Texas access control installers and the DPS license

The Texas Occupations Code, in Chapter 1702, defines an electronic access control device. The term covers an electronic or computer-based device, a telephone entry system among them, that grants entry to a controlled area of a business. Security staff must not monitor it, and it must not send a signal for police or emergency services to answer.

You need an electronic access control device company license if your business installs or maintains those devices. Without a license, the firm may not operate as that type of company nor provide the service. Alarm installation is not permitted under that license; a separate alarm license is required for it.

It excludes two things. The first is a lock or deadbolt that relies only on mechanics. The second is a commercial gate or door operator and the card reader, keypad or remote that comes with it. It counts as excluded only if all it does is activate a gate or door, with no connection to an alarm system.

When doors report to an alarm, the job shifts into alarm-regulated work. Electronic access control devices can also be sold, installed and serviced by an alarm systems company. So a licensed alarm company also qualifies as a choice for card readers.

A general liability insurance certificate must be on file with DPS for each licensed company, and it has to stay up to date. Anyone performing regulated work must carry an individual license and be employed by a licensed company. Among the individual license types DPS lists are Electronic Access Control Device Installer, Alarm Installer and Locksmith.

• Insurance must cover bodily injury and property damage for $100,000 or more per occurrence.
• Coverage for personal injury must reach $50,000 per occurrence.
• A $200,000 aggregate applies to the total of all occurrences.
• An exam covering state law and commission rules is required of every company applicant for their license class.

DPS manages licensing via TOPS, the Texas Online Private Security portal. You can search for companies and people with its public look-up tool. Begin with the company name, and afterward request the individual installer’s license too.

Chapter 1702 does not cover fire alarm work; that requires a separate license. The law speaks of persons "licensed to install and service fire alarms" through the Insurance Code. If your maglocks release on a fire alarm signal, find out who carries that fire alarm license.

Under Business and Commerce Code § 503.001, the data that fingerprint and face readers capture counts as a biometric identifier. Before a business captures an identifier for a commercial reason, it must tell the person and receive their consent. If an employer gathers it for security, the law assumes that purpose ends with the employment. The identifier has to be destroyed within a year after that. Any single violation may result in a civil penalty no larger than $25,000.