By Allen                                              H.B. No. 2428
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the maintenance and use of certain criminal history
    1-3  record information.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Sections 411.082(3) and (4), Government Code, are
    1-6  amended to read as follows:
    1-7              (3)  "Criminal justice agency" means:
    1-8                    (A)  a government <federal or state> agency, or
    1-9  any subunit thereof, that is engaged in the administration of
   1-10  criminal justice under a statute or executive order and that
   1-11  allocates a substantial portion of its annual budget to the
   1-12  administration of criminal justice; <or>
   1-13                    (B)  a nongovernmental railroad or campus police
   1-14  department that has obtained an originating agency identifier from
   1-15  the Federal Bureau of Investigation; or
   1-16                    (C)  courts.
   1-17              (4)  "Criminal justice purpose" means:
   1-18                    (A)  an activity by a criminal justice agency
   1-19  that is included in the administration of criminal justice; or
   1-20                    (B)  screening of applicants for employment with
   1-21  a criminal justice agency.
   1-22        SECTION 2.  Section 411.089, Government Code, is amended to
   1-23  read as follows:
    2-1        Sec. 411.089.  ACCESS TO CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD INFORMATION:
    2-2  CRIMINAL JUSTICE AGENCY.  (a)  A criminal justice agency is
    2-3  entitled to obtain from the department any criminal history record
    2-4  information maintained by the department about a person.
    2-5        (b)  Criminal history record information obtained under
    2-6  Subsection (a) may be used by the criminal justice agency for
    2-7  criminal justice purposes.
    2-8        (c)  Criminal history record information obtained under
    2-9  Subsection (a) may be released by the criminal justice agency:
   2-10              (1)  <to any other criminal justice agency,> if such
   2-11  release is for a criminal justice purpose; or <and>
   2-12              (2)  through audio response terminals and radio
   2-13  devices, whether digital or voice, if such dissemination is in
   2-14  accordance with rules promulgated by the department.
   2-15        SECTION 3.  Section 411.124, Government Code, is amended by
   2-16  adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
   2-17        (c)  A criminal justice agency may provide the
   2-18  record-of-conviction information obtained from the department to
   2-19  any political subdivision that either employs or has the duty and
   2-20  responsibility of licensing and regulating drivers of public
   2-21  transportation vehicles.
   2-22        SECTION 4.  Article 60.061, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
   2-23  amended to read as follows:
   2-24        Art. 60.061.  INFORMATION ON PERSONS LICENSED BY CERTAIN
   2-25  AGENCIES.  (a)  The Texas State Board of Medical Examiners, the
    3-1  Texas State Board of Podiatry Examiners, the State Board of Dental
    3-2  Examiners, the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, <and> the State Board
    3-3  of Veterinary Medical Examiners, and any state agency entitled to
    3-4  receive criminal history record information under Subchapter F,
    3-5  Chapter 411, Government Code, and that may take disciplinary action
    3-6  against a person licensed or otherwise regulated by the agency for
    3-7  engaging in a criminal act may, not more than once every three
    3-8  months, <shall> provide to the Department of Public Safety through
    3-9  electronic means, magnetic tape, or disk, as specified by the
   3-10  department, a list including the name, date of birth, and any other
   3-11  personal descriptive information required by the department for
   3-12  each person licensed by the respective agency.  <Each agency shall
   3-13  update this information and submit to the Department of Public
   3-14  Safety the updated information monthly.>
   3-15        (b)  The Department of Public Safety may establish a schedule
   3-16  for the voluntary provision of information to the department under
   3-17  Subsection (a) of this article to balance the department's
   3-18  workload.
   3-19        (c)  The Department of Public Safety shall perform <at least
   3-20  monthly> a computer match of the licensing list against the
   3-21  convictions maintained in the computerized criminal history system.
   3-22  The Department of Public Safety shall report to the appropriate
   3-23  licensing agency for verification and administrative action, as
   3-24  considered appropriate by the licensing agency, the name of any
   3-25  person found to have a record of conviction, except a defendant
    4-1  whose prosecution is deferred during a period of community
    4-2  supervision <probation> without an adjudication or plea of guilt.
    4-3        (d) <(c)>  The transmission of information by electronic
    4-4  means under Subsection (a) of this article does not affect whether
    4-5  the information is subject to disclosure under Chapter 552,
    4-6  Government Code <the open records law, Chapter 424, Acts of the
    4-7  63rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1973 (Article 6252-17a, Vernon's
    4-8  Texas Civil Statutes)>.
    4-9        (e)  The Department of Public Safety may not charge or assess
   4-10  a fee under this article to an agency providing information to the
   4-11  department under Subsection (a) of this article for performing the
   4-12  department's duties under this article.
   4-13        (f)  A criminal justice agency that provides information to a
   4-14  political subdivision under Section 411.124(c), Government Code,
   4-15  may provide to and receive from the Department of Public Safety
   4-16  requests for or results of a criminal history information search in
   4-17  the same manner as described in Subsections (a)-(e) of this
   4-18  article.
   4-19        SECTION 5.  (a)  The Private Investigators and Private
   4-20  Security Agencies Act (Article 4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil
   4-21  Statutes) is amended by adding Section 39A to read as follows:
   4-22        Sec. 39A.  DENIAL, SUSPENSION, OR REVOCATION OF LICENSE BASED
   4-23  ON CRIMINAL HISTORY BACKGROUND CHECK.  (a)  The board may obtain
   4-24  any criminal history record relating to an applicant for a license
   4-25  or a license holder regulated under this Act that is maintained by
    5-1  the Department of Public Safety and the Federal Bureau of
    5-2  Investigation.  The board shall deny an application for a person
    5-3  who does not provide two complete sets of fingerprints on forms
    5-4  prescribed by the board or fails to pay any required fee under this
    5-5  section.
    5-6        (b)  The board shall suspend a license, registration,
    5-7  security officer commission, letter of approval, or permit issued
    5-8  to an individual under this Act if the board receives written
    5-9  notification from the Department of Public Safety or any other law
   5-10  enforcement agency that the individual has been arrested for or
   5-11  charged with a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.
   5-12        (c)  The board shall deny an application for a license,
   5-13  registration, security officer commission, letter of approval, or
   5-14  permit for an individual if the board receives written notification
   5-15  from the Department of Public Safety or any other law enforcement
   5-16  agency that the individual has been arrested for or charged with a
   5-17  felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude.
   5-18        (d)  A license, security officer commission, registration,
   5-19  letter of approval, or permit is conditional on the board's receipt
   5-20  of criminal history information from the Department of Public
   5-21  Safety and shall be denied, suspended, or revoked if the board
   5-22  receives information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation or
   5-23  any other law enforcement agency that the individual or applicant
   5-24  has a record of having committed a criminal offense.
   5-25        (b)  Section 39A, The Private Investigators and Private
    6-1  Security Agencies Act (Article 4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil
    6-2  Statutes), as added by this Act, applies only to an arrest for or
    6-3  charge of a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude that
    6-4  occurs on or after the effective date of this Act.  An arrest for
    6-5  or charge of a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude
    6-6  that occurs before the effective date of this Act is governed by
    6-7  The Private Investigators and Private Security Agencies Act
    6-8  (Article 4413(29bb), Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) as it existed
    6-9  on the date of the arrest or charge, and the former law is
   6-10  continued in effect for that purpose.
   6-11        SECTION 6.  (a)  In addition to changes in the law made by
   6-12  this Act relating to the use by certain state agencies of the
   6-13  computerized criminal history search system of the Department of
   6-14  Public Safety, this Act conforms the Code of Criminal Procedure
   6-15  regarding criminal history searches to changes in the law made by
   6-16  Section 38, Chapter 790, and Section 2, Chapter 1025, Acts of the
   6-17  73rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1993.
   6-18        (b)  Section 38, Chapter 790, and Section 2, Chapter 1025,
   6-19  Acts of the 73rd Legislature, Regular Session, 1993, are repealed.
   6-20        SECTION 7.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   6-21        SECTION 8.  The importance of this legislation and the
   6-22  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   6-23  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   6-24  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   6-25  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.