By Oakley                                       H.B. No. 2617

      75R8628 T                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

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

 1-3     offenses.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subchapter D, Chapter 415.082, Code of Criminal

 1-6     Procedure, is amended to read as follows:

 1-7           (a)  A person convicted of a criminal offense shall pay as

 1-8     court costs $[3.50] 4.00 in addition to other taxable court costs.

 1-9     These additional court costs shall be collected in the same manner

1-10     that other fines or court costs in the case are collected.  Subject

1-11     to amounts retained under Section 415.083(d), the costs collected

1-12     under this subsection shall be deposited with the state comptroller

1-13     for the purposes as follows:

1-14                 (1)  $1 to the credit of the law enforcement officer

1-15     standards and education account for administrative expenses;

1-16                 (2)  $2 to the credit of the law enforcement officer

1-17     standards and education account for expenses related to the

1-18     continuing education of persons licensed; and

1-19                 (3)  [$.50] $1 to the credit of the Bill Blackwood Law

1-20     Enforcement Management Institute of Texas fund established under

1-21     Section 96.64(l), Education Code.

1-22           SECTION 2.  Subchapter D, Chapter 96.64, Education Code, is

1-23     amended by adding Subsections (e) and (f) to read as follows:

1-24           (e)  The Board of Regents of the Texas State University

 2-1     System may acquire, purchase, construct, improve, renovate,

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

 2-3     roads, or related infrastructure for the Bill Blackwood Law

 2-4     Enforcement Management Institute of Texas to be financed by the

 2-5     issuance of bonds in accordance with this subchapter.

 2-6           (f)  The Board of Regents of Texas State University may

 2-7     pledge irrevocably to the payment of those bonds a portion of the

 2-8     proceeds of the Bill Blackwood Law Enforcement Management Institute

 2-9     of Texas fund.  The amount of a pledge made under this subsection

2-10     may not be reduced or abrogated while the bonds for which the

2-11     pledge is made, or bonds issued to refund those bonds, are

2-12     outstanding.

2-13           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-14     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-15     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-16     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-17     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.