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House Bill 530 |
House Author: Madden et al. |
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Effective: 6-15-07 |
Senate Sponsor: Seliger |
House Bill 530 amends provisions of the Health and Safety Code, Government Code, and Code of Criminal Procedure relating to the operation and funding of drug court programs. The bill expands the definition of a drug court program to include other types of problem-solving programs, including, but not limited to, juvenile drug courts, reentry drug courts, and family dependency drug treatment courts. The bill lowers the county population threshold at which a county is required to establish a drug court program from 550,000 to 200,000 and makes the requirement to establish a program contingent on federal or state funding.
House Bill 530 expands the list of entities authorized to establish a drug court program to include municipalities, and authorizes the establishment of a regional program by agreement among three or more counties or three or more municipalities. The bill authorizes a county to establish a DWI court program and provides that if a county does not establish a separate DWI court program, the county must require a person who commits more than one DWI offense to participate in the county's existing drug court program.
House Bill 530 authorizes certain participants who have completed a program to request an order of nondisclosure with respect to all records and files related to the defendant's arrest for the offense for which the defendant entered the program. A participant arrested for an offense involving the operation of a motor vehicle while intoxicated is not eligible to make such a request. The bill authorizes the appointment of magistrates in administering a drug court program. A judge or magistrate is authorized to excuse a participant from community service requirements and to order the issuance of an occupational driver's license for certain participants in the program. House Bill 530 sets out provisions relating to the imposition, collection, disbursement, and use of certain court and program fees.