Bill Text: TX HB1507 | 2015-2016 | 84th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to a report to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department concerning restorative justice programs for juvenile offenders in certain counties.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-03-09 - Referred to Juvenile Justice & Family Issues [HB1507 Detail]
Download: Texas-2015-HB1507-Introduced.html
| 84R7570 MK-D | ||
| By: Farias | H.B. No. 1507 | |
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| relating to a report to the Texas Juvenile Justice Department | ||
| concerning restorative justice programs for juvenile offenders in | ||
| certain counties. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. DEFINITIONS. In this Act: | ||
| (1) "Department" means the Texas Juvenile Justice | ||
| Department. | ||
| (2) "Local department" means a local juvenile | ||
| probation department. | ||
| (3) "Program" means a restorative justice program | ||
| created for juvenile offenders. | ||
| (4) "Restorative justice" means an approach to justice | ||
| that emphasizes the importance of an offender's reparation of harm | ||
| caused to a victim by the offender's conduct that violates a penal | ||
| law. The term includes victim-offender mediation. | ||
| SECTION 2. APPLICABILITY. This Act applies only to a local | ||
| department located in a county: | ||
| (1) with a population of more than 1.5 million; and | ||
| (2) in which more than 75 percent of the population | ||
| resides in a single municipality. | ||
| SECTION 3. REPORT. Not later than December 1, 2016, a local | ||
| department shall submit a report to the department regarding the | ||
| program. The report must include: | ||
| (1) a comprehensive analysis of the effectiveness of | ||
| the program; | ||
| (2) the local department's findings and | ||
| recommendations regarding continuation or expansion of the | ||
| program; | ||
| (3) whether the local department developed an action | ||
| plan and if the action plan was followed; | ||
| (4) the extent to which restorative justice is offered | ||
| by the local department, including the specific programs used in | ||
| restorative justice cases; | ||
| (5) what methods are used to track data, including | ||
| compliance with data privacy laws; | ||
| (6) the number of offenders, victims, and community | ||
| members participating in the program; | ||
| (7) information regarding the types of offenses, | ||
| demographics, and relationships between the victims and offenders; | ||
| (8) whether monthly audits are conducted and the | ||
| results of the audits; | ||
| (9) whether the program is equipped to expand; | ||
| (10) identification of potential program barriers; | ||
| (11) information regarding the criminal history of | ||
| offenders; | ||
| (12) information regarding the background, | ||
| experience, and eligibility of mediators; | ||
| (13) whether the program was offered pre-adjudication | ||
| or post-adjudication; | ||
| (14) victim and offender satisfaction rates regarding | ||
| the program; | ||
| (15) the overall rate of restitution as a result of the | ||
| program; and | ||
| (16) the outcome measures used to determine the | ||
| effectiveness of the program. | ||
| SECTION 4. EXPIRATION. This Act expires September 2, 2017. | ||
| SECTION 5. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect September | ||
| 1, 2015. | ||
