By:  Harris                                            S.B. No. 348

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

                                       AN ACT

 1-1     relating to costs in certain family law cases.

 1-2           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-3           SECTION 1.  Section 106.001, Family Code, is amended to read

 1-4     as follows:

 1-5           Sec. 106.001.  COSTS. The court may award costs in [the same

 1-6     manner as in other civil cases in] a suit or motion under this

 1-7     title and in a habeas corpus proceeding.

 1-8           SECTION 2.  Subsection (a), Section 106.002, Family Code, is

 1-9     amended to read as follows:

1-10           (a)  In a suit under this title [subtitle], the court may

1-11     order reasonable attorney's fees as costs and order the fees to be

1-12     paid directly to an attorney.

1-13           SECTION 3.  Subsection (g), Section 152.007, Family Code, is

1-14     amended to read as follows:

1-15           (g)  If it appears to the court that it is clearly an

1-16     inappropriate forum, the court may require the party who commenced

1-17     the proceedings to pay, in addition to the costs of the proceedings

1-18     in this state, necessary travel and other expenses, including

1-19     attorney's fees, incurred by other parties or their witnesses.

1-20     [Payment is to be made to the clerk of the court for remittance to

1-21     the proper party.]

1-22           SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, and

1-23     applies to a pending suit affecting the parent-child relationship

 2-1     without regard to whether the suit was commenced before, on, or

 2-2     after the effective date of this Act.

 2-3           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the

 2-4     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-5     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-6     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-7     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.