SB2587

Identification and confidentiality. The act removes the express Social Security number requirement from the criminal-history clearinghouse provision and removes that number from two other specified lists of identifiers. Other identifying information, photographs and fingerprint provisions remain; this is not a statewide ban on collecting Social Security numbers. Qualified-entity access under the National Child Protection Act expressly concerns the entity’s employees and contractors and remains subject to federal restrictions. The consumer credit commissioner may disclose an FBI record to its subject, without a general public-release authorization. Final law, sections 1–4 and 16; Clearinghouse safeguards; Federal background-check framework; Federal qualified-entity definition.

Licensing agencies. The law specifies categories for Insurance Department checks, including listed license holders, people associated with covered entities, insurer officers and directors, and acquisition/control applicants. It replaces broad chapter references with named environmental credentials covering water, wastewater, sewage, irrigation, waste facilities and storage tanks; specifies manufactured-housing manufacturer, retailer, broker, installer and salesperson licenses; and details fire-extinguisher, alarm, sprinkler and pyrotechnic credentials. It substitutes the Behavioral Health Executive Council for the psychologists’ board in the general agency list. These are record-access provisions, not new licenses created by this act. Final law, sections 5 and 9–12.

Agency staff and regulated businesses. HHSC’s sensitive-information provision is no longer restricted to applicants in three named divisions, while retaining the fingerprinting and sensitive-information criteria. Medical Board employment applicants and employees become covered, and specified state/local records may be disclosed in State Office of Administrative Hearings proceedings—not a general release of FBI records. Motor Vehicles Department checks expressly cover owners, trust beneficiaries and the other listed leadership roles; designated employee representatives retain an act-or-omission connection to licensing discipline. Final law, sections 6, 13–14; Previous HHSC provision; Previous Medical Board provision; Previous motor-vehicle provision.

Public-benefit providers. The text covers health-care providers and provider applicants under HHSC-administered public-benefit programs, not just Medicaid, and spells out covered ownership interests, secured obligations, corporate officers/directors, partners and managing employees. It defines the key terms rather than relying on the former federal cross-references. This overlaps HB4643, which already put the same provider language into effect June 20, 2025; it is not a second, wholly new expansion starting in September. Nor does this authorize checks on every person applying for benefits. Final law, sections 7–8; HB4643 enacted text; Provider provision before September 1.

Pharmacy. The act enumerates pharmacist-intern, pharmacist and technician credentials, eligibility determinations and board employment. It authorizes fingerprints from those listed people and separately describes checks involving specified pharmacy owners, controllers and managers who meet the Class A–E license condition. Board employees or employment applicants who refuse requested fingerprints, a true complete name or other necessary identifying information may be dismissed or denied hiring for good cause. Covered renewal applicants who have never submitted a complete fingerprint set must do so with renewal; failure may lead to suspension or refusal to renew. Final law, section 15; Previous pharmacy provision.

Guardianships. The law focuses certain checks on people with care and custody of the ward or estate, replacing the broader “contact with” wording, and ties clerks’ work to application information. Applications gain phone-number and birth-date information, where applicable, for those caregivers. Attorney or certified guardians must identify their designees; the law directs checks of specified noncertified designees and requires notice of designation or contact-information changes within 30 days. Clerks must obtain records when a change notice identifies a person taking care and custody. Related court-use and FBI-check provisions are updated, while statutory exceptions and confidentiality limits remain. Final law, sections 17–23; Clerk checks and exceptions; Existing-check exception; Fingerprint/name-check framework.

Counselor licenses and amendments. The act renames the professional counselor “temporary” license an “associate” license and adds examination requirements alongside academics and supervised practice; the council retains rulemaking discretion and a required time limit. The Senate substitute added identifier, HHSC, Medical Board and motor-vehicle changes, revised the licensing lists, and dropped proposed manufactured-housing definition changes. The House adopted Guillen’s detailed fire-credential list and Hayes’s guardianship package; both survived Senate concurrence. The act also prevails over conflicting nonsubstantive code-correction acts from the same session. Final law, sections 24–26; Previous counselor provision; Introduced bill; Senate substitute; Guillen amendment; Hayes amendment; Adoption record; All versions.

Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.

Agencies and courts gain clearer or broader screening authority in the listed settings, potentially helping protect clients and wards. Applicants, workers, guardians and licensing staff may face additional fingerprinting, information-submission and record-handling work. Privacy restrictions still matter: authorized access is not permission to publish a person’s full record. This briefing verifies the statutory changes, not particular licensing decisions, prevented harm or agency compliance. Final law.

The four posted fiscal notes anticipate no significant state or local fiscal impact and assume implementation costs can be absorbed. The substitute and latest notes say fingerprint fees could increase state revenue, but the amount is unknown. That is not a finding that applicants incur no expense, and the act does not set a new statewide fingerprint-fee amount. Latest fiscal note; Introduced note; Substitute note; House-passed note.