(a) The Texas Education Agency (TEA) shall be responsible
for providing the driver education certificate (Form DE-964E) to public
schools, education service centers (ESCs), and colleges or universities
exempt from the Texas Driver and Traffic Safety Education Act. The
TEA shall also provide the DE-964E certificate to the Texas Department
of Public Safety (DPS) for driver education programs approved by DPS.
On this form, the driver education instructor and the superintendent,
college or university chief school official, ESC director, DPS director,
or their designee must certify that the driver education course was
conducted according to TEA and DPS education standards for an approved
course in driver education for Texas schools.
  (1) For schools exempt from the Texas Driver and Traffic
Safety Education Act and programs approved by DPS, the DE-964E certificate
shall consist of five parts to be designated as follows: Texas Department
of Public Safety Copies (Instruction Permit and Driver's License),
Insurance Copy, Texas Education Agency Copy, and School Copy. The
DE-964E certificate is used to certify completion of an approved driver
education course and is a government record.
  (2) The TEA shall charge a fee of $1.00 for each DE-964E
certificate provided.
  (3) The DE-964E certificates shall be issued to the
superintendent, college or university chief school official, ESC director,
or individuals designated by the superintendent, college or university
chief school official, or ESC director to be responsible for managing
the certificates for the school. This does not remove the superintendent,
college or university chief school official, or ESC director from
obligations pursuant to this subchapter to oversee the program. The
DPS shall be responsible for the DE-964E certificates provided to
DPS-approved driver education programs.
  (4) Unused DE-964Es shall not be transferred to another
school without written approval by TEA.
  (5) The DE-964E document is a government record as
defined under Texas Penal Code, §37.01(2). Any misrepresentation
by the applicant or person issuing the form as to the prerequisite
set forth may result in suspension or revocation of instructor credentials
or program approval and/or criminal prosecution.
  (6) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee may request to receive
serially numbered DE-964E certificates for exempt schools and programs
approved by DPS by submitting a completed order on the form provided
by the commissioner of education stating the number of certificates
to be purchased and including payment of all appropriate fees. TEA
will accept purchase requisitions from school districts.
  (7) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee shall be responsible
for accounting for each DE-964E certificate he or she has been issued.
All DE-964E certificates and records of certificates shall be maintained
in an orderly fashion.
  (8) The DPS shall accept only the original signature
of a certified driver education teacher. The signature of the chief
school official or ESC director may be written, stamped, or omitted.
  (9) All DE-964E certificates and records of certificates
must be provided to TEA or DPS upon request. The superintendent, college
or university chief school official, ESC director, or their designee
shall maintain the school copies of the certificates and submit the
TEA copies of all issued certificates to TEA no later than February
15, June 15, and September 15 of each year. The chief school official,
ESC or DPS director, or their designee shall return unissued DE-964E
certificates to TEA within 30 days from the date the school discontinues
the driver education program, unless otherwise notified.
  (10) Each superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee shall ensure that
the policies concerning DE-964E certificates are followed by all individuals
who have responsibility for the certificates.
  (11) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee shall maintain effective
protective measures to ensure that unissued DE-964E certificates and
records of certificates are secure.
  (12) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee shall report any
incident of unaccounted DE-964E certificates to TEA immediately upon
discovering the incident. If such an incident occurs, the superintendent,
college or university chief school official, ESC director, or their
designee shall conduct an investigation to determine the circumstances
of the unaccounted certificates. A report of the findings of the investigation,
including measures taken to prevent the incident from recurring, shall
be submitted to TEA within 30 days of the discovery.
  (13) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, or ESC director must insure that employees complete,
issue, or validate a DE-964E only to a person who has successfully
completed the entire portion of the course for which the DE-964E is
being used. The DPS must insure that the participants of the home
taught driver education programs complete, issue, or validate a DE-964E
only to a person who has successfully completed the entire portion
of the course for which the DE-964E is being used. Issuance of the
DE-964E is the assurance that the student has successfully achieved
mastery of the course objectives.
  (14) The right to receive DE-964E certificates may
be immediately suspended for a period determined by TEA if:
    (A) a TEA investigation is in progress and TEA has
reasonable cause to believe the certificates have been misused or
abused or that adequate security was not provided; or
    (B) the superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee fails to provide
information on records requested by TEA or DPS within the allotted
time.
  (15) The DPS copy of a DE-964E certificate must contain
the original signature of the certified instructor. The name of the
superintendent, college or university chief school official, ESC director,
or their designee may be written, stamped, typed, or omitted.
  (16) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee may issue a duplicate
DE-964E certificate to a student who completed a course under the
responsibility of the superintendent, college or university chief
school official, ESC director, or their designee. The duplicate shall
indicate the control number of the original DE-964E certificate.
(b) An authorized DPS employee shall accept a DE-964E
certificate when a certified driver education instructor certifies
by signing the DE-964E that the driver education program was completed
according to this subchapter and that the student has achieved the
competencies specified in this subchapter. The school official shall
make a copy of the teacher's certificate for driver education available
to authorized TEA or DPS representatives when requested.
(c) The superintendent, college or university chief
school official, or ESC director may designate one certified driver
education teacher to sign the DE-964E certificates for that school.
In a concurrent program, only one teacher shall be required to sign
a DE-964E certificate, but each teacher giving instruction in the
concurrent program must be a fully certified driver education teacher
or state-approved teaching assistant and must initial for each lesson
they instruct. In each case, the teacher signing the DE-964E certificate
must compile all records and verify the student's successful completion.

(d) TEA shall accept any part of the driver education
instruction received by a student in another state; however, the student
must complete all of the course requirements for a Texas driver education
program. Driver education instruction completed in another state must
be certified in writing by the chief official or course instructor
of the school where the instruction was given and include the hours
and minutes of instruction and a complete description of each lesson
provided. The certification document must be attached to the student's
individual record at the Texas school and be maintained with the record
for seven years.
(e) Students who are licensed in another state and
have completed that state's driver education program should contact
the DPS for information on the licensing reciprocal agreement between
that state and Texas.
(f) When it is impossible or inconvenient for the certified
driver education instructor to sign the DE-964E (due to transfer,
illness, or death, etc.), the superintendent, college or university
chief school official, ESC director, or their designee may, by completing
the driver education affidavit form on the reverse side of the DE-964E
certificate, certify that official records show a particular student
completed an approved driver education course as indicated on the
DE-964E.
(g) All records of instruction shall be included as
part of the student's final history when it is necessary to compile
multiple records to verify that a student successfully completed a
driver education course.
(h) A student may receive credit for course hours completed
if there was a violation of this subchapter or before a teacher's
endorsement was suspended provided the violation or suspension was
not for an infraction that would conclusively establish the course
as inadequate.


Source Note: The provisions of this §84.701 adopted to be effective January 1, 2000, 24 TexReg 11325; amended to be effective September 1, 2013, 38 TexReg 5483; transferred effective September 1, 2015, as published in the Texas Register September 18, 2015, 40 TexReg 6357