Bill
SB 30
85(R) - 2017
Senate Criminal Justice
House Homeland Security & Public Safety
Senate Criminal Justice
House Homeland Security & Public Safety
Education
Law Enforcement
Vote Recommendation
Vote No; Amend
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Neutral
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Neutral
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Neutral
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Negative
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Neutral
Author(s)
Royce West
Sponsor(s)
Senfronia Thompson
Bill Caption
Relating to inclusion of instruction regarding interaction with peace officers in the required curriculum for certain public school students and in driver education courses and to civilian interaction training with peace officers.
Fiscal Notes
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
Bill Analysis
This bill would establish curriculum and instruction modules to teach high school students proper interaction with peace officers during traffic stops and other encounters. Topics of instruction would include proper behavior for civilians and police officers, laws regarding questioning and detention by police officers, consequences for a person's failure to comply with the law, how and where to file a complaint against an officer, and a person's rights concerning interactions with police officers.
The State Board of Education and the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement would develop the curriculum in consultation with interested parties including a volunteer work group convened for the purpose of making recommendations on this instruction.
The State Board of Education would be required to adopt rules to include this instruction in one or more courses in the required curriculum for students in grades 9-12. A school district or open-enrollment charter school would be allowed to tailor the instruction as appropriate for the district or school's community.
Driver education course curriculum and minimum curriculum requirements for peace officers would also be updated to cover these same topics.
Vote Recommendation Notes
We have no objection to creating and implementing the proposed curriculum in drivers education courses and in peace officer training. Greater education on the part of the public and the law enforcement community may well serve to reduce the number of traffic stops which end in tragedy.
However, mandating that this new curriculum be required coursework for public and open-enrollment charter school students is beyond the proper role of state government. Adding new required coursework necessarily means less time is available in the school day to devote to core curriculum. This is the basis for our opposition to SB 30.
Adding such a course as an elective would allow students to take the course at their discretion. If this bill were amended to make the high school curriculum elective we would withdraw our objection.
Organizations Supporting
Sheriffs' Association of Texas
Texas Appleseed
Texas Impact
Texas Municipal League