Bills that passed in the 81st (2009) legislative session in Texas
(many thanks to www.TIFA.org for this)
Texas Criminal Justice Coalition
Sine Die 2009 June 1, 2009
Dear Friend,
As you know, Texas' 81st Legislative Session
has finally come to a close, and we have so much to be proud of! Thanks to the hard
work and bipartisan leadership of many key committee members - as well as the tireless
work of advocates, partners and the amazing TCJC team - we have seen the passage of
approximately 35 policies that will make our criminal and juvenile justice systems
more responsible, just, safe, and cost-effective.
Below is a list of bills that either are on their way to the Governor's desk or have
already been signed into law! We will be in touch after the veto period ends (June
21st) to let you know the final word on these bills, including appropriations.
Again, thank you so much for all of your hard
work as well as for supporting our efforts during the last few months, and keep your
fingers crossed that these next few weeks will bring only good things...
____________________________________________________________________
Policies that Protect Youth and Communities
by Improving Juvenile Justice
Policies that Rebuild Confidence in the Criminal Justice System & Ensure Innocent Individuals Are Not Sent to Prison
Policies that Save Money by Providing
Alternatives to Incarceration & Increase Public Safety
Policies that Strengthen Criminal Justice
Practices
Policies that Encourage Economic and
Workforce Development by Reducing Re-Entry Barriers
____________________________________________________________________
Policies that Protect Youth and Communities by Improving Juvenile Justice
HB 1232 [Menendez]: Relating to establishing
a local behavioral health intervention pilot project.
CSHB 1629 [Naishtat, Madden]: Relating to the
care and protection of foster children committed to or released under supervision by the
Texas Youth Commission. - Signed by the Governor!
HB 1630 [Naishtat]: Relating to the
eligibility of certain individuals for child health plan coverage or medical assistance on
placement, detention, or commitment in and release from certain facilities or other
settings.
HB 1688 [Castro]: Relating to the rules
governing a motion for new trial in juvenile cases.
CSHB 2386 [Castro]: Relating to the sealing
of juvenile records. - Signed by the Governor!
HB 3316 [McClendon, Madden, Hodge]: Relating
to venue for certain offenses committed at Texas Youth Commission facilities.
CSHB 4451 [McReynolds, Miller, S., Marquez]:
Relating to continuity of care services for youth with mental illness or mental
retardation who are discharged or paroled from the Texas Youth Commission.
SB 518 [Harris]: Relating to providing access
to certain information relating to the discretionary transfer of a child from
a juvenile court to a criminal court.
CSSB 839 [Hinojosa]: Relating to the
punishment for a capital felony committed by a juvenile whose case is transferred to
criminal court.
CSSB 1374 [West]: Relating to annual reports
by the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission on the operations and conditions of probation
services in this state.
__________________________________________________________________
Policies that Rebuild Confidence in the Criminal Justice System & Ensure Innocent Individuals Are Not Sent to Prison
CSHB 498 [McClendon, Thompson, Gallego,
Hodge, Pierson]: Relating to the creation of a commission to investigate and prevent
wrongful convictions. - Innocence amendments added to bill; Grits for Breakfast on HB 498
CSHB 1736 [Anchia, Davis, Y., Branch, Hodge,
Isett]: Relating to the compensation of persons wrongfully imprisoned. - Signed by the
Governor!
HB 2058 [Gallego, Miklos, Hodge, Lucio III,
Christian]: Relating to the standards for attorneys representing indigent defendants in
capital cases. - Signed by the Governor!
CSSB 1091 [Ellis, Duncan]: Relating to the
establishment of the capital writs committee and the office of capital writs.
CSSB 1681 [Hinojosa]: Relating
to requiring the corroboration of certain testimony to support a criminal
conviction.
__________________________________________________________________
Policies that Save Money by Providing Alternatives to Incarceration & Increase Public
Safety
HB 93 [Hodge, Guillen]: Relating to the
restoration of good conduct time forfeited during a term of imprisonment.
CSHB 666 [Gutierrez, Moody, Hodge,
Leibowitz]: Relating to certain court costs used to fund drug court programs.
CSSB 112 [Ellis]: Relating to deferred
prosecution programs for certain military service members and veterans. - Amended to SB
1940
SB 633 [Seliger]: Relating to the number of
counties or municipalities necessary to establish a regional drug court program.
CSSB 1206 [Hinojosa]: Relating to the release
from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice of certain inmates who complete a
rehabilitation program.
SB 1557 [Duncan]: Relating to the early
identification of criminal defendants who are or may be persons with mental illness or
mental retardation.
__________________________________________________________________
Policies that Strengthen Criminal Justice Practices
HB 2139 [McClendon, Alonzo, Gutierrez,
Farias]: Relating to the establishment, operation, and funding of pretrial victim-offender
mediation programs.
HB 3649 [Marquez, Hodge, Madden]: Relating
to a policy regarding the receipt of books by mail by an inmate in the Texas
Department of Criminal Justice.
HB 3653 [Marquez, Olivo, King, S., Madden,
Ortiz, Jr.]: Relating to the use of restraints to control the movement of pregnant
women confined in certain correctional facilities in this state.
HB 3654 [Marquez, Olivo, King, S., Ortiz,
Jr.]: Relating to certain duties of and reports submitted to the Commission on Jail
Standards regarding county jail inmates who are pregnant.
CSSB 1120 [West]: Relating to reports on
racial profiling in connection with motor vehicle stops; providing a penalty. - Amended to
HB 3389
___________________________________________________________________
Policies that Encourage Economic and Workforce Development by Reducing Re-Entry
Barriers
HB 963 [Guillen]: Relating to a criminal
history evaluation letter determining occupational license eligibility. - SB 809 amended
to bill
CSHB 1711 [Turner, S., Guillen,
Martinez, A., Veasey, Marquez]: Relating to requiring the Texas Department of
Criminal Justice to establish a comprehensive reentry and reintegration plan for offenders
released or discharged from a correctional facility.
CSHB 2161 [Turner, S., Marquez]:
Relating to the issuance of a personal identification certificate to present or
former inmates of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
HB 2808 [Thompson]: Relating to the power of
a licensing authority to revoke, suspend, or deny a license on the basis of certain
criminal proceedings.
CSHB 3226 [Madden, Edwards, McReynolds,
Christian]: Relating to the payment of temporary housing costs for certain inmates who are
eligible for parole.
HB 3481 [Veasey, Hodge]: Relating to the
right to an expunction of records and files relating to a person's arrest.
SB 223 [West]: Relating to allowing a person
who successfully completes a term of deferred adjudication community supervision to be
eligible for a pardon.
SB 809 [Whitmire]: Relating to the issuance
of an occupational license to certain applicants with criminal convictions. - Amended to
HB 963
CSSB 1948 [Hinojosa]: Relating to the supervised reentry into the community of certain inmates nearing their date of discharge from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Return to www.sunstar-solutions.com