Bill Text: TX HB2945 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Relating to the promotion of efficiencies in and the administration of certain district court and county services and functions.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-04-27 - Committee report sent to Calendars [HB2945 Detail]

Download: Texas-2011-HB2945-Comm_Sub.html

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82R23975 TJB-F
By: Coleman H.B. No. 2945
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2945:
By: Marquez C.S.H.B. No. 2945

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the promotion of efficiencies in and the administration
of certain district court and county services and functions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 144.041, Agriculture Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (h) to read as follows:
(h) A county clerk may accept electronic filing or
rerecording of an earmark, brand, tattoo, electronic device, or
other type of mark for which a recording is required under this
chapter or other law.
SECTION 2. Chapter 2, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Article 2.31 to read as follows:
Art. 2.31. COUNTY JAILERS. A jailer licensed under Chapter
1701, Occupations Code, may execute lawful process issued to the
jailer by any magistrate or court on a person confined in the jail
at which the jailer is employed to the same extent that a peace
officer is authorized to execute process under Article 2.13(b)(2),
including:
(1) a warrant under Chapter 15, 17, or 18;
(2) a capias under Chapter 17 or 23;
(3) a subpoena under Chapter 20 or 24; or
(4) an attachment under Chapter 20 or 24.
SECTION 3. Article 20.011(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(a) Only the following persons may be present in a grand
jury room while the grand jury is conducting proceedings:
(1) grand jurors;
(2) bailiffs;
(3) the attorney representing the state;
(4) witnesses while being examined or when necessary
to assist the attorney representing the state in examining other
witnesses or presenting evidence to the grand jury;
(5) interpreters, if necessary; [and]
(6) a stenographer or person operating an electronic
recording device, as provided by Article 20.012; and
(7) a person operating a video teleconferencing system
for use under Article 20.151.
SECTION 4. Article 20.02(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) A grand juror, bailiff, interpreter, stenographer or
person operating an electronic recording device, [or] person
preparing a typewritten transcription of a stenographic or
electronic recording, or person operating a video teleconferencing
system for use under Article 20.151 who discloses anything
transpiring before the grand jury, regardless of whether the thing
transpiring is recorded, in the course of the official duties of the
grand jury, is [shall be] liable to a fine as for contempt of the
court, not exceeding $500 [five hundred dollars], imprisonment not
exceeding 30 [thirty] days, or both the [such] fine and
imprisonment.
SECTION 5. Chapter 20, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Article 20.151 to read as follows:
Art. 20.151. CERTAIN TESTIMONY BY VIDEO TELECONFERENCING.
(a) With the consent of the foreman of the grand jury and the
attorney representing the state, a peace officer summoned to
testify before the grand jury may testify through the use of a
closed circuit video teleconferencing system that provides an
encrypted, simultaneous, compressed full motion video and
interactive communication of image and sound between the peace
officer, the attorney representing the state, and the grand jury.
(b) In addition to being administered the oath described by
Article 20.16(a), before being interrogated, a peace officer
testifying through the use of a closed circuit video
teleconferencing system under this article shall affirm that:
(1) no person other than a person in the grand jury
room is capable of hearing the peace officer's testimony; and
(2) the peace officer's testimony is not being
recorded or otherwise preserved by any person at the location from
which the peace officer is testifying.
(c) Testimony received from a peace officer under this
article shall be recorded and preserved.
SECTION 6. Article 27.18, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (c-1) and
(c-2) to read as follows:
(c) A recording of the communication shall be made and
preserved until all appellate proceedings have been disposed of. A
court reporter or court recorder is not required to transcribe or
make a separate recording of a plea taken under this article unless
an appeal is taken in the case and a party requests a transcript.
(c-1) The defendant may obtain a copy of a [the] recording
made under Subsection (c) on payment of a reasonable amount to cover
the costs of reproduction or, if the defendant is indigent, the
court shall provide a copy to the defendant without charging a cost
for the copy.
(c-2) The loss or destruction of or failure to make a video
recording of a plea entered under this article is not alone
sufficient grounds for a defendant to withdraw the defendant's plea
or to request the court to set aside a conviction, sentence, or
plea.
SECTION 7. Article 38.073, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 38.073. TESTIMONY OF INMATE WITNESSES. In a
proceeding in the prosecution of a criminal offense in which an
inmate in the custody of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is
required to testify as a witness, any deposition or testimony of the
inmate witness may be conducted by a video teleconferencing system
in the manner described by Article 27.18 [electronic means, in the
same manner as permitted in civil cases under Section 30.012, Civil
Practice and Remedies Code].
SECTION 8. Article 49.25, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Section 13A to read as follows:
Sec. 13A. FEES. (a) A medical examiner may charge
reasonable fees for services provided by the office of medical
examiner under this article, including cremation approvals, court
testimonies, consultations, and depositions.
(b) The commissioners court must approve the amount of the
fee before the fee may be assessed. The fee may not exceed the
amount necessary to provide the services described by Subsection
(a).
(c) The fee may not be assessed against the county's
district attorney or a county office.
SECTION 9. Section 31.037, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 31.037. SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT. The
employment of the county elections administrator may be suspended,
with or without pay, or terminated at any time for good and
sufficient cause on the four-fifths vote of the county election
commission and approval of that action by a majority vote of the
commissioners court.
SECTION 10. Section 43.007(i), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(i) The secretary of state may only select to participate in
the program six [three] counties with a population of 100,000 or
more and four [two] counties with a population of less than 100,000.
SECTION 11. Section 203.005(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The first payment of a fee under Subsection (a)(5)
[(a)(4)] is due on the date that the person required to pay support
is ordered to begin child support, alimony, or separate maintenance
payments. Subsequent payments of the fee are due annually and in
advance.
SECTION 12. Sections 51.318(b) and (e), Government Code,
are amended to read as follows:
(b) The fees are:
(1) for issuing a subpoena, including one copy$8
(2) for issuing a citation, commission for deposition,
writ of execution, order of sale, writ of execution and order of
sale, writ of injunction, writ of garnishment, writ of attachment,
or writ of sequestration not provided for in Section 51.317, or any
other writ or process not otherwise provided for, including one
copy if required by law$8
(3) for searching files or records to locate a cause
when the docket number is not provided$5
(4) for searching files or records to ascertain the
existence of an instrument or record in the district clerk's
office$5
(5) for abstracting a judgment$8
(6) for approving a bond$4
(7) for a certified copy of a record, judgment, order,
pleading, or paper on file or of record in the district clerk's
office, including certificate and seal, for each page or part of a
page$1
(8) for a noncertified copy, for each page or part of a
page not to exceed $1
(9) notwithstanding Section 51.3195, for an
electronic certified copy of a record, judgment, order, pleading,
or paper on file or of record in the district clerk's office,
including certificate and seal, for each page or part of a
pagenot to exceed $1.
(e) The district clerk may not charge [the] United States
Immigration and Customs Enforcement or United States Citizenship
and Immigration Services [Naturalization Service] a fee for a copy
of any document on file or of record in the clerk's office relating
to an individual's criminal history, regardless of whether the
document is certified.
SECTION 13. Section 57.002, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (d-1) to read as follows:
(d-1) Subject to Subsection (e), a court in a county to
which Section 21.021, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, applies may
appoint a spoken language interpreter who is not a licensed court
interpreter.
SECTION 14. Subchapter D, Chapter 101, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 101.06118 to read as follows:
Sec. 101.06118. ADDITIONAL DISTRICT COURT FEES: GOVERNMENT
CODE. The clerk of a district court shall collect for an electronic
certified copy of a record, judgment, order, pleading, or paper on
file or of record in the district clerk's office, including
certificate and seal, a fee not to exceed $1 for each page or part of
a page under Section 51.318.
SECTION 15. Section 551.0415, Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 551.0415. GOVERNING BODY OF MUNICIPALITY OR COUNTY:
REPORTS ABOUT ITEMS OF COMMUNITY INTEREST REGARDING WHICH NO ACTION
WILL BE TAKEN. (a) Notwithstanding Sections 551.041 and 551.042, a
quorum of the governing body of a municipality or county may receive
from municipal or county staff and a member of the governing body
may make a report about items of community interest during a meeting
of the governing body without having given notice of the subject of
the report as required by this subchapter if no action is taken and,
except as provided by Section 551.042, possible action is not
discussed regarding the information provided in the report.
(b) For purposes of Subsection (a), "items of community
interest" includes:
(1) expressions of thanks, congratulations, or
condolence;
(2) information regarding holiday schedules;
(3) an honorary or salutary recognition of a public
official, public employee, or other citizen, except that a
discussion regarding a change in the status of a person's public
office or public employment is not an honorary or salutary
recognition for purposes of this subdivision;
(4) a reminder about an upcoming event organized or
sponsored by the governing body;
(5) information regarding a social, ceremonial, or
community event organized or sponsored by an entity other than the
governing body that was attended or is scheduled to be attended by a
member of the governing body or an official or employee of the
municipality or county; and
(6) announcements involving an imminent threat to the
public health and safety of people in the municipality or county
that has arisen after the posting of the agenda.
SECTION 16. Section 551.0725(a), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The commissioners court of a county [with a population
of 400,000 or more] may conduct a closed meeting to deliberate
business and financial issues relating to a contract being
negotiated if, before conducting the closed meeting:
(1) the commissioners court votes unanimously that
deliberation in an open meeting would have a detrimental effect on
the position of the commissioners court in negotiations with a
third person; and
(2) the attorney advising the commissioners court
issues a written determination that deliberation in an open meeting
would have a detrimental effect on the position of the
commissioners court in negotiations with a third person.
SECTION 17. Section 61.002(5), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(5) "General revenue levy" means:
(A) the property taxes imposed by a county that
are not dedicated to:
(i) the construction and maintenance of
farm-to-market roads under Article VIII, Section 1-a, Texas
Constitution;
(ii) [or to] flood control under Article
VIII, Section 1-a, [of the] Texas Constitution;
(iii) [or that are not dedicated to] the
further maintenance of the public roads under Article VIII, Section
9, [of the] Texas Constitution; or
(iv) the payment of principal or interest
on county debt; and
(B) the sales and use tax revenue to be received
by the county during the calendar year in which the state fiscal
year begins under Chapter 323, Tax Code, as determined under
Section 26.041(d), Tax Code.
SECTION 18. Section 132.002(a), Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The commissioners court of a county may authorize a
county or precinct officer who collects fees, fines, court costs,
or other charges on behalf of the county or the state to accept
payment by credit card or by the electronic processing of checks of
a fee, fine, court costs, or other charge. The commissioners court
may also authorize a county or precinct officer to collect and
retain a fee for processing the payment by credit card or by the
electronic processing of checks.
SECTION 19. Subchapter Z, Chapter 157, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 157.9031 to read as follows:
Sec. 157.9031. AUTHORITY TO REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT FOR
CERTAIN COVERAGE. A self-insuring county or the intergovernmental
pool operating under Chapter 119, under policies concerning the
provision of coverages adopted by the county's commissioners court
or the pool's governing body, may require reimbursement for the
provision of punitive damage coverage from a person to whom the
county or intergovernmental pool provides coverage.
SECTION 20. Sections 270.007(b) and (f), Local Government
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) A [Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsections (f)
and (g), a] county may exclusively contract with a person to market
the application or system. If the original contract for development
of the application or system under Subsection (a) does not include a
provision for marketing the application or system, a [A] contract
under this subsection shall be awarded [only] in compliance with
Section 262.030, [Local Government Code,] concerning the
alternative competitive procedure for insurance or high technology
items.
(f) Except as provided by Subsection (b), [upon request of
any person,] a county may [shall] sell or license software under
this section for a price negotiated between the county and the
purchaser or licensee, including another governmental entity
[person, not to exceed the developmental cost to the county.
Developmental cost shall only include costs incurred under a
contract to procure the software or direct employee costs incurred
to develop the software. This subsection does not apply to any
county software that protects county computer systems from
unauthorized use or access].
SECTION 21. Section 387.003, Local Government Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), (b-1), (c), (e), (f), and
(h) and adding Subsections (a-1), (i), and (j) to read as follows:
(a) The commissioners court of the county may call an
election on the question of creating a county assistance district
under this chapter. More than one county assistance district may be
created in a county, but not more than one district may be created
in a commissioners precinct.
(a-1) A district may [to] perform the following functions in
the district:
(1) the construction, maintenance, or improvement of
roads or highways;
(2) the provision of law enforcement and detention
services;
(3) the maintenance or improvement of libraries,
museums, parks, or other recreational facilities;
(4) the provision of services that benefit the public
health or welfare, including the provision of firefighting and fire
prevention services; or
(5) the promotion of economic development and tourism.
(b) The order calling the election must:
(1) define the boundaries of the district to include
any portion of the county in which the combined tax rate of all
local sales and use taxes imposed, including the rate to be imposed
by the district if approved at the election, would not exceed the
maximum combined rate of sales and use taxes imposed by political
subdivisions of this state that is prescribed by Sections 321.101
and 323.101, Tax Code [two percent]; and
(2) call for the election to be held within those
boundaries.
(b-1) If the proposed district includes any territory of a
municipality, the commissioners court shall send notice by
certified mail to the governing body of the municipality of the
commissioners court's intent to create the district. If the
municipality has created a development corporation under Chapter
504 or 505, the commissioners court shall also send the notice to
the board of directors of the corporation. The commissioners court
must send the notice not later than the 60th day before the date the
commissioners court orders the election. The governing body of the
municipality may exclude the territory of the municipality from the
proposed district by sending notice by certified mail to the
commissioners court of the governing body's desire to exclude the
municipal territory from the district. The governing body must
send the notice not later than the 45th day after the date the
governing body receives notice from the commissioners court under
this subsection. The territory of a municipality that is excluded
under this subsection may subsequently be included in:
(1) the district in an election held under Subsection
(f) with the consent of the municipality; or
(2) another district after complying with the
requirements of this subsection and after an election under
Subsection (f).
(c) The ballot at the election must be printed to permit
voting for or against the proposition: "Authorizing the creation
of the ____ County Assistance District No.___ (insert name of
district) and the imposition of a sales and use tax at the rate of
____ [of one] percent (insert [one-eighth, one-fourth,
three-eighths, or one-half, as] appropriate rate) for the purpose
of financing the operations of the district."
(e) If a majority of the votes received at the election are
against the creation of the district, the district is not created
and the county at any time may call one or more elections [another
election] on the question of creating one or more [a] county
assistance districts [district may not be held in the county before
the first anniversary of the most recent election concerning the
creation of a district].
(f) The commissioners court may call an election to be held
in an area of the county that is not located in a district created
under this section to determine whether the area should be included
in the district and whether the district's sales and use tax should
be imposed in the area. An election may not be held in an area in
which the combined tax rate of all local sales and use taxes
imposed, including the rate to be imposed by the district if
approved at the election, would exceed the maximum combined rate of
sales and use taxes imposed by political subdivisions of this state
that is prescribed by Sections 321.101 and 323.101, Tax Code [two
percent].
(h) If more than one election to authorize a local sales and
use tax is held on the same day in the area of a proposed district or
an area proposed to be added to a district and if the resulting
approval by the voters would cause the imposition of a local sales
and use tax in any area to exceed the maximum combined rate of sales
and use taxes of political subdivisions of this state that is
prescribed by Sections 321.101 and 323.101, Tax Code [two percent],
only a tax authorized at an election under this section may be
imposed.
(i) In addition to the authority to include an area in a
district under Subsection (f), the governing body of a district by
order may include an area in the district on receipt of a petition
or petitions signed by the owner or owners of the majority of the
land in the area to be included in the district. If there are no
registered voters in the area to be included in the district, no
election is required.
(j) The commissioners court by order may exclude an area
from the district if the district has no outstanding bonds payable
wholly or partly from sales and use taxes and the exclusion does not
impair any outstanding district debt or contractual obligation.
SECTION 22. Section 387.005, Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 387.005. GOVERNING BODY. (a) The commissioners court
of the county in which the district is created by order shall
provide that:
(1) the commissioners court is the governing body of
the district; or
(2) the commissioners court shall appoint a governing
body of the district.
(b) A member of the governing body of the district
[commissioners court] is not entitled to compensation for service
[on the governing body of the district] but is entitled to
reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses.
(c) A board of directors appointed by the commissioners
court under this section shall consist of five directors who serve
staggered terms of two years. To be eligible to serve as a
director, a person must be at least 18 years of age and a resident of
the county in which the district is located. The initial directors
shall draw lots to achieve staggered terms, with three of the
directors serving one-year terms and two of the directors serving
two-year terms.
SECTION 23. Section 387.006(a), Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) A district may:
(1) perform any act necessary to the full exercise of
the district's functions;
(2) accept a grant or loan from:
(A) the United States;
(B) an agency or political subdivision of this
state; or
(C) a public or private person;
(3) acquire, sell, lease, convey, or otherwise dispose
of property or an interest in property under terms determined by the
district;
(4) employ necessary personnel; [and]
(5) adopt rules to govern the operation of the
district and its employees and property; and
(6) enter into agreements with municipalities
necessary or convenient to achieve the district's purposes,
including agreements regarding the duration, rate, and allocation
between the district and the municipality of sales and use taxes.
SECTION 24. Section 387.007(b), Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) A district may not adopt a sales and use tax under this
chapter if the adoption of the tax would result in a combined tax
rate of all local sales and use taxes that would exceed the maximum
combined rate prescribed by Sections 321.101 and 323.101, Tax Code,
[of more than two percent] in any location in the district.
SECTION 25. Section 387.009, Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 387.009. TAX RATE. The rate of a tax adopted under
this chapter must be in increments of one-eighth[, one-fourth,
three-eighths, or one-half] of one percent.
SECTION 26. Sections 387.010(a), (b), and (c), Local
Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) A district that has adopted a sales and use tax under
this chapter may, by order and subject to Section 387.007(b):
(1) reduce [, change] the rate of the tax or repeal the
tax without an election, except that the district may not repeal the
sales and use tax or reduce the rate of the sales and use tax below
the amount pledged to secure payment of an outstanding district
debt or contractual obligation;
(2) increase the rate of the sales and use tax, if the
increased rate of the sales and use tax will not exceed the rate
approved at an election held under Section 387.003; or
(3) increase the rate of the sales and use tax to a
rate that exceeds the rate approved at an election held under
Section 387.003 after [if] the increase [change or repeal] is
approved by a majority of the votes received in the district at an
election held for that purpose.
(b) The tax may be changed under Subsection (a) in one or
more increments of one-eighth of one percent [to a maximum of
one-half of one percent].
(c) The ballot for an election to increase [change] the tax
shall be printed to permit voting for or against the proposition:
"The increase [change] of a sales and use tax for the ____ County
Assistance District No. ___ (insert name of district) from the rate
of ____ [of one] percent (insert [one-fourth, three-eighths, or
one-half, as] appropriate rate) to the rate of ____ [of one] percent
(insert [one-fourth, three-eighths, or one-half, as] appropriate
rate)."
SECTION 27. Section 387.012, Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 387.012. EFFECTIVE DATE OF TAX. The adoption of the
tax, the increase or reduction [change] of the tax rate, or the
repeal of the tax takes effect on the first day of the first
calendar quarter occurring after the expiration of the first
complete quarter occurring after the date the comptroller receives
a copy of the order of the district's governing body [notice of the
results of the election] adopting, increasing, reducing
[changing], or repealing the tax.
SECTION 28. Sections 86.022, 112.008, and 387.010(d),
Local Government Code, are repealed.
SECTION 29. (a) Articles 20.011(a) and 20.02(b), Code of
Criminal Procedure, as amended by this Act, and Article 20.151,
Code of Criminal Procedure, as added by this Act, apply only to
testimony before a grand jury that is impaneled on or after the
effective date of this Act.
(b) Article 27.18, Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended by
this Act, applies to a plea of guilty or nolo contendere entered on
or after the effective date of this Act, regardless of whether the
offense with reference to which the plea is entered is committed
before, on, or after that date.
(c) Article 38.073, Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended
by this Act, applies only to the testimony of an inmate witness that
is taken on or after the effective date of this Act.
(d) Section 13A, Article 49.25, Code of Criminal Procedure,
as added by this Act, applies only to a service provided by a
medical examiner's office on or after the effective date of this
Act. A service provided before the effective date of this Act is
covered by the law in effect on the date the service was provided,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
(e) Section 51.318(b), Government Code, as amended by this
Act, applies only to a request for an electronic certified copy of a
record, judgment, order, pleading, or paper on file or of record in
the district clerk's office, including certificate and seal, made
on or after the effective date of this Act. A request made before
the effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect when
the request was made, and the former law is continued in effect for
that purpose.
(f) Section 57.002(d-1), Government Code, as added by this
Act, applies only to the appointment of a court interpreter under
Chapter 57, Government Code, as amended by this Act, on or after the
effective date of this Act. The appointment of a court interpreter
before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
effect when the interpreter was appointed, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
(g) Section 551.0725(a), Government Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to a meeting held on or after the effective
date of this Act. A meeting held before the effective date of this
Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the meeting is held,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
(h) Sections 270.007(b) and (f), Local Government Code, as
amended by this Act, apply only to a contract entered into on or
after the effective date of this Act. A contract entered into
before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
effect when the contract was entered into, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 30. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.