HBA-GUM H.B. 2990 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2990 By: Davis, John Juvenile Justice & Family Issues 4/8/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, makeup visitation which is awarded by a judge based upon a previous violation of court ordered possession of or access to a child must be made up within a one year period. In some cases, such as making up Christmas or another holiday, it may be that the non-custodial parent had already been granted the following holiday. As a result, the visitation could not be made up because the next holiday was more than one year after the denied possession. In addition, the denied visitation may be difficult to make up within one year without giving exclusive possession of the child to the noncustodial parent, which judges may not be willing to do. H.B. 2990 provides that additional periods of possession of or access to a child must be made up within a two-year period, rather than a oneyear period. This bill also requires a court, upon finding that a respondent has interfered with the court's order for possession of or access to a child, to order the respondent to pay the movant's attorney's fees and court costs. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 157.167, Family Code, by adding Subsection (c), to require a court, upon finding that a respondent has interfered with the court's order for possession of or access to a child, to order the respondent to pay the movant's attorney's fees and court costs. SECTION 2. Amends Section 157.168(a), Family Code, to provide that additional periods of possession of or access to a child granted as compensation for the denial of court-ordered possession or access must occur on or before the second, rather than the first, anniversary of the date the court finds such a denial has occurred. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 4. Emergency clause.