1-1     By:  Thompson (Senate Sponsor - Ellis)                 H.B. No. 622

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 9, 1997;

 1-3     April 10, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on

 1-4     Jurisprudence; April 15, 1997, reported favorably by the following

 1-5     vote:  Yeas 7, Nays 0; April 15, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to educational requirements for certain court clerks and

 1-9     personnel.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Section 56.006, Government Code, is amended to

1-12     read as follows:

1-13           Sec. 56.006.  RULES; OVERSIGHT.  (a)  The court of criminal

1-14     appeals may adopt rules for programs relating to education and

1-15     training for attorneys, judges, [court personnel, and] justices of

1-16     the peace, district clerks, county clerks, and court personnel,

1-17     including court coordinators, as provided by Section 56.003 and for

1-18     the administration of those programs, including rules that:

1-19                 (1)  require entities receiving a grant of funds to

1-20     provide legislatively required training; and

1-21                 (2)  base the awarding of grant funds to an entity on

1-22     qualitative information about the entity's programs or services and

1-23     the entity's ability to meet financial performance standards.

1-24           (b)  The court of criminal appeals, for the proper

1-25     administration of this chapter and as part of its oversight of

1-26     training programs for attorneys, judges, [court personnel, and]

1-27     justices of the peace, district clerks, county clerks, and court

1-28     personnel, including court coordinators, as provided by Section

1-29     56.003, shall monitor both the financial performance and the

1-30     program performance of entities receiving a grant of funds under

1-31     this chapter.

1-32           SECTION 2.  Subchapter E, Chapter 74, Government Code, is

1-33     amended by adding Section 74.106 to read as follows:

1-34           Sec. 74.106.  CONTINUING EDUCATION.  (a)  Except as provided

1-35     by Subsection (b), a court coordinator of a district court or

1-36     statutory county court shall annually complete 16 hours of

1-37     continuing education as provided by rules adopted by the court of

1-38     criminal appeals under Chapter 56.

1-39           (b)  The court of criminal appeals may not require a court

1-40     coordinator to complete continuing education instruction during a

1-41     year in which the judge or commissioners court of the county

1-42     employing the court coordinator certifies to the court of criminal

1-43     appeals that state and local funds are not available for the court

1-44     coordinator's continuing education.

1-45           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-46           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-47     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-48     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-49     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-50     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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