Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) Requirement to implement. In order to
promote student safety, on written request by a parent, school district board
of trustees, governing body of an open-enrollment charter school, principal,
assistant principal, or staff member, as authorized by Texas Education Code
(TEC) §29.022(a-1), a school district or an open-enrollment charter school
must provide video equipment to campuses in accordance with TEC, §29.022,
and this section. Campuses that receive video equipment must place, operate,
and maintain video cameras in self-contained classrooms or other special
education settings in accordance with TEC, §29.022, and this
section.
(b) Definitions. For
purposes of TEC, §29.022, and this subchapter, the following terms have
the following meanings.
(1) Parent means a
person described in TEC, §26.002, whose child receives special education
and related services in one or more self-contained classrooms or other special
education settings. Parent also means a student who receives special education
and related services in one or more self-contained classrooms or other special
education settings and who is 18 years of age or older or whose disabilities of
minority have been removed for general purposes under Texas Family Code,
Chapter 31, unless the student has been determined to be incompetent or the
student's rights have been otherwise restricted by a court order.
(2) Staff member means a teacher, a related
service provider, a paraprofessional, a counselor, or an educational aide
assigned to work in a self-contained classroom or other special education
setting.
(3) Open-enrollment
charter school means a charter granted to a charter holder under TEC,
§12.101 or §12.152, identified with its own county district
number.
(4) Self-contained
classroom means a classroom on a regular school campus (i.e., a campus that
serves students in general education and students in special education) of a
school district or an open-enrollment charter school, including a room attached
to the classroom used for time-out, but not including a classroom that is a
resource room instructional arrangement under TEC, §42.151, in which a
majority of the students in regular attendance are provided special education
and related services for at least 50 percent of the instructional day and have
one of the following instructional arrangements/settings described in the
student attendance accounting handbook adopted under §
129.1025
of this title (relating to Adoption by Reference: Student Attendance Accounting
Handbook):
(A) self-contained
(mild/moderate/severe) regular campus;
(B) full-time early childhood (preschool
program for children with disabilities) special education setting;
(C) residential care and treatment
facility--self-contained (mild/moderate/severe) regular campus;
(D) residential care and treatment
facility--full-time early childhood special education setting;
(E) off home campus--self-contained
(mild/moderate/severe) regular campus; or
(F) off home campus--full-time early
childhood special education setting.
(5) Other special education setting means a
classroom on a separate campus (i.e., a campus that serves only students who
receive special education and related services) of a school district or
open-enrollment charter school, including a room attached to the classroom or
setting used for time-out, in which a majority of the students in regular
attendance are provided special education and related services, are assigned to
the setting for at least 50 percent of the instructional day, and have one of
the following instructional arrangements/settings described in the student
attendance accounting handbook adopted under §
129.1025
of this title:
(A) residential care and
treatment facility--separate campus; or
(B) off home campus--separate
campus.
(6) Video camera
means a video surveillance camera with audio recording capabilities.
(7) Video equipment means one or more video
cameras and any technology and equipment needed to place, operate, and maintain
video cameras as required by TEC, §29.022, and this section. Video
equipment also means any technology and equipment needed to store and access
video recordings as required by TEC, §29.022, and this section.
(8) Incident means an event or circumstance
that:
(A) involves alleged "abuse" or
"neglect," as those terms are described in Texas Family Code, §
261.001, of a student
by a staff member of the school district or charter school or alleged "physical
abuse" or "sexual abuse," as those terms are described in Texas Family Code,
§
261.410,
of a student by another student; and
(B) allegedly occurred in a self-contained
classroom or other special education setting in which video surveillance under
TEC, §29.022, and this section is conducted.
(9) School business day means a day that
campus, school district, or open-enrollment charter school administrative
offices are open.
(10) Time-out has
the meaning assigned by TEC, §37.0021.
(c) Exclusions. A school district or
open-enrollment charter school is not required to provide video equipment to a
campus of another district or charter school or to a nonpublic school. In
addition, the Texas School for the Deaf, the Texas School for the Blind and
Visually Impaired, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, and any other state
agency that provides special education and related services to students are not
subject to the requirements in TEC, §29.022, and this section.
(d) Use of funds. A school district or
open-enrollment charter school may solicit and accept gifts, grants, and
donations from any person to implement the requirements in TEC, §29.022,
and this section. A district or charter school is not permitted to use
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Part B, funds or state special
education funds to implement the requirements of TEC, §29.022, and this
section.
(e) Dispute resolution.
The special education dispute resolution procedures in 34 Code of Federal
Regulations, §§300.151-300.153 and 300.504-300.515, do not apply to
complaints alleging that a school district or open-enrollment charter school
has failed to comply with TEC, §29.022, and/or this section. Complaints
alleging violations of TEC, §29.022, and/or this section must be addressed
through the district's or charter school's local grievance procedures or other
dispute resolution channels.
(f)
Regular school year and extended school year services. TEC, §29.022, and
this section apply to video surveillance during the regular school year and
during extended school year services.
(g) Policies and procedures. Each school
district board of trustees and open-enrollment charter school governing body
must adopt written policies relating to the placement, operation, and
maintenance of video cameras under TEC, §29.022, and this section. At a
minimum, the policies must include:
(1) a
statement that video surveillance is for the purpose of promoting student
safety in certain self-contained classrooms and other special education
settings;
(2) information on how a
person may appeal an action by the school district or open-enrollment charter
school that the person believes to be in violation of this section or a policy
adopted in accordance with this section, including the appeal and expedited
review processes under § 103.1303 of this title (relating to
Commissioner's Review of Actions Concerning Video Cameras in Special Education
Settings) and the appeals process under TEC, §7.057;
(3) a requirement that the school district or
open-enrollment charter school provide a response to a request made under this
section not later than the seventh school business day after receipt of the
request by the person to whom it must be submitted under TEC,
§29.022(a-3), that authorizes the request or states the reason for denying
the request;
(4) except as provided
by paragraph (6) of this subsection, a requirement that a school or campus
begin operation of a video camera in compliance with this section not later
than the 45th school business day, or the first school day after the 45th
school business day if that day is not a school day, after the request is
authorized unless the Texas Education Agency (TEA) grants an extension of
time;
(5) a provision permitting
the parent of a student whose admission, review, and dismissal committee has
determined that the student's placement for the following school year will be
in a classroom or other special education setting in which a video camera may
be placed under this section to make a request for the video camera by the
later of:
(A) the date on which the current
school year ends; or
(B) the 10th
school business day after the date of the placement determination by the
admission, review, and dismissal committee;
(6) a requirement that, if a request is made
by a parent in compliance with paragraph (5) of this subsection, unless the TEA
grants an extension of time, a school or campus begin operation of a video
camera in compliance with this section not later than the later of:
(A) the 10th school day of the fall semester;
or
(B) the 45th school business
day, or the first school day after the 45th school business day if that day is
not a school day, after the date the request is made;
(7) the procedures for requesting video
surveillance and the procedures for responding to a request for video
surveillance;
(8) the procedures
for providing advanced written notice to the campus staff and the parents of
the students assigned to a self-contained classroom or other special education
setting that video and audio surveillance will be conducted or cease in the
classroom or setting, including procedures for notice, in compliance with TEC,
§29.022(b), of the opportunity to request continued video and audio
surveillance if video and audio surveillance will otherwise cease;
(9) a requirement that video cameras be
operated at all times during the instructional day when one or more students
are present in a self-contained classroom or other special education setting in
which video cameras are placed;
(10) a statement regarding the personnel who
will have access to video equipment or video recordings for purposes of
operating and maintaining the equipment or recordings;
(11) a requirement that a campus continue to
operate and maintain any video camera placed in a self-contained classroom or
other special education setting for as long as the classroom or setting
continues to satisfy the requirements in TEC, §29.022(a), for the
remainder of the school year in which the school or campus received the
request, unless the requestor withdraws the request in writing;
(12) a requirement that video cameras placed
in a self-contained classroom or other special education setting be capable of
recording video and audio of all areas of the classroom or setting, except that
no visual monitoring of bathrooms and areas in which a student's clothes are
changed may occur. Incidental visual coverage of the inside of a bathroom or
any area of the classroom or other special education setting in which a
student's clothes are changed is permitted only to the extent that such
coverage is the result of the layout of the classroom or setting. Audio
recording of the inside of a bathroom or any area of the classroom or other
special education setting in which a student's clothes are changed is
required;
(13) a statement that
video recordings must be retained for at least three months after the date the
video was recorded and that video recordings will be maintained in accordance
with the requirements of TEC, §29.022(e-1), when applicable;
(14) a statement that the regular or
continual monitoring of video is prohibited and that video recordings must not
be used for teacher evaluation or monitoring or for any purpose other than the
promotion of student safety;
(15)
at the school district's or open-enrollment charter school's discretion, a
requirement that campuses post a notice at the entrance of any self-contained
classroom or other special education setting in which video cameras are placed
stating that video and audio surveillance are conducted in the classroom or
setting;
(16) the procedures for
reporting an allegation to the school district, charter school, or school that
an incident occurred in a self-contained classroom or other special education
setting in which video surveillance under TEC, §29.022, and this section
is conducted;
(17) the local
grievance procedures for filing a complaint alleging violations of TEC,
§29.022, and/or this section; and
(18) a statement that video recordings made
under TEC, §29.022, and this section are confidential and a description of
the limited circumstances under which the recordings may be viewed.
(h) Confidentiality of video
recordings. A video recording made under TEC, §29.022, and this section is
confidential and may only be released and/or viewed by the following
individuals, to the extent permitted or required by TEC, §29.022(i), and
to the extent not limited by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of
1974 (FERPA) or other law:
(1) a staff member
or a parent of a student involved in an incident described in subsection (b)(8)
of this section that is documented by a video recording for which an incident
has been reported to the district, charter school, or school;
(2) appropriate Texas Department of Family
and Protective Services personnel as part of an investigation under Texas
Family Code, §
261.406;
(3) a peace officer, school nurse, or
administrator of a school district, charter school, or school trained in
de-escalation and restraint techniques as provided by commissioner rule, or a
human resources staff member designated by the school district's board of
trustees or open-enrollment charter school's governing body in response to a
report or an investigation of an incident described in subsection (b)(8) of
this section; or
(4) appropriate
TEA or State Board for Educator Certification personnel or agents as part of an
investigation.
(i)
Exception to restrictions on viewing. A contractor or employee performing job
duties relating to the installation, operation, or maintenance of video
equipment or the retention of video recordings who incidentally views a video
recording does not violate subsection (h) of this section.
(j) Child abuse and neglect reporting. If a
person described in subsection (h)(3) or (4) of this section views a video
recording and has cause to believe that the recording documents possible abuse
or neglect of a child under Texas Family Code, Chapter 261, the person must
submit a report to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services or
other authority in accordance with the local policy adopted under §
61.1051
of this title (relating to Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect) and Texas Family
Code, Chapter 261.
(k) Disciplinary
actions and legal proceedings. If a person described in subsection (h)(2), (3),
or (4) of this section views a video recording and believes that it documents a
possible violation of school district, open-enrollment charter school, or
campus policy, the person may allow access to the recording to appropriate
legal and human resources personnel of the district or charter school to the
extent not limited by FERPA or other law. A recording believed to document a
possible violation of school district, open-enrollment charter school, or
campus policy relating to the neglect or abuse of a student may be used in a
disciplinary action against district or charter school personnel and must be
released in a legal proceeding at the request of a parent of the student
involved in the incident documented by the recording. A recording believed to
document a possible violation of school district, open-enrollment charter
school, or campus policy relating to the neglect or abuse of a student must be
released for viewing by the district or charter school employee who is the
subject of the disciplinary action at the request of the employee.
(l) Access rights. Subsections (j) and (k) of
this section do not limit the access of a student's parent to an educational
record of the student under FERPA or other law. To the extent any provisions in
TEC, §29.022, and this section conflict with FERPA or other federal law,
federal law prevails.
