The Texas Senate voted May 3 largely along party lines to approve a bill allowing school employees to carry a concealed handgun in a classroom under certain circumstances.
Senate Bill 741 modifies the existing School Marshals program, which is overseen by the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement in coordination with local school districts.
To become a school marshall, a school employee must be appointed by the district, must hold a valid license to carry, must pass a psychological exam, and must undergo 80 hours of training.
Identities of licensed school marshals are kept confidential, meaning that students don’t necessarily know which teachers might be carrying a handgun.
Existing law prohibits a school marshal from carrying a concealed handgun if his primary duty involves “regular, direct contact with students.”
In other words, teachers licensed as school marshals can’t have handguns in the classroom. But they’re allowed to have them on-campus in a locked and secured safe (Education Code 27.0811(d)), which they can only access if there is a threat of deadly violence.
On the other hand, an administrator or maintenance worker could carry a concealed handgun at school under the existing School Marshal program.
SB 741 would strike out the limitation on teachers having handguns in the classroom, giving them the same access to firearms non-instructional personnel.
Educators could still keep a handgun in a “locked and secured safe,” if they preferred, or fi that was required by the school district’s rules. But SB 741 would also allow an educator to store a gun in an “other locked and secured location” — even if it was not an actual gun safe.
Senator Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury) authored the bill. He said, “In the event that a situation occurs on a school campus that would necessitate the access and use of a handgun by a school marshal, it is imperative that the handgun be accessed as quickly as possible because if the need for the school marshal to respond arises, time is of the essence.”
During an April 15 senate hearing on the bill, numerous members of the gun control group Moms Demand Action registered in opposition. They say that having more guns in schools could actually create more dangers than it would solve. The American Federation of Teachers and Texas State Teachers Association were also opposed.
The Senate voted 18-12 to approve that bill, with one Democrat, Senator Chuy Hinojosa (McAllen) voting with the Republicans. It will now be taken up by the Texas House.
The bill would take effect September 1, 2021. It would apply not only to public schools but also to private schools and public junior colleges.
