BILL ANALYSIS H.B. 2861 By: Grusendorf 04-26-95 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND "McGruff House" and "Child Watch Programs" are volunteer neighborhood safety programs designed to protect children from dangers and threats that might confront them after school hours. At present, it is only under these two specific programs that an individual or group of individuals may request criminal record checks from local law enforcement agencies. Such checks are necessary in order to insure the safety of children. The problem with present law, however, is that programs nearly identical to the McGruff House program have been denied criminal record checks of participants because it is only McGruff House that is specifically mentioned in statute and the Department of Public Safety very strictly interprets statute in determining whether a criminal record check can be conducted. Finally, current law stipulates that only local law enforcement agencies may request a criminal record check from the Department of Public Safety. This creates inefficiencies through needless steps and delays. PURPOSE H.B. 2861 would accomplish two things. First, criminal record checks could be done on the volunteers of any "safe house" program like the McGruff House program, as long as volunteers give their consent. Second, the safe house program could obtain criminal record checks directly from the Department of Public Safety, thereby eliminating the need for the local law enforcement agency to become involved in the process, except for the initial certification of the program. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY Rulemaking authority is granted to the Department of Public Safety in Section 1 of the bill which is Subchapter F, Chapter 411, Section 411.128, Subsection (d), Government Code. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1: Amends Subchapter F, Chapter 411, Government Code by adding Section 411.128, ACCESS TO CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD INFORMATION: SAFE HOUSES. (a)(1) Defines a safe house as a nonprofit organization which provides temporary shelter to children and which is certified as a bona fide safe house by a local law enforcement agency. (a)(2) Defines a volunteer as any person who will provide services related to a safe house. (b) States that a safe house is entitled to obtain the criminal history of a volunteer. (c) States that a safe house may only obtain criminal history related to a conviction. (d) Stipulates that a safe house must destroy criminal history records obtained through this act. SECTION 2: Emergency clause. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION H.B. 2861 was considered by the committee in a public hearing on April 18, 1995. The following person testified for the bill: Brandon Aghamalian, representing the Texas PTA. The bill was reported favorably without amendment, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed and be sent to the Committee on Local and Consent Calendars, by a record vote of 5 ayes, 0 nays, 0 pnv, 4 absent.