By Telford H.B. No. 2195 74R6430 GWK-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the provision of sex offender treatment to certain 1-3 inmates imprisoned in the institutional division of the Texas 1-4 Department of Criminal Justice. 1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-6 SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 501, Government Code, is 1-7 amended by adding Section 501.0932 to read as follows: 1-8 Sec. 501.0932. IN-PRISON THERAPEUTIC COMMUNITIES: SEX 1-9 OFFENDERS. (a) The institutional division shall establish a 1-10 program to confine and treat in in-prison therapeutic communities 1-11 inmates who are serving a sentence for an offense under Section 1-12 21.11, 22.011, 22.021, or 25.02, Penal Code, or are otherwise 1-13 determined by the division to have a history of conduct consistent 1-14 with the conduct of sex offenders and to need sex offender 1-15 treatment. 1-16 (b) The program is in addition to existing sex offender 1-17 treatment services provided to inmates. 1-18 (c) The institutional division and the Council on Sex 1-19 Offender Treatment shall jointly develop methods of screening and 1-20 assessing inmates to determine their need for sex offender 1-21 treatment. The institutional division shall screen each inmate who 1-22 is transferred to the custody of the institutional division to 1-23 determine whether the inmate is in need of sex offender treatment. 1-24 The institutional division shall assess the inmates who are 2-1 identified as having a need for sex offender treatment and shall 2-2 determine the severity of the problem indicating the need for 2-3 treatment. 2-4 (d) The program must consist of a treatment program of 2-5 indeterminate length, not to exceed 12 months. The institutional 2-6 division shall make a referral of an inmate to a program based on 2-7 the severity of the problem indicating the need for treatment, the 2-8 eligibility of the inmate, and the availability of treatment space. 2-9 An inmate who has not more than 12 months remaining in the inmate's 2-10 sentence before the earliest date the inmate is eligible for parole 2-11 is eligible for the program. 2-12 (e) The institutional division shall separate inmates 2-13 participating in the program from the general population of the 2-14 division and house the inmates in discrete units or areas within 2-15 units, except during the diagnostic process or at other times 2-16 determined to be necessary by the division for medical or security 2-17 purposes. The institutional division shall separate an inmate who 2-18 successfully completes the program from the general population of 2-19 the division during any period after completion and before the 2-20 inmate is discharged or released on parole or mandatory supervision 2-21 from the department. 2-22 (f) The program provided under this section must contain 2-23 highly structured work, education, and treatment schedules, a 2-24 clearly delineated authority structure, and well-defined goals and 2-25 guidelines. The institutional division shall establish a graded 2-26 system of rewards and sanctions for inmates who participate in the 2-27 program. 3-1 (g) The institutional division shall contract through the 3-2 Council on Sex Offender Treatment to provide sex offender treatment 3-3 providers to implement the program. For purposes of this section, 3-4 a "sex offender treatment provider" is a person who is included in 3-5 the registry maintained by the council. 3-6 (h) The institutional division shall adopt: 3-7 (1) a procedure for determining which eligible inmates 3-8 are the best candidates for participation in the program, with 3-9 priority for those eligible inmates who volunteer; and 3-10 (2) rules of conduct for inmates participating in the 3-11 program. 3-12 (i) If the sex offender treatment provider implementing the 3-13 program determines that an inmate is not complying with the rules 3-14 of the program, the treatment provider shall notify the 3-15 institutional division of that fact and the institutional division 3-16 shall end the inmate's participation in the program and transfer 3-17 the inmate out of the program. 3-18 (j) Neither the institutional division nor a sex offender 3-19 treatment provider implementing the program may operate the program 3-20 in a manner that automatically excludes inmates who do not 3-21 volunteer to participate, and the division and the treatment 3-22 provider shall attempt to encourage nonvolunteer inmates to 3-23 participate. 3-24 (k) If funding is available, the Criminal Justice Policy 3-25 Council, with the assistance of the institutional division, shall 3-26 develop methods to evaluate the processes used by the division in 3-27 providing the program and the level of success achieved by the 4-1 program. 4-2 SECTION 2. The section heading to Section 501.0931, 4-3 Government Code, is amended to read as follows: 4-4 Sec. 501.0931. IN-PRISON THERAPEUTIC COMMUNITIES: DRUG OR 4-5 ALCOHOL ABUSE. 4-6 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995. 4-7 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the 4-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 4-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 4-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 4-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.