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House Bill 1711 |
House Author: Turner, Sylvester et al. |
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Effective: See below |
Senate Sponsor: Whitmire |
House Bill 1711 amends the Government Code to require the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) to develop and implement, not later than January 1, 2010, a comprehensive plan to reduce recidivism and ensure the successful reentry and reintegration of offenders into the community following an offender's release or discharge from a correctional facility. The bill requires the plan to provide for offender assessments, programs that address offender needs, transition programs, the identification of local program and service providers with whom TDCJ may contract to implement the plan, and the sharing of information necessary to address the needs of each offender, and sets forth requirements for the implementation, content, and design of plan programs. The bill requires TDCJ to enter into a memorandum of understanding with specified entities to establish a reentry task force and to coordinate the work of the task force with the Office of Court Administration, and authorizes the task force to identify gaps in services for certain released or discharged offenders and to coordinate with local reentry and reintegration program providers to make recommendations for the provision of services to those offenders. The bill authorizes TDCJ to contract and coordinate with private vendors, units of local government, or other entities to implement the reentry and reintegration plan and provides for the accountability of any contract.
House Bill 1711 requires TDCJ, not later than January 1, 2010, to adopt and implement policies that encourage family unity and participation during confinement and post-release or post-discharge transition to the community, respectively, and requires TDCJ to conduct and coordinate research that examines the impact of an offender's confinement on the well-being of the offender's child.
House Bill 1711 requires TDCJ to conduct and coordinate research to determine whether the reentry and reintegration plan and the policies to encourage family unity and participation reduce recidivism rates, and to deliver a report of the results at specified intervals to the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house, and appropriate legislative committees.
The bill takes effect June 19, 2009, but only if a specific appropriation for the implementation of the bill is provided in a general appropriations act of the 81st Legislature.