Bill Text: TX HB873 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Engrossed
Bill Title: Relating to behavior improvement plans and behavioral intervention plans for certain public school students and notification and documentation requirements regarding certain behavior management techniques.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2019-05-13 - Referred to Education [HB873 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HB873-Engrossed.html
| 86R26140 MEW-F | ||
| By: Allen | H.B. No. 873 | |
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| relating to behavior improvement plans and behavioral intervention | ||
| plans for certain public school students and notification and | ||
| documentation requirements regarding certain behavior management | ||
| techniques. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 29.005, Education Code, is amended by | ||
| adding Subsection (h) to read as follows: | ||
| (h) If a behavior improvement plan or a behavioral | ||
| intervention plan is included as part of a student's individualized | ||
| education program under Subsection (g), the committee shall review | ||
| the plan at least annually and more frequently if appropriate to | ||
| address: | ||
| (1) any changes in a student's circumstances, | ||
| including: | ||
| (A) the placement of the student in a different | ||
| educational setting; | ||
| (B) an increase or persistence in disciplinary | ||
| actions taken regarding the student; | ||
| (C) a variation in the student's attendance; or | ||
| (D) a variation in the student's behavior, | ||
| including an unauthorized unsupervised departure from an | ||
| educational setting; or | ||
| (2) the safety of the student or others. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 37.001(a), Education Code, is amended to | ||
| read as follows: | ||
| (a) The board of trustees of an independent school district | ||
| shall, with the advice of its district-level committee established | ||
| under Subchapter F, Chapter 11, adopt a student code of conduct for | ||
| the district. The student code of conduct must be posted and | ||
| prominently displayed at each school campus or made available for | ||
| review at the office of the campus principal. In addition to | ||
| establishing standards for student conduct, the student code of | ||
| conduct must: | ||
| (1) specify the circumstances, in accordance with this | ||
| subchapter, under which a student may be removed from a classroom, | ||
| campus, disciplinary alternative education program, or vehicle | ||
| owned or operated by the district; | ||
| (2) specify conditions that authorize or require a | ||
| principal or other appropriate administrator to transfer a student | ||
| to a disciplinary alternative education program; | ||
| (3) outline conditions under which a student may be | ||
| suspended as provided by Section 37.005 or expelled as provided by | ||
| Section 37.007; | ||
| (4) specify that consideration will be given, as a | ||
| factor in each decision concerning suspension, removal to a | ||
| disciplinary alternative education program, expulsion, or | ||
| placement in a juvenile justice alternative education program, | ||
| regardless of whether the decision concerns a mandatory or | ||
| discretionary action, to: | ||
| (A) self-defense; | ||
| (B) intent or lack of intent at the time the | ||
| student engaged in the conduct; | ||
| (C) a student's disciplinary history; or | ||
| (D) a disability that substantially impairs the | ||
| student's capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of the student's | ||
| conduct; | ||
| (5) provide guidelines for setting the length of a | ||
| term of: | ||
| (A) a removal under Section 37.006; and | ||
| (B) an expulsion under Section 37.007; | ||
| (6) address the notification of a student's parent or | ||
| guardian of a violation of the student code of conduct committed by | ||
| the student that results in suspension, removal to a disciplinary | ||
| alternative education program, or expulsion, including specifying: | ||
| (A) if the student has a behavior improvement | ||
| plan or a behavioral intervention plan, whether the school district | ||
| recommends any revision to the plan; or | ||
| (B) if the student does not have a behavior | ||
| improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, whether the | ||
| school district recommends conducting or is required under Section | ||
| 37.004 to conduct a functional behavioral assessment of the | ||
| student; | ||
| (7) prohibit bullying, harassment, and making hit | ||
| lists and ensure that district employees enforce those | ||
| prohibitions; | ||
| (8) provide, as appropriate for students at each grade | ||
| level, methods, including options, for: | ||
| (A) managing students in the classroom, on school | ||
| grounds, and on a vehicle owned or operated by the district; | ||
| (B) disciplining students; and | ||
| (C) preventing and intervening in student | ||
| discipline problems, including bullying, harassment, and making | ||
| hit lists; and | ||
| (9) include an explanation of the provisions regarding | ||
| refusal of entry to or ejection from district property under | ||
| Section 37.105, including the appeal process established under | ||
| Section 37.105(h). | ||
| SECTION 3. Section 37.0021(d), Education Code, is amended | ||
| to read as follows: | ||
| (d) The commissioner by rule shall adopt procedures for the | ||
| use of restraint and time-out by a school district employee or | ||
| volunteer or an independent contractor of a district in the case of | ||
| a student with a disability receiving special education services | ||
| under Subchapter A, Chapter 29. A procedure adopted under this | ||
| subsection must: | ||
| (1) be consistent with: | ||
| (A) professionally accepted practices and | ||
| standards of student discipline and techniques for behavior | ||
| management; and | ||
| (B) relevant health and safety standards; [ |
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| (2) identify any discipline management practice or | ||
| behavior management technique that requires a district employee or | ||
| volunteer or an independent contractor of a district to be trained | ||
| before using that practice or technique; and | ||
| (3) require a school district to: | ||
| (A) provide written notification to the | ||
| student's parent or person standing in parental relation to the | ||
| student for each use of restraint that includes: | ||
| (i) the name of the student; | ||
| (ii) the name of the district employee or | ||
| volunteer or independent contractor of the district who | ||
| administered the restraint; | ||
| (iii) the date of the restraint; | ||
| (iv) the time that the restraint started | ||
| and ended; | ||
| (v) the location of the restraint; | ||
| (vi) the nature of the restraint; | ||
| (vii) a description of the activity in | ||
| which the student was engaged immediately preceding the use of the | ||
| restraint; | ||
| (viii) the behavior of the student that | ||
| prompted the restraint; | ||
| (ix) any efforts made to de-escalate the | ||
| situation and any alternatives to restraint that were attempted; | ||
| (x) if the student has a behavior | ||
| improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, whether the | ||
| school district recommends any revision to the plan; and | ||
| (xi) if the student does not have a behavior | ||
| improvement plan or a behavioral intervention plan, whether the | ||
| school district recommends conducting a functional behavioral | ||
| assessment of the student; | ||
| (B) include in a student's special education | ||
| eligibility school records: | ||
| (i) a copy of any written notification | ||
| provided to the student's parent or person standing in parental | ||
| relation to the student under Paragraph (A); and | ||
| (ii) the contact information for the parent | ||
| or person who received the notification; and | ||
| (C) if the student has a behavior improvement | ||
| plan or behavioral intervention plan, document each use of time-out | ||
| prompted by a behavior of the student specified in the student's | ||
| plan, including a description of the behavior that prompted the | ||
| time-out. | ||
| SECTION 4. Section 37.004, Education Code, is amended by | ||
| adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows: | ||
| (b-1) If a school district takes a disciplinary action | ||
| regarding a student with a disability who receives special | ||
| education services that constitutes a change in placement under | ||
| federal law, the district shall: | ||
| (1) not later than the 10th school day after the change | ||
| in placement: | ||
| (A) conduct a functional behavioral assessment | ||
| of the student; and | ||
| (B) review any previously conducted functional | ||
| behavioral assessment of the student and any behavior improvement | ||
| plan or behavioral intervention plan developed for the student | ||
| based on that assessment; and | ||
| (2) as necessary: | ||
| (A) develop a behavior improvement plan or | ||
| behavioral intervention plan for the student if the student does | ||
| not have a plan; or | ||
| (B) if the student has a behavior improvement | ||
| plan or behavioral intervention plan, revise the student's plan. | ||
| SECTION 5. This Act applies beginning with the 2019-2020 | ||
| school year. | ||
| SECTION 6. 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, 2019. | ||
