Confinement & Reentry – Successful Bills, 2013

HB 62 | HB 86 | HB 634 | HB 797 | HB 798 | HB 799 | HB 1188 | HB 1544 | HB 1659 | HB 2719 | SB 107 | SB 369 | SB 345 | SB 1003 | SB 1185 | SB 1289

The Governor signed the following bills into law in 2013:

• HB 62 (Guillen) [Sponsor: West]: Relating to a justice or judge having an interest in a business entity that owns, manages, or operates a private correctional or rehabilitation facility. To avoid conflicts of interest during sentencing, this bill prohibits judges from holding a financial interest in a private correctional or rehabilitation facility. Effective January 1, 2015.

• HB 86 (Callegari; Cook; Laubenberg) [Sponsor: Lucio]: Relating to the criteria for review by the Sunset Advisory Commission of an agency that licenses an occupation. During the 2011-12 legislative interim, the House Committee on Government Reform recognized the problems associated with increased licensing regulations. These regulations can raise consumer prices and limit competition. To address these problems, HB 86 establishes a process for evaluating proposed licensing programs and legislation, specifically to ensure that they serve a clear public interest and provide the least restrictive form of regulation that will adequately protect public safety. Effective September 1, 2013.

• HB 634 (Farias; Lucio III) [Sponsor: Rodríguez]: Relating to the verification of an inmate’s veteran status by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) has historically had difficulty determining which inmates have previous military experience. This bill requires TDCJ to utilize data from the federal Public Assistance Reporting Information System (PARIS), made available through Texas’ Health and Human Services Commission, to verify the veteran status of each incoming individual. That information will help TDCJ assist incarcerated veterans in their efforts to apply for military benefits; create meaningful reentry plans that will help veterans as they transition back into society; and coordinate with the Veterans Administration in its efforts to provide critical mental health counseling and assistance to system-impacted veterans. Effective Immediately (June 2013).

• HB 797 (Thompson, Senfronia; Miles) [Sponsor: Garcia]: Relating to certain written information the Windham School District must provide to a person before the person enrolls in a district vocational training program. Incarcerated individuals who do not realize that they may face stringent (and perhaps insurmountable) post-release obstacles to obtaining an occupational license may sign up to learn a trade that they will never be able to practice. This bill requires the Windham School District (WSD) to provide potential vocational trade students with information about post-release licensing restrictions, rates of licensing among past WSD students, and the licensing and appeals process. This will allow incarcerated individuals to make better decisions about enrolling in vocations courses, thus enabling the best possible opportunities to find meaningful, post-release employment and contribute as a taxpayer in the community. It will also help WSD identify students who will most benefit from limited vocational course slots, while reducing long waitlists for courses. Effective Immediately (June 2013).

• HB 798 (Thompson, Senfronia) [Sponsor: Garcia]: Relating to certain actions taken by certain licensing authorities regarding a license holder or applicant who has been convicted of a Class C misdemeanor. Previous Texas code allowed licensing agencies to deny an individual an occupational license for having been convicted of a Class C misdemeanor. Yet such low-level offenses result only in the issuance of a ticket and the imposition of a fine; they almost never result in jail time. HB 798 prohibits licensing authorities from denying licenses to people with Class C misdemeanors – unless the applicant is seeking a license that authorizes him or her to carry a gun, and he or she has been previously convicted of a domestic violence offense. This bill will allow more men and women to find gainful employment, support their families, and contribute to their communities. Effective September 1, 2013.

• HB 799 (Thompson, Senfronia; Miles) [Sponsor: Whitmire]: Relating to vocational training programs provided by the Windham School District. This bill requires the Windham School District to continually assess the Texas job market and provide vocational programs that will build relevant skill sets. Doing so will create a larger qualified workforce and ensure that more returning individuals are matched with available trades in Texas communities, while reducing the likelihood that such individuals will become unemployed and return to crime. Effective September 1, 2013.

• HB 1188 (Thompson, Senfronia; Perry; Miles) [Sponsor: Whitmire]: Relating to limiting the liability of persons who employ persons with criminal convictions. This bill limits employer liability on charges of negligently hiring or failing to adequately supervise an employee who has a criminal conviction, with two exceptions: (1) the employer knew of the past crime and the conviction was for a serious aggravated or violent sexually related felony, or involved a crime committed in circumstances substantially similar to those required by the current job duties, or (2) the employee’s current offense is fraud or misuse of funds, and he or she has previously been convicted of a similar crime. Effective immediately (June 2013).

• HB 1544 (Allen) [Sponsor: Ellis]: Relating to the authority of a county to contract with a private vendor for the operation of a detention facility. This bill requires all Texas counties to get written approval from the local sheriff before entering into a contract to privatize a local jail. Effective immediately (June 2013).

• HB 1659 (Thompson, Senfronia) [Sponsor: Lucio]: Relating to certain actions taken by certain licensing authorities regarding a license holder or applicant who received deferred adjudication for certain offenses. A criminal record can severely limit an individual’s access to housing, employment, and other benefits, thus increasing the likelihood of re-offending. Barriers to these necessities are especially troubling when an individual has successfully completed a term of deferred adjudication, which allows the sentencing judge to set aside the conviction after the person has fulfilled all obligations of community supervision. HB 1659 will limit an occupational licensing agency from considering a person’s deferred adjudication during a license suspension or revocation process, for crimes other than aggravated felonies, if five years have passed since the completion of deferred adjudication. This will lessen barriers to licensing that are unnecessarily and unfairly placed on those who successfully complete their court-ordered community supervision and rehabilitative programming. Effective September 1, 2013.

• HB 2719 (Guillen) [Sponsor: Rodríguez]: Relating to collecting and reporting information concerning inmates who have been in the conservatorship of a state agency responsible for providing child protective services and concerning inmate parole, reentry, and integration. Under this bill, parole officers and reentry coordinators will improve the data they track and report. Reporting requirements under this bill will include, among other things, data related to: referrals for employment, housing, education, treatment, services, medical care, and other basic needs; the outcomes of client referrals, as well as areas where referrals are not made because of unavailable resources; information on available community resources; common barriers to reentry; common benefits or services that reentry coordinators help releasees obtain or apply for; and information on available training opportunities for both parole officers and reentry coordinators.

  The Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s Reentry and Integration Division and Parole Division will jointly prepare and submit an annual report containing this data to relevant state agencies and legislative stakeholders. This joint report will also be made available to the public. Ultimately, this bill will improve officer/coordinator accountability and efficiency, help to identify gaps in reentry services (especially in historically underserved areas), and create a cultural shift toward more effective case management. Effective September 1, 2013.

Note: For HB 2719 provisions relating to youth justice, click here.

• SB 107 (West) [Sponsor: Johnson]: Relating to the disclosure by a court of criminal history record information that is the subject of an order of nondisclosure. A criminal record poses significant barriers to reentry, including limited access to housing, employment, and other critical tools that reduce the likelihood of costly re-offending. In recognition of this, Texas courts may order the criminal conviction of an individual to be sealed in specific instances. However, while previous code prohibited “criminal justice agencies” from disclosing sealed criminal history information, it did not include courts in its definition of criminal justice agencies, thereby creating a loophole that allowed court clerks to disclose criminal history information. SB 107 closes that loophole for individuals who have successfully completed a period of deferred adjudication and who have petitioned the court for an order of nondisclosure.

Separately, this bill allows civil petitions for an order of non-disclosure to be filed electronically or mailed on a standardized form, which will eliminate the need for an attorney’s assistance to draft and file the petition. The Office of Court Administration must create and provide the online form. Upon an individual’s request for an order for nondisclosure, the court must order a hearing to determine whether the petition should be granted – unless the state does not request a hearing on the issue, and the court finds that the defendant is eligible for the order of nondisclosure, and the order is in the best interests of justice.

Ultimately, this bill preserves important safeguards while encourage wider hiring of previously incarcerated individuals, increasing applicant pools, and helping to improve reentry success rates. Effective September 1, 2013.

• SB 345 (Whitmire) [Sponsor: Parker]: Relating to certain programs for inmates, including the abolition of the state boot camp program and the use of programs by volunteer and faith-based organizations. Under this bill, each prison warden in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) will issue a brief yearly report detailing his or her efforts to identify and actively encourage volunteer organizations (like veterans groups, faith-based organizations, local government agencies, and non-profit organizations) to provide programming in that warden’s unit. This will allow wardens to share information about volunteer recruitment strategies, as well as information about proven, evidence-based programs that work best for particular populations. It will also save the corrections system money by leveraging existing resources, while ultimately expanding inmates’ access to critical programming that will ease the reentry transition and lower rates of re-offending (e.g., programs to build literacy and education, life skills, and job skills, or parent-training programs).

Separately, SB 345 abolishes the state boot camp program for inmates. Boot camps have proven to be costly and ineffective; yet, TDCJ has been required to maintain boot camp facilities that are not utilized. Abolishing the requirement to operate a boot camp facility that is not being used sill allow the state to spend the resources on more effective strategies. Effective September 1, 2013.

• SB 369 (Whitmire) [Sponsor: Burnam]: Relating to certain information available to the public on a central database containing information about sex offenders. Under this bill, the state’s public sex offender registry will no longer be required to include the names and addresses of registrants’ employers. This will protect employers from harassment and will prevent punishing employers who make responsible, appropriate job placements that increase the likelihood that people will remain law abiding. Effective September 1, 2013.

• SB 1003 (Carona) [Sponsor: Guillen]: Relating to a review of and report regarding the use of adult and juvenile administrative segregation in facilities in this state. This bill requires an independent third party to work with Texas’ criminal and juvenile justice agencies to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of policies and practices related to administrative segregation and solitary confinement of youth and adults. This third party will provide outside expertise on best practices related to isolation and solitary confinement and will submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature by December 31, 2014. Among other things, the third party will examine access to transitional and rehabilitative programs and services; release procedures; statistical data related to the number of individuals in solitary confinement, including those with mental health issues and the average length of time spent in isolation; and the rate of recidivism among individuals who were confined in administrative segregation. This bill will help improve segregation and seclusion policies and practices, identify strategies to reduce the use of segregation, improve access to rehabilitative assistance for isolated individuals who will one day be released to the community (thus decreasing recidivism in the long term), and eliminate wasteful spending. Effective September 1, 2013.

Note: For SB 1003 provisions relating to youth justice, click here.

• SB 1185 (Huffman) [Sponsor: Thompson, Senfronia]: Relating to the creation of a mental health jail diversion pilot program. This bill creates a 4-year, service-oriented mental health pilot program in Harris County (Houston) that will offer mentally ill individuals the tailored assistance they need to live responsibly in the community, following their release from the Harris County jail. More specifically, the Department of State Health Services will develop a “criminal justice mental health service model” to initially address the needs of at least 200 participants. The program will provide access to available social, clinical, housing, and welfare services during the first weeks after a person’s release from jail.

SB 1185 also seeks the cooperation and critical input of a variety of local stakeholders and service providers, to assure the most effective program is in place considering existing programs and strategies. Furthermore, the bill calls for a report by the Harris County Commissioner on the pilot program by the end of 2016, ensuring transparency and accountability. This preventive approach to assisting mentally ill individuals will best enable them to adapt and rehabilitate, keeping them from repeatedly re-offending and being re-incarcerated at massive taxpayer expense. Effective immediately (June 2013).

• SB 1289 (Williams) [Sponsor: Bohac]: Relating to certain business entities engaged in the publication of mug shots and other information regarding the involvement of an individual in the criminal justice system; providing a civil penalty. This bill requires business entities that publish criminal histories to include accurate and complete information. The information is considered complete if it reflects all notations of arrest and the filing and disposition of all criminal charges, as applicable; and it is considered accurate if it reflects the most recent information received by the entity from the Department of Public Safety, or was obtained from a law enforcement agency or criminal justice agency within 60 days of the date of publication.

SB 1289 also requires entities to publish their e-mail address, fax number, or mailing address so that a person can dispute the completeness and accuracy of the information. If the entity receives a complaint about disputed information, it must conduct a free investigation as to the accuracy and completeness of the information within 45 days. If any information is inaccurate or incomplete, the business entity must promptly and permanently remove the information from its system.

Lastly, SB 1289 imposes a civil penalty if such entities publish information that is under an order of expunction or nondisclosure. Effective September 1, 2013.

Click here to download a PDF copy of these bill summaries, as well as summaries of all other successful smart-on-crime bills passed in 2013.