BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 1551 By: Greenberg C.S.H.B. 1551 By: Thompson 03-29-95 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND Senate Bill 947 of the 73rd Regular Legislative Session transferred the appropriation for the judicial and court personnel training fund from the Texas Supreme Court to the Court of Criminal Appeals. By amending Chapter 56 of the Government Code, S.B. 947 gave authority for the administration of the training fund to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Because of this transfer of rulemaking authority and authority over the appropriation, the Texas Supreme Court and the Office of Court Administration mentioned in current statute are no longer the entities responsible for judicial education and specified training. PURPOSE The purpose of C.S.H.B. 1551 is to correct inconsistencies in the statutes created by passage of S.B. 947 and to assign to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals the rulemaking authority and funding, through the judicial and court personnel training fund, necessary to accomplish the purpose of providing judicial training related to problems of family violence, sexual assault and child abuse. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY Section 1 of this bill expressly grants rulemaking authority in new Section 22.110(b) to the court of criminal appeals to require district judges and statutory county court judges to complete eight hours of training during the judge's first term on family violence, sexual assault and child abuse, to require minimum hours within the eight hour requirement dedicated to certain subjects, and to exempt certain judges from the training requirement. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1 adds a new Section 22.110 to the Government Code, Judicial Instruction Related to Family Violence, Sexual Assault, and Child Abuse, and tracks current Section 22.011. Subsection (a) requires the Court of Criminal Appeals to assure that training in the areas of family violence, sexual assault and child abuse is provided. Subsection (b) assigns the Court of Criminal Appeals general rulemaking authority to accomplish the training, states when the training is to be completed, the number of required training hours to be specified in the rules, the number of hours to be dedicated to specific subjects, and the procedure for exemption of those judges who do not hear cases dealing with family violence, sexual assault and child abuse. Subsection (c) allows the Court of Criminal Appeals to consult with professional groups and associations in the state, which have expertise in the subject matter, to obtain recommendations for instruction content. Subsection (d) specifies required course content. SECTION 2 repeals Section 22.011 of the Government Code, which gives authority to the Supreme Court to provide training on family violence. SECTION 3. Sets a date for the transfer of records, under Section 22.011 of the Government Code, from the Office of Court Administration to the Court of Criminal Appeals education committee. SECTION 4. Effective date. Application of act. SECTION 5. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE Section 1 is the same in both versions. Section 2 in the substitute was Section 3 in the original bill. Section 2 in the original bill, amending Tex. Gov't Code § 56.003(e) to require the Court of Criminal Appeals to grant funds to professional associations of judges to provide the required training on family violence, was deleted in the substitute. Section 3 in the substitute was Section 4 in the original bill. Section 5 in the original bill is Section 4 in the substitute and was amended to add an application of the act provision. Section 6 in the original bill is Section 5 in the substitute. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION Pursuant to a public notice posted on March 8, 1995, in accordance with House rules, the Committee on Judicial Affairs met in a public hearing on March 14, 1995, to consider House Bill 1551. The Chair laid out H.B. 1551 and recognized the author, Rep. Greenberg, to explain the bill. The Chair offered up and laid out a complete committee substitute for H.B. 1551. The following witnesses testified neutrally on H.B. 1551 and C.S.H.B. 1551: Mari Kay Bickett, resource witness, representing the Texas Center for the Judiciary, and Robert L. Green, Jr., representing the Primary Nurturing Fathers of Texas and the Texas Fathers Alliance. There were no other witnesses. Without objection, the Chair withdrew the proposed committee substitute and left H.B. 1551 pending before the committee. Pursuant to a public notice posted March 23, 1995, and to an announcement made on the House Floor while the House was still in session on March 29, 1995, the Committee on Judicial Affairs met in a formal meeting on March 29, 1995. H.B. 1551 was pending before the committee. The Chair laid out H.B. 1551 and explained the bill. The Chair then offered up a complete committee substitute for H.B. 1551. Rep. Solis moved to adopt the substitute; there being no objection, the substitute was adopted. Rep. Goodman moved to report H.B. 1551 favorably back to the full House, as substituted, with the recommendation that it do pass, be printed and sent to the Committee on Calendars. The motion prevailed by the following record vote: 6 ayes, 1 nay, 1 PNV, and 1 absent.