SRC-AAA C.S.S.B. 646 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research CenterC.S.S.B. 646 By: Brown Jurisprudence 4-15-97 Committee Report (Substituted) DIGEST Currently, court reporters are certified by the Texas Supreme Court after reporting proficiency has been tested and approved by the Court Reporters Certification Board (board). Compliance with standards of conduct and professionalism is thereafter subject to both statutory and board supervision. However, court reporting firms may be owned by non-court reporters and therefore are not subject to any of the aforementioned standards. This bill requires court reporting firms to be subject to the same standards as the court reporters in their employ. PURPOSE As proposed, C.S.S.B. 646 requires court reporting firms to be subject to the same standards as the court reporters in their employ. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 52.021, Government Code, by adding Subsections (h) and (i), as follows: (h) Requires a court reporting firm to register with the Court Reporters Certification Board (board) by completing an application in a form adopted by the board. (i) Provides that rules applicable to a court reporter are also applicable to a court reporting firm. Authorizes the board to enforce this subsection by assessing a reasonable fee against a court reporting firm. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1997. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE CHANGES SECTION 1. Amends Section 52.021, Government Code, to delete proposed Subsection (b). Adds Subsection (i) to provide that rules applicable to a court reporter are also applicable to a court reporting firm. Authorizes the board to enforce this subsection by assessing a reasonable fee against a court reporting firm.