HBA-MSH H.B. 1121 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1121
By: Turner, Bob
Public Safety
2/22/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement Officer
Standards and Education (commission) is required to set minimum standards
for a person to enroll in a training program for peace officers and county
jailers.  The commission currently requires an applicant to be a high
school graduate, have passed a general educational development test, or
have 12 semester hours credit from an accredited college or university.
Requiring all applicants with a high school equivalency certificate to
complete 12 semester hours from a college or university prior to enrolling
in a peace officer training program will raise the educational level of the
peace officer applicant pool.  House Bill 1121 prohibits a person from
enrolling in a peace officer training program unless the person has
received a high school diploma or has received a high school equivalency
certificate and has completed 12 hours of college or university credit with
a specified grade point average. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 1121 amends the Occupations Code to prohibit a person from
enrolling in a peace officer training program unless the person has
received a high school diploma or has received a high school equivalency
certificate and has completed at least 12 hours at an institution of higher
education with at least a 2.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.