Nonprofit compliance in Texas

Texas does not have a single statewide mandate requiring background checks for all nonprofit volunteers, but sector-specific laws impose clear requirements in schools, childcare, and state-funded programs. Texas Education Code § 22.0835 authorizes (and effectively requires) school districts to check criminal history on volunteers with student contact. The 88th Legislature's HB 4123 (2023) resolved a conflict between Texas and federal law, restoring school districts' authority to access DPS criminal history records for volunteer screening.

• Texas Education Code § 22.0835 — Volunteer Criminal History Records (Tex. Educ. Code § 22.0835) — Requires school districts, open-enrollment charter schools, and shared services arrangements to obtain criminal history record information from DPS (and other law enforcement agencies) for volunteers with direct contact with students. Exempts parents/grandparents of enrolled students, individuals accompanied by staff, and one-time event volunteers.
• HB 4123 (88th Legislature, 2023) — DPS Access Restoration (Tex. Educ. Code § 22.0835(f) as amended (2023)) — Resolved a conflict between Texas and federal law by explicitly authorizing school districts to obtain volunteer criminal history information from DPS. Prior to HB 4123, a gap in the statutory framework created uncertainty about the legality of accessing DPS records for volunteer checks.
• Texas Human Resources Code § 42 — Childcare Licensing and Background Checks (Tex. Hum. Res. Code § 42.056) — Requires criminal history background checks for all childcare facility personnel and volunteers with regular child contact. Administered by the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) through its childcare licensing division.
• Texas HHS Grantee Background Check Policy (effective Sept. 1, 2024) (HHS Procurement Contract Requirements (Sept. 1, 2024)) — As of September 1, 2024, grantees receiving state HHS funding are responsible for independently managing background check requirements. Requires a name-based criminal history check and central registry check on all new hires, volunteers, and persons working under the grantee with vulnerable populations.
• Who it reaches: School volunteers with direct contact with students (per district policy under § 22.0835); Childcare facility volunteers with regular child contact (HHSC licensed facilities); Volunteers at state-funded HHS grantee organizations serving vulnerable populations; Volunteers in juvenile justice programs and state-licensed youth residential facilities.
• Check types in use: Name-based DPS criminal history check (for schools and grantees); Fingerprint-based DPS check (for childcare licensing and some HHS programs); FBI national criminal history check (for certain licensed facilities); Texas Sex Offender Registry check (DPS public database); DFPS Central Registry check (child abuse/neglect history) for childcare and child-serving programs.
• Administered by: Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) for criminal history; Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) for childcare licensing; Texas Education Agency (TEA) oversight of school volunteer policies; DFPS for child abuse registry.
• Typical processing: DPS name-based: 1–3 business days online; fingerprint-based: 5–10 business days.

Yes. Texas names certain professionals AND requires any person to report, regardless of profession — so your volunteers are covered by the universal provision whatever role they hold. Confirm Texas's current statute before writing your policy — these are amended often.

• In every state, territory and the District of Columbia, ANY person is permitted to report suspected abuse even when not required to. A volunteer who is not a mandated reporter can still call, and should.
• The safest operating posture, whatever the statute says, is to train every volunteer on what to report and to whom — a policy that only trains "mandated" staff leaves the person most likely to witness something untrained.
• Reporting duties are personal. A volunteer who is a mandated reporter cannot discharge the duty by telling a supervisor and stopping there in most states.
• Screening and reporting are different obligations. Clearing a background check does not satisfy a reporting duty, and no reporting policy substitutes for screening.

Texas is one of the 40 states that generally require a charitable organization to register before soliciting contributions from its residents — typically before the first ask, not after the first gift, and usually with an annual renewal.

• Registration is generally required before soliciting, including by mail, phone, email, or a public donate page.
• Soliciting residents of other states can trigger registration in those states regardless of where you are based — an online donate button reaches all fifty.
• Exemptions exist in most registering states (small organizations, religious organizations, membership appeals) but they are specific and usually must be claimed rather than assumed.
• Confirm current requirements with your state charity office before relying on this — thresholds and exemptions are amended frequently.

These apply regardless of which state you operate in, and they are the ones most commonly missed by small organizations that assume state registration is the whole picture.

• Annual Form 990, 990-EZ, or 990-N. Three consecutive years of non-filing revokes exempt status automatically — this is the single most common way small nonprofits lose their status.
• If you run background checks on volunteers, the Fair Credit Reporting Act applies to you as a user of consumer reports: a standalone written disclosure, separate written authorization, and the pre-adverse and adverse action sequence before acting on a result.
• Public disclosure: your exemption application and recent 990s must be made available on request.
• Employment obligations attach to paid staff regardless of exempt status — payroll tax, worker classification, and wage and hour law all apply.