BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3132

By: Guerra

Homeland Security & Public Safety

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interactions between those who are deaf or hard of hearing and peace officers can become tense if the peace officer does not realize that the person they have detained is hard of hearing. In these situations, a peace officer may think the person detained is being defiant or disrespectful when really they just did not clearly hear or understand the peace officer's instructions. C.S.H.B. 3132 seeks to address this issue by providing for an optional designation that may be placed on a driver's license or personal identification certificate indicating that the person is deaf or hard of hearing.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3132 amends the Transportation Code to require the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to provide to each applicant for the issuance of an original, renewal, corrected, or duplicate driver's license or personal identification certificate who applies in person the opportunity to voluntarily indicate on the license or certificate that the person is deaf or hard of hearing as evidenced by a written statement from a licensed physician. The bill requires DPS to include a designation that the person is deaf or hard of hearing on each driver's license or personal identification certificate issued to a person who makes such an election and provides sufficient evidence to qualify for the designation. The bill requires DPS to maintain in its files a record of any deaf or hard of hearing information that is voluntarily provided to DPS under the bill's provisions and requires an application for an original, renewal, or duplicate driver's license or personal identification certificate to be designed to allow, but not require, the applicant to provide such information. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.

COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 3132 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute changes the optional designation from a hearing impairment designation, as in the introduced, to a deaf or hard of hearing designation.

Whereas the introduced required DPS to provide the opportunity to voluntarily indicate on a driver's license or personal identification certificate that the person has a hearing impairment when applying in person, by mail, over the Internet, or by other electronic means, the substitute requires DPS to provide this opportunity only to those applying in person and changes the requisite hearing condition from having a hearing impairment to being deaf or hard of hearing.