Header:
Texas Annotated Statutes
OCCUPATIONS CODE
TITLE 10. OCCUPATIONS RELATED TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AND SECURITY
CHAPTER 1701. LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
SUBCHAPTER I. PROFESSIONAL TRAINING AND RECOGNITION
Date:
08/31/2009
Document:
§ 1701.405. Telecommunicators
(a) In this section:
(1) "Communication" means any type of system in which electric or electromagnetic signals are used to transmit information, including a system transmitting information by means of:
(A) radio, light, or waves in other portions of the electromagnetic spectrum;
(B) wire or cable; or
(C) any other medium.
(2) "Emergency" means the occurrence or imminent threat of damage, injury, or loss of life or property resulting from an extraordinary natural or man-made cause.
(3) "Telecommunicator" means a person acknowledged by the commission and employed by or serving a law enforcement agency who receives, processes, and transmits public safety information and criminal justice data for the agency using a base radio station on a public safety frequency regulated by the Federal Communications Commission or by teletype or other communications system.
(b) This state or a political subdivision of this state may not appoint or employ a person to act as a telecommunicator unless the person has had at least 40 hours of telecommunicator training as determined by the commission.
(c) The commission shall accredit telecommunicator training programs that fulfill the minimum requirements for a telecommunicator. The commission shall adopt rules providing for the accreditation of telecommunicator training programs developed and taught by the Department of Public Safety, an institution of higher education, including a junior college, community college, or technical school, or any other entity approved by the commission.
(d) A person who completes an accredited training program under this section may, by letter to the commission, request a written acknowledgment from the commission that the person has met the minimum requirements for a telecommunicator as determined by the commission. The request must be accompanied, in accordance with commission rules, by evidence of satisfactory completion of an accredited telecommunicator training program. On a determination by the commission that the person meets the minimum requirements for a telecommunicator, the commission shall issue the written acknowledgment to the person.
(e) This section does not apply to a person who:
(1) performs the duties of a telecommunicator; and
(2) is employed by a law enforcement agency that:
(A) employs 20 or fewer employees; or
(B) does not perform law enforcement services on a 24-hour basis.
(f) A person performing the duties of a telecommunicator and serving under permanent appointment on and before September 1, 1987, is not required to meet the requirements of this section as a condition of continued employment.
(g) Notwithstanding this section, a person may be appointed or serve as a telecommunicator on a temporary or probationary basis or may perform the duties of a telecommunicator in an emergency.
(h) A person appointed on a temporary or probationary basis after September 1, 1987, who does not satisfactorily complete an accredited telecommunicator training program before the first anniversary of the date the person is originally appointed shall be removed from the position. The person's temporary or probationary appointment may not be extended for more than one year except that not earlier than the first anniversary of the date the person is removed under this subsection, the employing agency may petition the commission for reinstatement of the person to temporary or probationary employment.
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