New TDLR legal guidelines present extra licensing alternatives for veterans, navy spouses, individuals with felony histories
AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas Division of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) applied dozens of modifications on September 1, when 30 new state legal guidelines impacting the company took impact after the 87th Common Session of the Texas Legislature.
TDLR is the state’s licensing and regulatory company that oversees greater than 1,000,000 licensees throughout 40 enterprise and occupational applications.
Its mission: “To earn the belief of Texans day-after-day by offering revolutionary regulatory options for our licensees and people they serve.”
The brand new legal guidelines will have an effect on almost 500,000 licensees, however based on TDLR’s Public Info Officer Tela Mange, modifications like these are widespread following legislative periods.
“The Texas Legislature has entrusted us with many new or transferred applications over time.” mentioned Mange.
KXAN seemed into the not too long ago applied legal guidelines and located two payments which have modified who can get hold of and/or hold their occupational license.
HB 139: Navy, Veteran and Partner Educators
A brand new regulation handed in the course of the 87th legislature has made it extra environment friendly for certified, out-of-state service members, veterans and their spouses to acquire an occupational license as an educator.
Previous to HB 139, the Texas Schooling Code, Part 21.052, outlined the exemptions to the examination necessities to acquire a Texas educator’s license solely for out-of-state lively obligation service members.
HB 139 has amended this part of the schooling code to offer navy veterans and navy spouses the identical expedited procedures that had been previously solely supplied to lively obligation service members.
Moreover, HB 139 has given Texas licensing businesses the flexibility to undertake new guidelines for a way lively obligation, veterans and navy spouses can reveal competency by together with credit for earlier coaching, schooling and medical {and professional} expertise.
The San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (SAHCC) not too long ago issued the next assertion concerning HB 139:
“HB 139 will assist get rid of some the laws, streamlining the licensing and certification course of for veterans and navy spouses. Serving to veterans and navy spouses safe positions of their chosen profession area extra shortly not solely advantages navy households however companies as effectively.”
HB 757: Second Probabilities/Legal Convictions
A brand new regulation, HB 757, was handed in the course of the 87th legislature in response to extra issues associated to people being denied skilled or occupational licenses and in an effort to additional stop employment and neighborhood integration challenges.
The regulation prohibits denying, suspending or revoking knowledgeable or occupational license when deferred adjudication neighborhood supervision was efficiently accomplished leading to a dismissal after a plea of guilt or no contest to sure felony offenses.
That is the second time within the final two legislative periods a brand new regulation has introduced modifications to how TDLR approaches licensing functions from people with a felony historical past.
In 2019, the 86th legislature handed HB 1342, which amended the Occupations Code, giving people with a felony conviction the flexibility to acquire a license if the offense didn’t straight relate to their specific occupation.
HB 1342 additionally gave TDLR the flexibility to subject restricted licenses to previously incarcerated people to work as an electrician or air conditioner technician below the direct supervision of a TDLR licensee.
Along with the rules set by these legal guidelines, TDLR’s Enforcement Division conducts felony background checks on each new and renewal software it receives and considers a number of elements previous to figuring out a licensees eligibility.
TDLR Public Info Officer Mange supplied KXAN the next assertion about HB 757:
“The Division’s process for evaluating somebody’s felony historical past seems to already conform with the necessities of HB 757. We already take into account whether or not a deferred is “straight associated” to the occupation the particular person is searching for a license for. Nonetheless, the exception in sec (d)(4) permit the Division to think about a deferred whether it is one in all various sure critical offenses or whether it is “associated to the exercise or conduct for which the particular person seeks or holds the license.” As a result of we already do this evaluation after we take into account what crimes are “straight associated” I do not imagine a lot, if something, about what we do now will change.”
For extra particulars associated to TDLR’s new legal guidelines, click on right here.
