Bill Text: TX HB1610 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to educator misconduct and employment sanctions for certain misconduct; providing a penalty.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 3-0)
Status: (Passed) 2011-06-17 - Effective on 9/1/11 [HB1610 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-HB1610-Enrolled.html
H.B. No. 1610 |
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relating to educator misconduct and employment sanctions for | ||
certain misconduct; providing a penalty. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 21.006, Education Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows: | ||
(b-1) A superintendent or director of a school district | ||
shall complete an investigation of an educator that is based on | ||
reasonable cause to believe the educator may have engaged in | ||
misconduct described by Subsection (b)(2)(A), despite the | ||
educator's resignation from district employment before completion | ||
of the investigation. | ||
SECTION 2. Section 21.058, Education Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsections (c-1), | ||
(c-2), and (e) to read as follows: | ||
(a) The procedures described by Subsections (b) and (c) | ||
apply [ |
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(1) to conviction of a felony offense 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; 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has been revoked from campus or from an administrative office, as | ||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: | ||
(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) [ |
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employment of the person as soon as practicable [ |
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(c-1) If a school district or open-enrollment charter | ||
school becomes aware that a person employed by the district or | ||
school under a probationary, continuing, or term contract under | ||
this chapter has been convicted of or received deferred | ||
adjudication for a felony offense, and the person is not subject to | ||
Subsection (c), the district or school may: | ||
(1) suspend the person without pay; | ||
(2) provide the person with written notice that the | ||
person's contract is void as provided by Subsection (c-2); and | ||
(3) terminate the employment of the person as soon as | ||
practicable. | ||
(c-2) A person's probationary, continuing, or term contract | ||
is void if the school district or open-enrollment charter school | ||
takes action under Subsection (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 3. Sections 21.12(a) and (b-1), Penal Code, are | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) An employee of a public or private primary or secondary | ||
school commits an offense if the employee: | ||
(1) engages in[ |
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sexual intercourse with a person who is enrolled in a public or | ||
private primary or secondary school at which the employee works; | ||
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(2) holds a certificate or permit issued as provided | ||
by Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Education Code, or is a person who is | ||
required to be licensed by a state agency as provided by Section | ||
21.003(b), Education Code, and engages in sexual contact, sexual | ||
intercourse, or deviate sexual intercourse with a person the | ||
employee knows is: | ||
(A) enrolled in a public primary or secondary | ||
school in the same school district as the school at which the | ||
employee works; or | ||
(B) a student participant in an educational | ||
activity that is sponsored by a school district or a public or | ||
private primary or secondary school, if: | ||
(i) students enrolled in a public or | ||
private primary or secondary school are the primary participants in | ||
the activity; and | ||
(ii) the employee provides education | ||
services to those participants; or | ||
(3) engages in conduct described by Section 33.021, | ||
with a person described by Subdivision (1), or a person the employee | ||
knows is a person described by Subdivision (2)(A) or (B), | ||
regardless of the age of that person. | ||
(b-1) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this | ||
section that: | ||
(1) the actor was the spouse of the enrolled person at | ||
the time of the offense; or | ||
(2) the actor was not more than three years older than | ||
the enrolled person and, at the time of the offense, the actor and | ||
the enrolled person were in a relationship that began before the | ||
actor's employment at a public or private primary or secondary | ||
school. | ||
SECTION 4. Section 21.006(b-1), Education Code, as added by | ||
this Act, applies to an investigation of possible public school | ||
educator misconduct begun on or after the effective date of this | ||
Act, regardless of whether the alleged misconduct occurred before, | ||
on, or after the effective date of this Act. | ||
SECTION 5. | ||
The change in law made by this Act to Section | ||
21.12, Penal Code, applies only to an offense committed on or after | ||
the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the | ||
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the | ||
offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for | ||
that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was | ||
committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of | ||
the offense occurred before that date. | ||
SECTION 6. This Act applies beginning with the 2011-2012 | ||
school year. | ||
SECTION 7. 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, 2011. | ||
______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
I certify that H.B. No. 1610 was passed by the House on May 5, | ||
2011, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 1, 3 present, not | ||
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. | ||
No. 1610 on May 24, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 1, | ||
2 present, not voting. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||
I certify that H.B. No. 1610 was passed by the Senate, with | ||
amendments, on May 21, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 20, Nays | ||
10. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
APPROVED: __________________ | ||
Date | ||
__________________ | ||
Governor |