Texas Administrative Code › Title 37 - PUBLIC SAFETY AND CORRECTIONS › Part 1 - TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY › Chapter 35 - PRIVATE SECURITY › Subchapter M - CONTINUING EDUCATION › Section 35.161 - Continuing Education Requirements

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) An
				  application to renew an individual license may not be submitted until the
				  required minimum hours of department approved continuing education credits have
				  been earned in accordance with the Act and this chapter. Proof of the required
				  continuing education must be maintained by the employer and contained in the
				  employee's personnel file. All individual licensees shall indicate they have
				  completed the required minimum hours of department approved continuing
				  education credits on their application for renewal.
(b) Owners, partners, and shareholders who
				  hold individual licenses as owners only, shall complete a total of eight (8)
				  hours of continuing education, including seven (7) hours in the subject matter
				  that relates to the type of regulated service provided by their company, and
				  one (1) hour of ethics. Noncommissioned security officers, and all individuals
				  not required to obtain a commission or license under the Act are specifically
				  exempted from the continuing education requirements.
(c) All individual license holders not
				  otherwise addressed in this section shall complete a total of eight (8) hours
				  of continuing education, seven (7) hours of which must be in subject matter
				  that relates to the type of individual license held, and one (1) hour of which
				  must cover ethics.
(d) Private
				  investigators with more than fifteen (15) years of continued licensure as a
				  private investigator shall complete a total of twelve (12) hours of continuing
				  education, eight (8) hours of which must relate to investigations, two (2)
				  hours of which must cover ethics, and two (2) hours of which must involve the
				  review of the Act and the rules of this chapter.
(e) Private investigators with less than
				  fifteen (15) years of continued licensure as a private investigator shall
				  complete a total of eighteen (18) hours of continuing education, fourteen (14)
				  of which must relate to investigations, two (2) hours of which must cover
				  ethics, and two (2) hours of which must involve the review of the Act and the
				  rules of this chapter.
(f) Any
				  individual licensed as a private investigator who fails to complete the
				  required continuing education during the twenty-four (24) months of initial
				  licensure is not eligible to make a new or renewal application until such time
				  as the training requirement for the previous licensure period has been
				  satisfied.
(g) Commissioned
				  security officers and personal protection officers shall complete six (6) hours
				  of continuing education by completing the renewal portions of the Level III or
				  IV training course, as applicable. All continuing education for commissioned
				  security officers and personal protection officers must be taught by department
				  approved training schools and instructors. Commissioned security officers shall
				  submit a firearms proficiency certificate along with the renewal
				  application.
(h) During the first
				  twelve (12) months of initial licensure, alarm system installers must complete
				  the Alarm Level I training. This training consists of sixteen (16) hours of
				  classroom instruction or equivalent online course as approved by the
				  department, with two (2) hours covering the National Electrical Code (NEC) as
				  it applies to low voltage. Alarm systems installer must earn eight (8) hours of
				  continuing education credits in an alarm related field, with one (1) hour
				  covering the National Electrical Code (NEC) as it applies to low voltage,
				  during each subsequent twenty-four (24) month period. This requirement must be
				  satisfied prior to the expiration date of the license and before
				  renewal.
(i) For the protection of
				  the installer and the general public, the work of an alarm system installer who
				  has not completed the required sixteen (16) hours of instruction must be
				  overseen by an installer who has completed the required sixteen (16) hours of
				  instruction. The oversight required under this section need not involve direct
				  physical supervision, but the overseeing installer is responsible for ensuring
				  the installation complies with all applicable requirements and
				  regulations.
(j) Any licensed alarm
				  systems installer who fails to complete sixteen (16) hours of training during
				  the twenty-four (24) months of initial licensure, or who fails to complete
				  eight (8) hours of continuing education during any subsequent licensing period
				  is not eligible to renew until all training requirements for the previous
				  license period have been satisfied.
(k) Alarm monitors shall complete four (4)
				  hours of continuing education relating to the duties and responsibilities of an
				  alarm monitor.
(l) All individuals
				  licensed as locksmiths must complete sixteen (16) hours of continuing education
				  every two (2) years.
(m) Attendees
				  of continuing education courses shall maintain certificates of completion
				  furnished by the school director in their files for a period of two (2) years.
				  Attendees shall furnish the department with copies of all certificates of
				  completion upon request.
(n)
				  Continuing education courses are only valid if completed within the two year
				  period preceding the license's current expiration date.