Bill Text: TX HB1446 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relating to reimbursement of certain medical costs for victims of certain sex offenses, compensation to victims of stalking for relocation and housing rental expenses, and the creation of a governor's program for victims of child sex trafficking.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-3)
Status: (Passed) 2015-06-18 - Effective on 9/1/15 [HB1446 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HB1446-Enrolled.html
H.B. No. 1446 |
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relating to reimbursement of certain medical costs for victims of | ||
certain sex offenses, compensation to victims of stalking for | ||
relocation and housing rental expenses, and the creation of a | ||
governor's program for victims of child sex trafficking. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. The heading to Article 56.06, Code of Criminal | ||
Procedure, is amended to read as follows: | ||
Art. 56.06. FORENSIC MEDICAL EXAMINATION FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT | ||
VICTIM WHO HAS REPORTED ASSAULT; COSTS. | ||
SECTION 2. Article 56.06, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) and adding | ||
Subsection (f) to read as follows: | ||
(a) If a sexual assault is reported to a law enforcement | ||
agency within 96 hours of the assault, the law enforcement agency, | ||
with the consent of the victim, a person authorized to act on behalf | ||
of the victim, or an employee of the Department of Family and | ||
Protective Services, shall request a forensic medical examination | ||
of the victim of the alleged assault for use in the investigation or | ||
prosecution of the offense. A law enforcement agency may decline to | ||
request a forensic medical examination under this subsection only | ||
if the person reporting the sexual assault has made one or more | ||
false reports of sexual assault to any law enforcement agency and if | ||
there is no other evidence to corroborate the current allegations | ||
of sexual assault. | ||
(b) If a sexual assault is not reported within the period | ||
described by Subsection (a), on receiving the consent described by | ||
that subsection the law enforcement agency may request a forensic | ||
medical examination of a victim of an alleged sexual assault as | ||
considered appropriate by the agency. | ||
(c) A law enforcement agency that requests a forensic | ||
medical examination of a victim of an alleged sexual assault for use | ||
in the investigation or prosecution of the offense shall pay all | ||
costs of the examination. On application to the attorney general, | ||
the law enforcement agency is entitled to be reimbursed for the | ||
reasonable costs of that examination if the examination was | ||
performed by a physician or by a sexual assault examiner or sexual | ||
assault nurse examiner, as defined by Section 420.003, Government | ||
Code. | ||
(d) A law enforcement agency or prosecuting attorney's | ||
office may pay all costs related to the testimony of a licensed | ||
health care professional in a criminal proceeding regarding the | ||
results of the forensic medical examination or manner in which it | ||
was performed. | ||
(f) The attorney general may make a payment to or on behalf | ||
of an individual for the reasonable costs incurred for medical care | ||
provided in accordance with Section 323.004, Health and Safety | ||
Code. | ||
SECTION 3. Article 56.065, Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
amended by adding Subsection (k) to read as follows: | ||
(k) The attorney general may make a payment to or on behalf | ||
of an individual for the reasonable costs incurred for medical care | ||
provided in accordance with Section 323.004, Health and Safety | ||
Code. | ||
SECTION 4 | ||
. Article 56.32(a)(9), Code of Criminal Procedure, | ||
is amended to read as follows: | ||
(9) "Pecuniary loss" means the amount of expense | ||
reasonably and necessarily incurred as a result of personal injury | ||
or death for: | ||
(A) medical, hospital, nursing, or psychiatric | ||
care or counseling, or physical therapy; | ||
(B) actual loss of past earnings and anticipated | ||
loss of future earnings and necessary travel expenses because of: | ||
(i) a disability resulting from the | ||
personal injury; | ||
(ii) the receipt of medically indicated | ||
services related to the disability resulting from the personal | ||
injury; or | ||
(iii) participation in or attendance at | ||
investigative, prosecutorial, or judicial processes related to the | ||
criminally injurious conduct and participation in or attendance at | ||
any postconviction or postadjudication proceeding relating to | ||
criminally injurious conduct; | ||
(C) care of a child or dependent; | ||
(D) funeral and burial expenses, including, for | ||
an immediate family member or household member of the victim, the | ||
necessary expenses of traveling to and attending the funeral; | ||
(E) loss of support to a dependent, consistent | ||
with Article 56.41(b)(5); | ||
(F) reasonable and necessary costs of cleaning | ||
the crime scene; | ||
(G) reasonable replacement costs for clothing, | ||
bedding, or property of the victim seized as evidence or rendered | ||
unusable as a result of the criminal investigation; | ||
(H) reasonable and necessary costs for | ||
relocation and housing rental assistance payments [ |
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by Article 56.42(d)[ |
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(I) for an immediate family member or household | ||
member of a deceased victim, bereavement leave of not more than 10 | ||
work days; and | ||
(J) reasonable and necessary costs of traveling | ||
to and from a place of execution for the purpose of witnessing the | ||
execution, including one night's lodging near the place at which | ||
the execution is conducted. | ||
SECTION 5. Article 56.42(d), Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(d) A victim who is a victim of stalking, family violence, | ||
or [ |
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assault who is assaulted in the victim's place of residence, may | ||
receive a onetime-only assistance payment in an amount not to | ||
exceed: | ||
(1) $2,000 to be used for relocation expenses, | ||
including expenses for rental deposit, utility connections, | ||
expenses relating to the moving of belongings, motor vehicle | ||
mileage expenses, and for out-of-state moves, transportation, | ||
lodging, and meals; and | ||
(2) $1,800 to be used for housing rental expenses. | ||
SECTION 6. Article 56.54(k), Code of Criminal Procedure, is | ||
amended to read as follows: | ||
(k) The attorney general may use the compensation to victims | ||
of crime fund to: | ||
(1) reimburse a law enforcement agency for the | ||
reasonable costs of a forensic medical examination that are | ||
incurred by the agency under Article 56.06 or 56.065; and | ||
(2) make a payment to or on behalf of an individual for | ||
the reasonable costs incurred for medical care provided under | ||
Article 56.06 or 56.065 in accordance with Section 323.004, Health | ||
and Safety Code. | ||
SECTION 7. Chapter 772, Government Code, is amended by | ||
adding Section 772.0063 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 772.0063. GOVERNOR'S PROGRAM FOR VICTIMS OF CHILD SEX | ||
TRAFFICKING. (a) The governor shall establish and implement a | ||
program to provide comprehensive, individualized services to | ||
address the rehabilitation and treatment needs of child victims of | ||
an offense under Section 20A.02(a)(7) or (8), Penal Code. | ||
(b) The governor shall appoint a director of the program to | ||
serve at the pleasure of the governor. | ||
(c) The director of the program shall coordinate with state | ||
and local law enforcement agencies, state agencies, and service | ||
providers to identify victims of child sex trafficking who are | ||
eligible to receive services under the program. | ||
(d) For each victim of child sex trafficking identified by | ||
the director, the program shall immediately facilitate the | ||
assignment of a caseworker to the victim to coordinate with local | ||
service providers to create a customized package of services to fit | ||
the victim's immediate and long-term rehabilitation and treatment | ||
needs. Services provided under the program must address all | ||
aspects of the medical, psychiatric, psychological, safety, and | ||
housing needs of victims. | ||
SECTION 8. The change in law made by this Act relating to | ||
reimbursement of certain medical costs applies only to payments | ||
made for medical care provided on or after the effective date of | ||
this Act. Payments made for medical care provided before the | ||
effective date of this Act are governed by the law in effect on the | ||
date the care was provided, and the former law is continued in | ||
effect for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 9. The change in law made by this Act relating to | ||
compensation for relocation and housing rental expenses applies | ||
only to a victim of a criminal offense committed or a violation that | ||
occurs on or after the effective date of this Act. The victim of a | ||
criminal offense committed or a violation that occurs before the | ||
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the | ||
date the offense was committed or the violation occurred, and the | ||
former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of | ||
this section, a criminal offense was committed or a violation | ||
occurred before the effective date of this Act if any element of the | ||
offense or violation occurred before that date. | ||
SECTION 10. The governor shall establish the governor's | ||
program for victims of child sex trafficking and appoint a director | ||
of the program, as required by Section 772.0063, Government Code, | ||
as added by this Act, as soon as practicable and not later than | ||
December 1, 2016. | ||
SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. | ||
______________________________ | ______________________________ | |
President of the Senate | Speaker of the House | |
I certify that H.B. No. 1446 was passed by the House on May | ||
12, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, 2 present, not | ||
voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. | ||
No. 1446 on May 29, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 0, | ||
2 present, not voting. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||
I certify that H.B. No. 1446 was passed by the Senate, with | ||
amendments, on May 26, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays | ||
0. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Secretary of the Senate | ||
APPROVED: __________________ | ||
Date | ||
__________________ | ||
Governor |