AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Legislature is considering a new bill that would allow qualified Veterans to be commissioned and employed as peace officers.
House Bill 1152 would allow permanent residents that have served in the U.S. Armed Forces the opportunity to become peace officers.
The bill states its goal is to increase opportunities for honorably discharged Veterans of the United States Armed Forces.
If passed, the bill would amend Chapter 370 of the Local Government Code.
With this change, political subdivisions that commission and employ peace officers will now be able to do the same for legal permanent residents of the U.S. who are honorably discharged Veterans.
Additionally, the bill would add Section 1701.3095 to the Occupations Code.
This would allow the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement to issue a peace officer license to legal permanent residents who are honorably discharged Veterans.
The department would also be required to amend rules as necessary to comply with the new section added to the Occupations Code.
However, it is important to note that these selected Veterans would still need to meet the requirements of the chapter and commission's rules.
The bill also specifies that the commissioning and employment of these Veterans as peace officers would be allowed "notwithstanding any other law."
This means that these Veterans would be exempt from other legal barriers that may prevent them from serving as peace officers.
The bill's proponents argue that this would allow qualified Veterans the opportunity to keep serving their community.
They also claim this would address the shortage of qualified peace officers in certain areas across the state.
If passed, the bill would take effect on September 1, 2023.
