BILL ANALYSIS


                                                         H.B. 269
                                                  By: Cook (Sims)
                                                 Criminal Justice
                                                         05-22-95
                              Senate Committee Report (Unamended)
BACKGROUND

The Criminal Justice Information System was created in 1989 to
serve as the central information source on criminals for the law
enforcement agencies of Texas.  In developing the system, one of
the project goals was the elimination of current data collection
systems that will be redundant with the system information. 
Currently, the Texas Department of Public Safety and Texas
Department of Criminal Justice do not have the authority to
eliminate a redundant system within Chapter 60, Code of Criminal
Procedure, in which state mandated information on defendants by
local and county political subdivisions is reported.

PURPOSE

As proposed, H.B. 269 requires the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice to conduct a study and adopt certain rules to eliminate the
reporting of information to the Criminal Justice Information System
in a redundant manner.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is granted
to the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice in SECTION 2 (Article 60.08(a), Code of
Criminal Procedure) of this bill.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Article 60.06(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, to
set forth the required actions of each criminal justice agency
including cooperating with the Department of Public Safety (DPS)
and Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) to identify and
eliminate redundant reporting of information to the criminal
justice information system (system).

SECTION 2. Amends Article 60.08(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, to
require DPS and TDCJ, by rule, to develop reporting procedures that
ensure that the offender processing data is reported from the time
an offender is arrested until the time an offender is released and
provide measures and policies designed to identify and eliminate
redundant reporting of information to the system.

SECTION 3. Amends Chapter 60, Code of Criminal Procedure, by adding
Article 60.19, as follows:

     Art. 60.19.  REPORT TO LEGISLATURE.  (a)  Sets forth the
     required actions of TDCJ regarding reports to the legislature.
     
     (b)  Sets forth the contents of the report required by
       Subsection (a)(2).
       
       (c)  Provides that this article expires September 1, 1997.
       
SECTION 4. Requires DPS and TDCJ to adopt the rules required by
Article 60.08(a), Code of Criminal Procedure, as amended by this
Act, not later than January 1, 1996.

SECTION 5. Emergency clause.
           Effective date: upon passage.