HUMAN RESOURCES CODE
TITLE 8. RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
CHAPTER 121. PARTICIPATION IN SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES
§ 121.001. STATE POLICY. The policy of the state is to
encourage and enable persons with disabilities to participate fully
in the social and economic life of the state, to achieve maximum
personal independence, to become gainfully employed, and to
otherwise fully enjoy and use all public facilities available
within the state.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2425, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 2, eff. Sept.
1, 1997.
§ 121.0014. VISION STATEMENT. (a) The Health and
Human Services Commission, each health and human services agency,
and each state agency that administers a workforce development
program shall adopt the following statement of vision:
The State of Texas shall ensure that all Texans with
disabilities have the opportunity and support necessary
to work in individualized, competitive employment in the
community and to have choices about their work and
careers.
(b) In this section, "health and human services agency"
means an agency listed by Section 19, Article 4413(502), Revised
Statutes.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 655, § 6.02(a), eff. Sept. 1,
1995.
§ 121.0015. INTERAGENCY WORK GROUP. (a) An
interagency work group is created to implement the action plan
adopted at the 1994 Supported Employment Summit.
(b) The work group is composed of a representative of the:
(1) Texas Education Agency, appointed by the
commissioner of education;
(2) Texas Commission for the Blind, appointed by the
commissioner of that agency;
(3) Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental
Retardation, appointed by the commissioner of mental health and
mental retardation;
(4) Texas Rehabilitation Commission, appointed by the
commissioner of that agency; and
(5) Texas Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing,
appointed by the executive director of that agency.
(c) A member of the work group serves at the will of the
appointing agency.
(d) The work group shall elect a presiding officer and any
other necessary officers.
(e) The work group shall meet at the call of the presiding
officer.
(f) The appointing agency is responsible for the expenses of
a member's service on the work group. A member of the work group
receives no additional compensation for serving on the work group.
(g) The comptroller shall monitor the work group and the
implementation of the action plan.
Added by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 655, § 6.02(a), eff. Sept. 1,
1995. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 165, § 6.66, eff.
Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Assistance animal" means an animal that is
specially trained or equipped to help a person with a disability and
that:
(A) is used by a person with a disability who has
satisfactorily completed a specific course of training in the use
of the animal; and
(B) has been trained by an organization generally
recognized by agencies involved in the rehabilitation of persons
with disabilities as reputable and competent to provide animals
with training of this type.
(2) "Harass" means any conduct that:
(A) is directed at an assistance animal that
impedes or interferes with, or is intended to impede or interfere
with, the animal's performance of its duties; or
(B) places a person with a disability who is
using an assistance animal, or a trainer who is training an
assistance animal, in danger of injury.
(3) "Housing accommodations" means all or part of real
property that is used or occupied or is intended, arranged, or
designed to be used or occupied as the home, residence, or sleeping
place of one or more human beings, except a single-family residence
whose occupants rent, lease, or furnish for compensation only one
room.
(4) "Person with a disability" means a person who has a
mental or physical disability, including mental retardation,
hearing impairment, deafness, speech impairment, visual
impairment, or any health impairment that requires special
ambulatory devices or services.
(5) "Public facilities" includes a street, highway,
sidewalk, walkway, common carrier, airplane, motor vehicle,
railroad train, motor bus, streetcar, boat, or any other public
conveyance or mode of transportation; a hotel, motel, or other
place of lodging; a public building maintained by any unit or
subdivision of government; a building to which the general public
is invited; a college dormitory or other educational facility; a
restaurant or other place where food is offered for sale to the
public; and any other place of public accommodation, amusement,
convenience, or resort to which the general public or any
classification of persons from the general public is regularly,
normally, or customarily invited.
(6) "White cane" means a cane or walking stick that is
metallic or white in color, or white tipped with a contrasting
color, and that is carried by a blind person to assist the blind
person in traveling from place to place.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2425, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3310, ch. 865, § 1,
eff. Aug. 31, 1981; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 278, § 1, eff. June
5, 1985; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 890, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1995;
Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 3, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.003. DISCRIMINATION PROHIBITED. (a) Persons
with disabilities have the same right as the able-bodied to the full
use and enjoyment of any public facility in the state.
(b) No common carrier, airplane, railroad train, motor bus,
streetcar, boat, or other public conveyance or mode of
transportation operating within the state may refuse to accept as a
passenger a person with a disability solely because of the person's
disability, nor may a person with a disability be required to pay an
additional fare because of his or her use of an assistance animal,
wheelchair, crutches, or other device used to assist a person with a
disability in travel.
(c) No person with a disability may be denied admittance to
any public facility in the state because of the person's
disability. No person with a disability may be denied the use of a
white cane, assistance animal, wheelchair, crutches, or other
device of assistance.
(d) The discrimination prohibited by this section includes
a refusal to allow a person with a disability to use or be admitted
to any public facility, a ruse or subterfuge calculated to prevent
or discourage a person with a disability from using or being
admitted to a public facility, and a failure to:
(1) comply with Article 9102, Revised Statutes;
(2) make reasonable accommodations in policies,
practices, and procedures; or
(3) provide auxiliary aids and services necessary to
allow the full use and enjoyment of the public facility.
(e) Regulations relating to the use of public facilities by
any designated class of persons from the general public may not
prohibit the use of particular public facilities by persons with
disabilities who, except for their disabilities or use of
assistance animals or other devices for assistance in travel, would
fall within the designated class.
(f) It is the policy of the state that persons with
disabilities be employed by the state, by political subdivisions of
the state, in the public schools, and in all other employment
supported in whole or in part by public funds on the same terms and
conditions as persons without disabilities, unless it is shown that
there is no reasonable accommodation that would enable a person
with a disability to perform the essential elements of a job.
(g) Persons with disabilities shall be entitled to full and
equal access, as other members of the general public, to all housing
accommodations offered for rent, lease, or compensation in this
state, subject to the conditions and limitations established by law
and applicable alike to all persons.
(h) A person with a total or partial disability who has or
obtains an assistance animal is entitled to full and equal access to
all housing accommodations provided for in this section, and may
not be required to pay extra compensation for the animal but is
liable for damages done to the premises by the animal.
(i) An assistance animal in training shall not be denied
admittance to any public facility when accompanied by an approved
trainer who is an agent of an organization generally recognized by
agencies involved in the rehabilitation of persons who are disabled
as reputable and competent to provide training for assistance
animals, and/or their handlers.
(j) A person may not assault, harass, interfere with, kill,
or injure in any way, or attempt to assault, harass, interfere with,
kill, or injure in any way, an assistance animal.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2426, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3310, ch. 865, § 2,
eff. Aug. 31, 1981; Acts 1983, 68th Leg., 1st C.S., p. 57, ch. 7,
§ 10.03(c), eff. Sept. 23, 1983; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 278,
§ 2, eff. June 5, 1985; Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 249, § 1,
eff. Sept. 1, 1989; Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 890, § 2, eff.
Sept. 1, 1995; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 4, eff. Sept. 1,
1997; Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 261, § 1, eff. May 22, 2001;
Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 710, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2003.
§ 121.004. PENALTIES FOR AND DAMAGES RESULTING FROM
DISCRIMINATION. (a) A person, firm, association, corporation, or
other organization, or the agent of a person, firm, association,
corporation, or other organization who violates a provision of
Section 121.003 commits an offense. An offense under this
subsection is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than
$300 or more than $1,000.
(b) In addition to the penalty provided in Subsection (a) of
this section, a person, firm, association, corporation, or other
organization, or the agent of a person, firm, association,
corporation, or other organization, who violates the provisions of
Section 121.003 of this chapter is deemed to have deprived a person
with a disability of his or her civil liberties. The person with a
disability deprived of his or her civil liberties may maintain a
cause of action for damages in a court of competent jurisdiction,
and there is a conclusive presumption of damages in the amount of at
least $100 to the person with a disability.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2427, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 890, § 3, eff. Sept.
1, 1995; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 5, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.005. RESPONSIBILITIES OF PERSONS WITH
DISABILITIES. (a) A person with a disability who uses an
assistance animal for assistance in travel is liable for any
damages done to the premises or facilities by the animal.
(b) A person with a disability who uses an assistance animal
for assistance in travel or auditory awareness shall keep the
animal properly harnessed or leashed, and a person who is injured by
the animal because of the failure of a person with a disability to
properly harness or leash the animal is entitled to maintain a cause
of action for damages in a court of competent jurisdiction under the
same law applicable to other causes brought for the redress of
injuries caused by animals.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2427, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3310, ch. 865, § 3,
eff. Aug. 31, 1981; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 278, § 3, eff. June
5, 1985; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 6, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.006. PENALTIES FOR IMPROPER USE OF ASSISTANCE
ANIMALS. (a) A person who uses an assistance animal with a
harness or leash of the type commonly used by persons with
disabilities who use trained animals, in order to represent that
his or her animal is a specially trained assistance animal when
training of the type described in Section 121.002(1)(B) of this
chapter has not in fact been provided, is guilty of a misdemeanor
and on conviction shall be punished by a fine of not more than $200.
(b) A person who habitually abuses or neglects to feed or
otherwise neglects to properly care for his or her assistance
animal is subject to seizure of the animal under Subchapter B,
Chapter 821, Health and Safety Code.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2427, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3311, ch. 865, § 4,
eff. Aug. 31, 1981; Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 278, § 4, eff. June
5, 1985; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 7, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.007. BLIND AND DISABLED PEDESTRIANS. (a) No
person may carry a white cane on a public street or highway unless
the person is totally or partially blind.
(b) The driver of a vehicle approaching an intersection or
crosswalk where a pedestrian guided by an assistance animal or
carrying a white cane is crossing or attempting to cross shall take
necessary precautions to avoid injuring or endangering the
pedestrian. The driver shall bring the vehicle to a full stop if
injury or danger can be avoided only by that action.
(c) The failure of a totally or partially blind or otherwise
disabled person to carry a white cane or be guided or aided by an
assistance animal does not deprive the person of the rights and
privileges conferred by law on pedestrians crossing streets or
highways and does not constitute evidence of contributory
negligence.
(d) A person who violates this section commits a Class C
misdemeanor.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2428, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 278, § 5, eff. June 5,
1985; Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 8, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.008. DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION RELATING TO
PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES. (a) To ensure maximum public
awareness of the policies set forth in this chapter, the governor
may issue a proclamation each year taking suitable public notice of
October 15 as White Cane Safety Day. The proclamation must contain
appropriate comment about the significance of various devices used
by persons with disabilities to assist them in traveling, and must
call to the attention of the public the provisions of this chapter
and of other laws relating to the safety and well-being of this
state's citizens with disabilities.
(b) State agencies regularly mailing forms or information
to significant numbers of public facilities operating within the
state shall cooperate with state agencies responsible for the
rehabilitation of persons with disabilities by sending information
about this chapter to those to whom regular mailings are sent. The
information, which must be sent only on the request of state
agencies responsible for the rehabilitation of persons with
disabilities and not more than once each year, may be included in
regular mailings or sent separately. If sent separately, the cost
of mailing is borne by the state rehabilitation agency or agencies
requesting the mailing and, regardless of whether sent separately
or as part of a regular mailing, the cost of preparing information
about this chapter is borne by the state rehabilitation agency or
agencies requesting distribution of this information.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2428, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 9, eff. Sept.
1, 1997.
§ 121.009. CONSTRUCTION OF CHAPTER. The provisions of
this chapter must be construed in a manner compatible with other
state laws relating to persons with disabilities.
Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2428, ch. 842, art. 1, § 1, eff. Sept. 1,
1979. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 10, eff. Sept.
1, 1997.
§ 121.010. TESTING ADULTS WITH DISABILITIES. (a) A
test that evaluates an adult with a disability for a job position in
business, government, or industry, or a test to determine that
person's educational level, must measure individual abilities and
not specific disabilities.
(b) If an examiner knows that an adult examinee has a
disability, the examiner may use an alternate form of testing. The
alternate form of testing may assess the aptitude of the examinee by
using that person's primary learning mode.
(c) The examiner may use as an alternate form of testing any
procedure or adaption that will help ensure the best performance
possible by an adult with a disability, including oral or visual
administration of the test, oral or manual response to the test, the
use of readers, tape recorders, interpreters, large print, or
braille text, the removal of time constraints, and multiple testing
sessions.
(d) An examiner shall select and administer a test to an
examinee who has a disability that impairs sensory, manual, or
speaking skills so that the test accurately reflects the factor the
test is intended to measure and does not reflect the examinee's
impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills.
(e) An examiner may not use a test that has a
disproportionate, adverse effect on an adult with a disability or a
class of adults with disabilities unless:
(1) the test has been validated as a predictor of
success in the program or activity for which the adult with a
disability is applying; and
(2) alternate tests or alternative forms of testing
that have a less disproportionate, adverse effect do not exist or
are not available.
Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 2482, ch. 645, § 1, eff. Aug.
31, 1981. Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 11, eff.
Sept. 1, 1997.
§ 121.011. ACCESSIBILITY OF EXAMINATION OR COURSE
OFFERED BY PRIVATE ENTITY. (a) A private entity that offers an
examination or a course related to applications, certification,
credentialing, or licensing for secondary or postsecondary
education, a profession, or a trade shall:
(1) offer the examination or course in a place and
manner that is accessible to persons with disabilities or make
alternative accessible arrangements for persons with disabilities;
(2) offer the examination or course to persons with
disabilities:
(A) as often as the entity offers the examination
or course to persons without disabilities;
(B) at a location that is as convenient as the
location at which the entity offers the examination or course to
persons without disabilities; and
(C) at a time that is as appropriate as the time
when the entity offers the examination or course to persons without
disabilities; and
(3) make auxiliary test guides and other resources
available in alternative formats.
(b) A private entity that offers an examination or a course
described by Subsection (a) may require persons with disabilities
to provide reasonable documentation of their disabilities and
reasonable advance notice of any necessary modifications or aids.
The deadline for advance notice may not be earlier than the
application deadline for the examination or course. The entity may
not refuse a request for modifications or aids from a person with a
disability on the grounds that the person, because of the person's
disability, would not meet other requirements of the profession or
occupation for which the course or examination is given.
Added by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 649, § 12, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.
