37 TAC § 421.11. Requirement To Be Certified Within One Year

(a) Except for subsection (c) and (d) of this section, fire protection personnel or part-time fire protection employees of a fire department who are appointed duties identified as fire protection personnel duties must be certified by the commission in the discipline(s) to which they are assigned within one year of their appointment to the duties or within two years of successfully passing the applicable commission examination, whichever is less. The commission shall not approve an initial certification for a regulated discipline until it has reviewed and approved a person's fingerprint-based criminal history record. An individual who accepts appointment(s) in violation of this section shall be removed from the appointment(s) and will be subject to administrative penalties. A department or local government that appoints an individual in violation of this section will also be subject to administrative penalties.

(b) An individual who has been removed from appointment to duties identified as fire protection personnel duties for violation of this section must petition the commission in writing for permission to be reappointed to the duties from which they were removed. The petition will be considered only if the individual has obtained all appropriate certification(s) applicable to the duties to which the individual seeks reappointment.

(c) A military spouse may be appointed to fire protection personnel duties with a regulated fire department without being required to obtain the applicable certification, provided the military spouse submits the following to the commission prior to appointment and has received confirmation of approval from the commission:

(1) notification to the commission of intent to perform regulated fire protection duties;

(2) documentation of equivalent certification from another jurisdiction;

(3) a fingerprint-based criminal history record using the commission approved system;

(4) proof of residency in Texas; and

(5) a copy of the individual's military identification card.

(d) A military spouse appointed to fire protection duties under this section may engage in those duties only for the period in which the military service member to whom the spouse is married is stationed at a military installation in Texas, but not to exceed three years from the date the military spouse receives approval from the commission to engage in those duties.