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 THE
OAKLEY REPORT
By Keith Oakley
ASSIST LOBBYIST
lobbyist@assisttexas.org
As I write this article, ASSIST is engaged in one of the most
important legislative battles we have ever fought. The DPS sunset bill was filed with language that could have a negative impact on the Security profession and on public safety in our State.
One of the sections of the bill in question would require that an individual receive their pocket card from DPS before they could perform any of the duties described in the Act, guard work, investigator work, burglar and fire alarm installation or locksmith work.
As you know, it may take six weeks to six months before an applicant receives their pocket card. If we have to tell a prospective job applicant to come back in two months to see if they can go to work, they will have moved on to another job opportunity. This could result in fewer individuals working in the security professions and less areas guarded by security personnel.
After trying to explain our situation to DPS, we moved forward with our efforts to explain our situation to Sunset staff and the sponsors of the Sunset bill, Rep. Lois Kolkhorst and Senator Juan Hinajosa. At this time, it appears that we are finally making some headway. As you read this article, I hope that we will have successfully amended the bill to allow for individuals to begin employment as soon as the employer completes their own criminal history check of the prospective employee and complies with the registration process. The current process has been working well for years and we see no reason to fix what ain’t broken.
Another section of the bill of concern to ASSIST is the placement of our profession under section 53 of the occupations code when it comes to
hiring individuals with criminal
history. We are currently subject to section 1702 of the occupations code. This section states that before an individual may be hired as a guard, investigator, burglar alarm installer or locksmith, they must not have had a felony conviction in the past 25 years, a Class A misdemeanor in the past 10 years and each class B misdemeanor may be considered on a individual basis by the Private Security Board. Section 53 of the occupations code is much more lenient towards the hiring of those with criminal histories.
To make matters even worse, a bill is a bill moving through the legislature that changes the requirements of section 53 to make the rules even more lenient when it comes to hiring individuals with serious criminal
histories. It states that you must grant individuals a license five years after they committed the felony or misdemeanor. Not just five years after completion of the sentence, but five years after the crime was committed. The bill does exempt most violent offenses and sex crimes, but it could still result in DPS being forced to grant a license to someone who is still in prison paying for their crime.
ASSIST is working to exempt individuals licensed under Section 1702 of the occupations code from this bill. We have agreed that 25 years for non-violent felonies and 10 years for Class A misdemeanors may be too restrictive. We have offered a compromise that would allow the Private Security Board more leeway in determining these situations on a case by case basis.
The individual who got in trouble as a kid, but has kept on the straight and narrow since that time, we feel should be given another chance. But, we are concerned about placing a burglar in a guard uniform or allowing them access to your home or business burglar alarm system.
Hopefully, the legislature will agree with our
position.
We have had many ASSIST members spending a lot of time in Austin during this session working hard to make things better for everyone in our profession.
We owe them all a big “thank you.” Due to their continued efforts, we may have just saved the security profession from some major set backs.
The more they know about our business, the better they will be able to make informed decisions. You are always welcome to contact me at
lobbyist@assisttexas.org, to find out more about our legislative efforts.
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