1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the assessment of certain court costs in criminal cases

 1-3     and the use of that revenue to fund the Bill Blackwood Law

 1-4     Enforcement Management Institute.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Section 415.082(a), Government Code, is amended

 1-7     to read as follows:

 1-8           (a)  A person convicted of a criminal offense shall pay as

 1-9     court costs $4 [$3.50] in addition to other taxable court costs.

1-10     These additional court costs shall be collected in the same manner

1-11     that other fines or court costs in the case are collected.  Subject

1-12     to amounts retained under Section 415.083(d), the costs collected

1-13     under this subsection shall be deposited in the state treasury as

1-14     follows:

1-15                 (1)  $1 to the credit of the law enforcement officer

1-16     standards and education account for administrative expenses;

1-17                 (2)  $2 to the credit of the law enforcement officer

1-18     standards and education account for expenses related to the

1-19     continuing education of persons licensed under this chapter; and

1-20                 (3)  $1 [50 cents] to the credit of the Bill Blackwood

1-21     Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas fund established

1-22     under  Section 96.64 [96.64(l)], Education Code.

1-23           SECTION 2.  Section 96.64, Education Code, is amended by

1-24     adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:

 2-1           (e)  The board of regents of the Texas State University

 2-2     System may acquire, purchase, construct, improve, renovate,

 2-3     enlarge, or equip property, buildings, structures, facilities,

 2-4     roads, or related infrastructure for the institute to be financed

 2-5     by the issuance of bonds in accordance with Subchapter B, Chapter

 2-6     55.  The board of regents may pledge irrevocably to the payment of

 2-7     those bonds a portion of the proceeds of the Bill Blackwood Law

 2-8     Enforcement Management Institute of Texas fund.  The amount of a

 2-9     pledge made under this subsection may not be reduced or abrogated

2-10     while the bonds for which the pledge is made, or bonds issued to

2-11     refund those bonds, are outstanding.

2-12           SECTION 3.  (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b), this

2-13     Act takes effect on September 1, 1997.

2-14           (b)  Section 1 of this Act takes effect only if H.B. No.

2-15     2272, 75th Legislature, Regular Session, 1997, does not become law.

2-16           SECTION 4.  The change in law made by Section 1 of this Act

2-17     applies only to a conviction of a criminal offense that occurs on

2-18     or after the effective date of this Act.

2-19           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-20     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-21     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-22     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-23     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

         _______________________________     _______________________________

             President of the Senate              Speaker of the House

               I certify that H.B. No. 2617 was passed by the House on May

         1, 1997, by a non-record vote; and that the House concurred in

         Senate amendments to H.B. No. 2617 on May 25, 1997, by a non-record

         vote.

                                             _______________________________

                                                 Chief Clerk of the House

               I certify that H.B. No. 2617 was passed by the Senate, with

         amendments, on May 23, 1997, by a viva-voce vote.

                                             _______________________________

                                                 Secretary of the Senate

         APPROVED:  _____________________

                            Date

                    _____________________

                          Governor