TO:	Honorable Victoria Neave, Chair, House Committee on Juvenile Justice & Family Issues
FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:	HB3315 by Crockett (Relating to the creation of a pretrial intervention program for certain youth offenders; authorizing a fee.), As Introduced

The bill would amend the Government Code relating to the creation of a pretrial intervention program for certain young individuals and authorize a fee. Under the provisions of the bill, certain eligible individuals would be able to participate in a diversion program under supervision of local community supervision and corrections departments.  The Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Office of Court Administration, Office of the Governor - Trusteed Programs, and the Comptroller of Public Accounts indicate the modifications outlined in the bill's provisions would not result in a significant fiscal impact. This analysis assumes implementing the provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions would not result in a significant impact on the demand for state correctional resources.  

Local Government Impact

According to Caldwell, Comal, and Hays CSCD, there may be a significant fiscal impact to the departments due to implementing the bill's provisions.

According to Denton County CSCD, the fiscal impact is anticipated to be significant due to additional required staff and increased maintenance and operational costs including but not limited to technology, travel, and training costs.

According to Tarrant County CSCD, It is difficult to estimate the number of eligible participants because the District Attorney's Office would need to screen and approve all participants. Furthermore, the length of time varies greatly depending on the offense category. Due to these unknown factors, and additional required staff and supervisors, the fiscal impact is estimated to be approximately $254,000 per fiscal year.

According to Floyd County CSCD, the fiscal impact would be significant on the department. There is currently one probation officer and the department would incur significant costs to hire more staff to provide required counseling and other services.

The East Texas CSCD, Wharton County CSCD, Taylor County CSCD, and Hunt County CSCD anticipate a significant fiscal impact to the departments due to hiring necessary additional staff and program development and oversight.

The Bexar County CSCD anticipates a moderate fiscal impact of approximately $201,600 in Fiscal Year 2022, and approximately $59,950 in FY 2023 and 2024 to due required new staff and operational costs.

The Kerr, Bandera, and Gillespie County CSCD anticipates a moderate fiscal impact of approximately $55,000 per year for staff, and additional costs due to operational and program costs.