SRC-JBJ C.S.H.B. 1140 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research CenterC.S.H.B. 1140
76R1742 PAM-FBy: Thompson (Armbrister)
Criminal Justice
5/14/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)


DIGEST 

Currently, clerks must send a certified copy of each felony judgment of
conviction to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) and an
abstract of the final felony conviction to the voter registrar in the
felon's county of residence.  This is a duplication of reporting
requirements performed by TDCJ, as TDCJ is also required to send felony
information to voter registrars of Texas. An additional duplication is that
some district clerks enter felony conviction data into their local jury
pool and voter registration system, and report this information to the
Department of Public Safety (DPS), which stores the information in a
statewide data bank.  C.S.H.B. 1140 would require the DPS, rather than
certain clerks, to send an abstract of felony judgment to the voter
registrar. 

PURPOSE

As proposed, C.S.H.B. 1140 amends regulations regarding a voter
registration notice on a person convicted of a felony. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 16.003, Election Code, to delete text regarding
requirements regarding the felony jurisdiction of the clerk of the court.   

SECTION 2.Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 3.Emergency clause.