BILL ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 2030 By: Raymond 4-26-95 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND In 1993, fire departments reported a total of 100,131 fires at a cost of more than $387,000,000 to communities in Texas. According to the Texas Commission on Fire Protection, approximately 50,000 fires were suspected to have been set deliberately or maliciously. Cases of arson resulted in 111 deaths and more than 700 injuries in Texas. In addition, fires resulting from arson cost Texans more than $150,000,000 in lost or damaged property. PURPOSE CSHB 2030 allows a county, state agency, or other public fire suppression entity to recover the cost of furnishing fire protection if a fire is negligently, recklessly, or intentionally set. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 11, Local Government Code, is amended by adding Chapter 363 to read as follows: CHAPTER 363. FIRE PROTECTION COSTS Sec. 363.001. ACTIONS TO RECOVER COSTS OF FIRE PROTECTION. (a) Provides that a county, state agency, or other fire suppression entity may recover from a person the reasonable costs incurred for furnishing fire protection to control or extinguish a fire if (1) the fire is negligently, recklessly, or intentionally set by the person, or (2) the fire is the result of a person's conduct for which the person is adjudged guilty of an offense under Section 28.02 or 28.04, Penal Code. (b) Provides that if a determination is made during a criminal trial that a person committed an offense under Section 28.02 or 28.04, Penal Code, and as a result of the offense the person caused an incident resulting in a fire suppression response by a county, state agency, or public fire suppression entity, the court may include the obligation for the liability as part of the judgement. (c) Provides that liability is a debt of the person to the county, state agency, or other public fire suppression entity and may be collected in the same manner as a public agency collects an express or implied contractual obligation. (d) Provides that a person's liability under this section for the reasonable expense of a response may not exceed $5,000 for a particular incident. Provides that a reasonable expense includes only those costs directly arising from the response to a particular incident, including the costs of any salary of the fire suppression personnel who participated in the response to the incident. (e) Requires a bill for the expense of a county, state agency, or other public fire suppression entity for the provision of fire protection for an incident must contain an itemized accounting of the components of the total charge. (f) Provides that the jurisdiction and venue of an action under this section are in the district court, county court at law, or justice court of the area where the fire occurred. SECTION 2. Effective date is September 1, 1995, and applies only to a cause of action that accrues on or after that date. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The committee substitute broadens the scope of who can recover the cost of furnishing fire protection to include a state agency or other fire protection entity. The committee substitute removes the requirement that a county seek civil action to recover the costs of fire protection and replaces it with a provision that allows a court to include the obligation for the liability of costs incurred for fire protection as part of a judgement against a person convicted of arson or reckless damage and destruction to property. In addition, the committee substitute adds the provisions that a person's liability under this section may not exceed $5,000 and that a bill for the expense incurred for fire protection must contain an itemized accounting of the components of the total charge. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION HB 2030 was considered by the County Affairs in a public hearing on 4/26/95. Representative Raymond opened. The chair recognized the following person to testify for HB 2030: Howard Katz, representing himself and the Harris County ESD No. 9 and Galveston County ESD No. 1. Representative Raymond closed. The County Affairs Committee considered a complete committee substitute to HB 2030. The substitute was adopted without objection. HB 2030 was reported favorably, as substituted, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by the record vote of: 7 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, 2 absent.