By Allen, Culberson H.B. No. 1301
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the oversight of the private sector prison industries
1-3 program.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 497, Government Code, is
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 SUBCHAPTER C. PRIVATE SECTOR PRISON INDUSTRIES OVERSIGHT AUTHORITY
1-8 [WORK PROGRAM PLAN]
1-9 Sec. 497.051. PURPOSE; DEFINITION [WORK PROGRAM PLAN].
1-10 (a) The Private Sector Prison Industries Oversight Authority is
1-11 created to approve, certify, and oversee the operation of private
1-12 sector prison industries programs in the department, the Texas
1-13 Youth Commission, and in county correctional facilities in
1-14 compliance [shall establish policies for the administration of a
1-15 conditional work program that may employ not more than 500 male and
1-16 female work program residents. The policies must include a work
1-17 program contract that includes an agreement by the resident to
1-18 contribute from the wages received by the resident for the
1-19 resident's participation in private industry employment a
1-20 percentage of the wages, in accordance with rules adopted by the
1-21 board to comply] with the federal prison enhancement certification
1-22 program established under 18 U.S.C. Section 1761[, and a
1-23 percentage of the wages for:]
1-24 [(1) costs of supervision;]
2-1 [(2) restitution to the victim or victims of the
2-2 resident; and]
2-3 [(3) savings to be retained for the resident in a
2-4 designated account for the resident's benefit and receipt on
2-5 release]. The executive director shall provide the authority with
2-6 clerical and technical support as necessary for the authority to
2-7 perform duties imposed on the authority by this subchapter and
2-8 shall ensure that the department implements the policies adopted by
2-9 the authority that relate to the operation of private sector prison
2-10 industries programs.
2-11 (b) In this [This] subchapter, "authority" means the Private
2-12 Sector Prison Industries Oversight Authority [does not restore in
2-13 whole or in part the civil rights of a work program resident.]
2-14 [(c) A work program resident employed under this subchapter
2-15 is not subject to workers' compensation laws, and the resident and
2-16 the resident's beneficiaries may not receive compensation under
2-17 those laws, except that a private industry may provide workers'
2-18 compensation benefits to a resident and a resident's beneficiaries
2-19 as necessary to certify a work program operated by the industry as
2-20 a work pilot project described in 18 U.S.C. Section 1761].
2-21 Sec. 497.052. MEMBERSHIP. (a) The authority is composed of
2-22 nine members appointed by the governor:
2-23 (1) one of whom is representative of labor;
2-24 (2) one of whom is representative of employers;
2-25 (3) one of whom is representative of groups advocating
2-26 the rights of victims of criminal offenses;
2-27 (4) one of whom is representative of groups advocating
3-1 the rights of inmates;
3-2 (5) one of whom is experienced in the field of
3-3 vocational rehabilitation;
3-4 (6) one of whom is an employer in the private sector
3-5 prison industries program that is certified as in compliance with
3-6 the federal prison enhancement certification program established
3-7 under 18 U.S.C. Section 1761; and
3-8 (7) three of whom are public members.
3-9 (b) The governor shall appoint the representative of labor
3-10 from a list of three persons recommended by a recognized state
3-11 labor federation, except that if the labor federation fails to
3-12 recommend at least three persons, the governor may appoint any wage
3-13 earner of the governor's choice as the labor representative.
3-14 (c) The following individuals shall serve as ex officio
3-15 members of the authority:
3-16 (1) a member of the house of representatives
3-17 designated by the speaker of the house;
3-18 (2) a member of the senate designated by the
3-19 lieutenant governor;
3-20 (3) the executive director of the Texas Department of
3-21 Criminal Justice or the designee of the executive director; and
3-22 (4) the executive director of the Texas Workforce
3-23 Commission or the designee of the executive director.
3-24 Sec. 497.053. TERMS. Appointed members of the authority
3-25 serve staggered six-year terms, with three members' terms expiring
3-26 on February 1 of each odd-numbered year.
3-27 Sec. 497.054. PRESIDING OFFICER. The governor shall
4-1 designate the presiding officer from among the members of the
4-2 authority, and the presiding officer shall serve in that capacity
4-3 at the pleasure of the governor.
4-4 Sec. 497.055. REIMBURSEMENT. A member of the authority is
4-5 not entitled to compensation but is entitled to reimbursement of
4-6 the travel expenses incurred by the member while conducting the
4-7 business of the authority as provided in the General Appropriations
4-8 Act.
4-9 Sec. 497.056. PRIVATE SECTOR PRISON INDUSTRIES OVERSIGHT
4-10 ACCOUNT. (a) A private sector prison industries program shall
4-11 make an annual payment to the authority in an amount equal to the
4-12 amount of money the program would pay during that year for
4-13 unemployment insurance if the employees of the program were engaged
4-14 in non-prison employment.
4-15 (b) The authority shall forward fees collected under this
4-16 section to the comptroller. The comptroller shall deposit the fees
4-17 to the credit of an account in the general revenue fund to be known
4-18 as the private sector prison industries oversight account. The
4-19 legislature may appropriate funds from the account only for the
4-20 purpose of paying the costs of the authority and the department in
4-21 implementing this subchapter. At the end of each fiscal year, the
4-22 comptroller shall transfer the excess funds in the account to the
4-23 state treasury to the credit of the crime victims compensation
4-24 fund.
4-25 (c) The authority by rule shall adopt a method for
4-26 determining the amount of the fee owed by an industry under this
4-27 section and a schedule for the payment of fees under this section.
5-1 Sec. 497.057. RULES. The authority shall adopt rules as
5-2 necessary to ensure that the private sector prison industries
5-3 program authorized by this subchapter is in compliance with the
5-4 federal prison enhancement certification program established under
5-5 18 U.S.C. 1761.
5-6 Sec. 497.058. PREVAILING WAGE. (a) The authority by rule
5-7 shall require that inmate employees at each private sector prison
5-8 industries program are paid not less than the prevailing wage as
5-9 computed by the authority, except that the authority may permit
5-10 employers to pay an employee the minimum wage for the two-month
5-11 period beginning on the date employment begins.
5-12 (b) For the purposes of computations required by this
5-13 section:
5-14 (1) the prevailing wage is the wage paid for work of
5-15 a similar nature in the location in which the work is performed;
5-16 (2) work of a similar nature is determined by openings
5-17 and wages by occupation data collected by the economic research and
5-18 analysis department of the Texas Workforce Commission; and
5-19 (3) the location in which work is performed is the
5-20 council of government region in which the work is performed.
5-21 Sec. 497.0581. INMATE CONTRIBUTIONS. The authority by rule
5-22 shall require an inmate to contribute a percentage of the wages
5-23 received by the inmate under this subchapter to be deposited in the
5-24 private sector prison industries oversight account. In
5-25 establishing the percentage of the wages required to be contributed
5-26 by inmates under this section, the authority shall ensure that the
5-27 percentage does not place the private sector prison industries
6-1 programs in the department in noncompliance with the federal prison
6-2 enhancement certification program established under 18 U.S.C.
6-3 Section 1761.
6-4 Sec. 497.059. LIMITING IMPACT ON NON-PRISON INDUSTRY. The
6-5 authority may not grant initial certification to a private sector
6-6 prison industries program if the authority determines that the
6-7 operation of the program would result in the loss of existing jobs
6-8 provided by the employer in this state.
6-9 Sec. 497.060. WORKERS' COMPENSATION. The authority by rule
6-10 shall require private sector prison industries program employers to
6-11 meet or exceed all federal requirements for providing compensation
6-12 to inmates injured while working.
6-13 Sec. 497.061. RECIDIVISM STUDIES. The authority, with the
6-14 cooperation of the Criminal Justice Policy Council, shall gather
6-15 data to determine whether participation in a private sector prison
6-16 industries program is a factor that reduces recidivism among
6-17 inmates.
6-18 Sec. 497.062. LIMITATION ON NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS. The
6-19 authority may certify any number of private sector prison
6-20 industries programs that meet or exceed the requirements of federal
6-21 law and the rules of the authority, but in no event may the
6-22 authority permit more than 3,000 inmates to participate in the
6-23 program at any one time.
6-24 SECTION 2. Section 8A, Article 42.18, Code of Criminal
6-25 Procedure, is amended by adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
6-26 (g) In determining under Subsection (b) whether to require
6-27 an inmate to reside in a county in which the inmate has a verified
7-1 job offer, if the employer making the job offer states to the panel
7-2 that the job offer results from the inmate's participation in a
7-3 private sector prison industries program under Subchapter C,
7-4 Chapter 497, Government Code, the panel shall require the inmate to
7-5 reside in the county in which the job offer exists, unless to do so
7-6 would pose a threat to the life or safety of a victim of the
7-7 defendant's offense, a witness in the case, or any other person.
7-8 SECTION 3. (a) The initial appointments of the members of
7-9 the Private Sector Prison Industries Oversight Authority, as
7-10 required by Section 497.052, Government Code, as added by this Act,
7-11 are as provided by this section. On or before November 1, 1997,
7-12 the governor shall request of recognized state and local labor
7-13 federations a list of three individuals, as described by Section
7-14 497.052(b). On or before January 1, 1998, the governor shall
7-15 appoint the initial authority members. Of the initial public
7-16 members, the governor shall appoint one to serve a term expiring
7-17 February 1, 1999, one to serve a term expiring February 1, 2001,
7-18 and one to serve a term expiring February 1, 2003, and of the
7-19 nonpublic members, the governor shall appoint two to serve terms
7-20 expiring February 1, 1999, two to serve terms expiring February 1,
7-21 2001, and two to serve terms expiring February 1, 2003. On
7-22 expiration of those terms, the term of a member of the authority is
7-23 six years, as provided by Section 497.053, Government Code.
7-24 (b) The Private Sector Prison Industries Oversight Authority
7-25 by March 1, 1998, shall adopt the rules that the authority is
7-26 required to adopt under Subchapter C, Chapter 497, Government Code,
7-27 as amended by this Act.
8-1 SECTION 4. On January 1, 1998, the powers, duties, and
8-2 obligations of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to oversee
8-3 the private sector prison industries program authorized by
8-4 Subchapter C, Chapter 497, Government Code, are transferred to the
8-5 Private Sector Prison Industries Oversight Authority, as are any
8-6 funds appropriated to the department for oversight of the program.
8-7 On transfer of oversight authority and appropriated funds, the
8-8 remaining duties of the department in regard to the program are as
8-9 described by Subchapter C, Chapter 497, as amended by this Act.
8-10 SECTION 5. Notwithstanding Section 497.051(a), Government
8-11 Code, as amended by this Act, the Private Sector Prison Industries
8-12 Oversight Authority is not authorized to approve, certify, or
8-13 oversee the operations of a private sector prison industries
8-14 program operated on the effective date of this Act under a
8-15 provisional certificate issued to a nongovernmental entity under 18
8-16 U.S.C. Section 1761.
8-17 SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
8-18 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
8-19 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
8-20 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
8-21 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
8-22 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.