By Greenberg                                          H.B. No. 2653
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to granting immunity from liability for a person who gives
    1-3  information to a government agency.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Section 5(a), Article 56.02, Code of Criminal
    1-6  Procedure, is amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
    1-7        (e)  A person who exercises rights under this Act by giving
    1-8  information to a government agency shall be granted absolute
    1-9  immunity from liability for any communication tort committed.
   1-10  Agencies which make decisions based upon such information should
   1-11  consider this immunity when assigning weight to such information
   1-12  contained in unsworn declarations.  The information given to crime
   1-13  victims under Subsection (a)(7) should include the information that
   1-14  unsworn declarations will be given less weight than sworn
   1-15  declarations, that sworn declarations are made under penalty of
   1-16  perjury, and how sworn declarations may be made.
   1-17        Section 5(b).  The legislative intent of Subsection 5(a) of
   1-18  this Act is to prevent criminals and accused criminals from suing
   1-19  crime victims, their guardians, and their relatives from exercising
   1-20  their rights under the Crime Victims' Rights Act.  This Act in no
   1-21  way reflects upon whether a common law immunity for such
   1-22  communications exists, although the legislature sincerely hopes
   1-23  that such an immunity exists.  If such an immunity does exist, this
    2-1  statutory immunity is cumulative in effect.
    2-2        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
    2-3        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
    2-4  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
    2-5  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
    2-6  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
    2-7  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
    2-8  and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
    2-9  passage, and it is so enacted.