texas Racing

Commission;

(20) an officer commissioned under Chapter 554,

Occupations Code;

(21) an officer commissioned by the governing body of

a metropolitan rapid transit authority under Section 451.108,

Transportation Code, or a regional transportation authority under

Section 452.110, Transportation Code;

(22) an investigator commissioned by the attorney

general under Section 402.009, Government Code;

(23) a security officer or investigator commissioned

as a peace officer under Chapter 466, Government Code;

(24) an officer appointed by an appellate court under

Subchapter F, Chapter 53, Government Code;

(25) an officer commissioned by the state fire marshal

under Chapter 417, Government Code;

(26) an investigator commissioned by the commissioner

of insurance under Section 701.104, Insurance Code;

(27) an officer appointed by the inspector general of

[apprehension specialist or inspector general commissioned by] the

Texas Juvenile Justice Department [as an officer] under Section

242.102 [or 243.052], Human Resources Code;

(28) an officer appointed by the inspector general of

the Texas Department of Criminal Justice under Section 493.019,

Government Code;

(29) an investigator commissioned by the Texas

Commission on Law Enforcement under Section 1701.160, Occupations

Code;

(30) a fire marshal or any related officer, inspector,

or investigator commissioned by a county under Subchapter B,

Chapter 352, Local Government Code;

(31) a fire marshal or any officer, inspector, or

investigator commissioned by an emergency services district under

Chapter 775, Health and Safety Code;

(32) a fire marshal or any officer, inspector, or

investigator of a municipality who holds a permanent peace officer

license issued under Chapter 1701, Occupations Code;

(33) an officer commissioned by the State Board of

Dental Examiners under Section 254.013, Occupations Code, subject

to the limitations imposed by that section; [and]

(34) [(33)] an Alamo complex ranger commissioned by

the General Land Office under Section 31.0515, Natural Resources

Code, subject to the limitations imposed by that section; and

(35) an officer commissioned by the Texas Education

Agency as an officer under Section 37.1031, Education Code

[investigator commissioned by the Texas Juvenile Justice

Department as an officer under Section 221.011, Human Resources

Code].

SECTION 2. Section 7.021, Education Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) The agency may commission peace officers as provided by

Section 37.1031 to enforce Subchapter D, Chapter 37.

SECTION 3. Section 37.0814, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (d-1) to read as

follows:

(d) The board of trustees of a school district that claims a

good cause exception under Subsection (c) must develop an

alternative standard with which the district is able to comply,

which may include providing a person to act as a security officer

who is:

(1) a school marshal; or

(2) a school district employee or a person with whom

the district contracts who:

(A) either:

(i) has completed school safety training

provided by a qualified handgun instructor certified in school

safety under Section 411.1901, Government Code; or

(ii) not later than the 180th day after the

date on which the employee or person begins duties as a security

officer, completes training deemed appropriate by the district, in

consultation with the district’s police department, or, if the

district does not have a police department, a local law enforcement

agency, in:

(a) active shooter response, which

must be provided by an instructor certified by the Advanced Law

Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center at Texas State

University–San Marcos;

(b) school safety and emergency

management;

(d) incident command;

(e) first aid administration;

(f) mental health; and

(g) qualifications relating to the

carrying or use of a firearm; and

(B) carries a handgun on school premises in

accordance with written regulations or written authorization of the

district under Section 46.03(a)(1)(A), Penal Code.

(d-1) A good cause exception claimed by the board of

trustees of a school district under Subsection (c) expires on the

first anniversary of the date the exception is claimed. On the

expiration of the exception, the board must reevaluate whether the

board is able to comply with this section and, if not, renew:

(1) the claim for an exception under Subsection (c);

and

(2) the alternative standard developed under

Subsection (d).

SECTION 4. Subchapter D, Chapter 37, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 37.1031 to read as follows:

Sec. 37.1031. AGENCY PEACE OFFICERS. (a) The agency may

commission as a peace officer to enforce this subchapter an

employee who has been certified as qualified to be a peace officer

by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.

(b) An employee commissioned as a peace officer under this

section has the powers, privileges, and immunities of a peace

officer while carrying out duties as a peace officer under this

subchapter.

SECTION 5. Section 37.108, Education Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (a), (c), and (f) and adding Subsection (a-1)

to read as follows:

(a) Each school district or public junior college district

shall adopt and implement a multihazard emergency operations plan

for use in the district’s facilities. The plan must address

prevention, mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery as

defined by the Texas School Safety Center in conjunction with the

governor’s office of homeland security, the commissioner of

education, and the commissioner of higher education. The plan must

provide for:

(1) training in responding to an emergency for

district employees, including school district substitute teachers;

(2) measures to ensure district employees, including

school district substitute teachers, have classroom access to a

telephone, including a cellular telephone, or another electronic

communication device allowing for immediate contact with district

emergency services or emergency services agencies, law enforcement

agencies, health departments, and fire departments;

(3) measures to ensure district communications

technology and infrastructure are adequate to allow for

communication during an emergency;

(4) if the plan applies to a school district,

mandatory school drills and exercises, including drills required

under Section 37.114, to prepare district students and employees

for responding to an emergency;

(5) measures to ensure coordination with the

Department of State Health Services and local emergency management

agencies, law enforcement, health departments, and fire

departments in the event of an emergency;

(6) the implementation of a safety and security audit

as required by Subsection (b); and

(7) any other requirements established by the Texas

School Safety Center in consultation with the agency and the Texas

Higher Education Coordinating Board.

(a-1) The Texas School Safety Center shall provide to the

superintendent of each school district and to the president of each

public junior college district notice of the requirements

established under Subsection (a)(7) applicable to the district [and

relevant local law enforcement agencies].

shall report the results of the safety and security audit conducted

under Subsection (b) to the district’s board of trustees and, in the

manner required by the Texas School Safety Center, to the Texas

School Safety Center. The district must maintain a copy of the

[The] report [provided to the Texas School Safety Center under this

subsection must be] signed by:

(1) for a school district, the district’s board of

trustees and superintendent; or

(2) for a public junior college district, the

president of the junior college district.

(f) A school district shall include in its multihazard

emergency operations plan:

(1) a chain of command that designates the individual

responsible for making final decisions during a disaster or

emergency situation and identifies other individuals responsible

for making those decisions if the designated person is unavailable;

(2) provisions that address physical and

psychological safety for responding to a natural disaster, active

shooter, and any other dangerous scenario identified for purposes

of this section by the agency or the Texas School Safety Center;

(3) provisions for ensuring the safety of students in

portable buildings;

(4) provisions for ensuring that students and district

personnel with disabilities are provided equal access to safety

during a disaster or emergency situation;

(5) provisions for providing immediate notification

to parents, guardians, and other persons standing in parental

relation in circumstances involving a significant threat to the

health or safety of students, including identification of the

individual with responsibility for overseeing the notification;

(6) provisions for supporting the psychological

safety of students, district personnel, and the community during

the response and recovery phase following a disaster or emergency

situation that:

(A) are aligned with best practice-based

programs and research-based practices recommended under Section

38.351;

(B) include strategies for ensuring any required

professional development training for suicide prevention and

grief-informed and trauma-informed care is provided to appropriate

school personnel;

psychological safety and suicide prevention strategies into the

district’s plan, such as psychological first aid for schools

training, from an approved list of recommended training established

by the commissioner and Texas School Safety Center for:

(i) members of the district’s school safety

and security committee under Section 37.109;

(ii) district school counselors and mental

health professionals; and

(iii) educators and other district

personnel as determined by the district;

(D) include strategies and procedures for

integrating and supporting physical and psychological safety that

align with the provisions described by Subdivision (2); and

(E) implement trauma-informed policies;

(7) a policy for providing a substitute teacher access

to school campus buildings and materials necessary for the

substitute teacher to carry out the duties of a district employee

during an emergency or a mandatory emergency drill;

(8) provisions, as determined by the agency, for

ensuring the safety of students, staff, and spectators during

extracurricular activities sponsored or sanctioned by the

district;

(9) the name of each individual on the district’s

school safety and security committee established under Section

37.109 and the date of each committee meeting during the preceding

year; and

(10) [(9)] certification that the district is in

compliance with Section 37.117, as added by Chapter 896 (H.B. 3),

Acts of the 88th Legislature, Regular Session, 2023.

SECTION 6. Subchapter D, Chapter 37, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 37.1088 to read as follows:

Sec. 37.1088. AGENCY REPORT ON SCHOOL SAFETY. (a) Not

later than December 31 of each year, the agency shall prepare and

submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the

house of representatives, and each standing committee of each house

of the legislature with primary jurisdiction over primary and

secondary education, finance, and appropriations a report that

includes the deidentified results of the vulnerability assessments

and intruder detection audits conducted under Sections 37.1083 and

37.1084 during the preceding year.

(b) The report under Subsection (a) must include

recommendations and possible corrective actions for specific

deficiencies in campus security identified at multiple school

districts and open-enrollment charter schools.

SECTION 7. Section 37.115, Education Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (d-1) and amending Subsection (h) to read as

follows:

(d-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (d), if a student in a

special education program under Subchapter A, Chapter 29, is the

subject of a threat assessment under Subsection (f), the team

conducting the threat assessment must include at least one of the

following persons who has specific knowledge of the student’s

disability and the disability’s manifestations:

(1) a special education teacher who provides

instruction to the student;

(2) a behavior analyst licensed under Chapter 506,

Occupations Code;

(3) a clinical or master social worker licensed under

Chapter 505, Occupations Code; or

(4) a specialist in school psychology licensed under

Chapter 501, Occupations Code.

(h) On a determination that a student or other individual

poses a serious risk of violence to self or others, a team shall

immediately report the team’s determination to the superintendent

and, if[. If] the individual is a student, [the superintendent

shall] immediately attempt to inform the parent or person standing

in parental relation to the student. The requirements of this

subsection do not prevent an employee of the school from acting

immediately to prevent an imminent threat or respond to an

emergency.

SECTION 8. Sections 37.203(a) and (b), Education Code, are

amended to read as follows:

(a) The center is advised by a board of directors composed

of:

(1) the attorney general, or the attorney general’s

designee;

(2) the commissioner, or the commissioner’s designee;

(3) the executive director of the Texas Juvenile

Justice Department, or the executive director’s designee;

(4) the commissioner of the Department of State Health

Services, or the commissioner’s designee;

(5) the commissioner of higher education, or the

commissioner’s designee; and

(6) the following members appointed by the governor

with the advice and consent of the senate:

(A) a juvenile court judge;

(B) a member of a school district’s board of

trustees;

(D) an administrator of a public secondary

school;

(E) a member of the state parent-teacher

association;

(F) a teacher from a public primary or secondary

school;

(G) a public school superintendent who is a

member of the Texas Association of School Administrators;

(H) a school district police officer or a peace

officer whose primary duty consists of working in a public school;

(I) a professional architect who is registered in

this state and a member of the Texas Society of Architects;

(J) an administrator of a public junior college;

and

(K) [(J)] three members of the public.

(b) Members of the board appointed under Subsection (a)(6)

serve staggered two-year terms, with the terms of the members

described by Subsections (a)(6)(A)-(F) expiring on February 1 of

each odd-numbered year and the terms of the members described by

Subsections (a)(6)(G)-(K) [(J)] expiring on February 1 of each

even-numbered year. A member may serve more than one term.

SECTION 9. Section 37.222(b), Education Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(b) At least three times each school year, each [Each]

school district and open-enrollment charter school shall provide

the information and other resources described under Subsection (a)

to the parent or guardian of each student enrolled in the district

or school.

SECTION 10. Section 37.353, Education Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

under Subsection (a) expires on the fifth anniversary of the date on

which the exception is claimed. On the expiration of the exception,

the district must reevaluate whether the district is able to comply

with each school facility standard related to safety and security,

and if not, renew:

(1) the claim for an exception under Subsection (a);

and

(2) the alternative performance standard developed

under Subsection (b).

SECTION 11. Section 48.115(b), Education Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(b) Funds allocated under this section must be used to

improve school safety and security, including costs associated

with:

(1) securing school facilities in accordance with the

requirements of Section 37.351, including:

(A) improvements to school infrastructure;

(B) the use or installation of perimeter security

fencing conducive to a public school learning environment or

physical barriers, which may not include razor wire;

and security upgrades, including exterior door numbering and

locking systems and security film that provides resistance to a

forced entry; and

(D) the purchase and maintenance of:

(i) security cameras and, if the district

has already installed security cameras, other security equipment,

including video surveillance as provided by Section 29.022; and

(ii) technology, including communications

systems or devices, such as silent panic alert devices, two-way

radios, or wireless Internet booster equipment, that facilitates

communication and information sharing between students, school

personnel, and first responders in an emergency;

(2) providing security for the district, including:

(A) employing school district peace officers,

private security officers, and school marshals; and

(B) collaborating with local law enforcement

agencies, such as entering into a memorandum of understanding for

the assignment of school resource officers to schools in the

district;

(3) school safety and security measures, including:

(A) active shooter and emergency response

training;

(B) prevention and treatment programs relating

to addressing adverse childhood experiences; and

management of emergencies and threats, using evidence-based,

effective prevention practices and including:

(i) providing licensed counselors, social

workers, behavioral interventionists, chaplains, and individuals

trained in restorative discipline and [restorative] justice or

other discipline management practices;

(ii) providing mental health personnel and

support, including chaplains;

(iii) providing behavioral health

services, including services provided by chaplains;

(iv) establishing threat reporting

systems; and

(v) developing and implementing programs

focused on restorative justice practices, culturally relevant

instruction, and providing mental health support, including

support provided by chaplains;

(4) providing programs related to suicide prevention,

intervention, and postvention, including programs provided by

chaplains; and

(5) employing a school safety director and other

personnel to manage and monitor school safety initiatives and the

implementation of school safety requirements for the district.

SECTION 12. Sections 85.024(a) and (b), Local Government

Code, are amended to read as follows:

(a) The sheriff of a county with a total population of less

than 350,000 in which a school district or open-enrollment charter

[public] school is located shall call and conduct a meeting at least

twice each calendar year, not less than three months apart,

[semiannual meetings] to discuss:

(1) school safety;

(2) coordinated law enforcement response to school

violence incidents;

(3) law enforcement agency capabilities;

(4) available resources;

(5) emergency radio interoperability;

(6) chain of command planning; and

(7) other related subjects proposed by a person in

attendance at the meeting.

(b) The sheriff of a county to which this section applies in

which more than one school district or open-enrollment charter

[public] school is located may discuss school safety policies for

more than [is only required to hold] one school district or

open-enrollment charter school in a [semiannual] meeting described

by Subsection (a). This subsection does not require districts or

schools [public schools] located within the same county to adopt

the same school safety policies.

SECTION 13. Section 37.2161, Education Code, is repealed.

SECTION 14. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026

school year.

SECTION 15. Not later than February 1, 2026, the governor

shall appoint the new member to the board of directors of the Texas

School Safety Center as required by Section 37.203(a)(6)(J),

Education Code, as amended by this Act.

SECTION 16. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails

over another Act of the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025,

relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted

codes.

SECTION 17. 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.

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