SRC-JJJ S.B. 118 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research CenterS.B. 118
By: Harris
Jurisprudence
6/23/1999
Enrolled


DIGEST 

Currently, Texas law requires a person convicted of failing to pay child
support to pay restitution directly to the eligible person.  Payment made
directly to a person, rather than through a local registry or the child
support division of the Attorney Generals Office, will continue to reflect
a person's delinquent status because there is no record of the payments.
This bill will require a person who is both ordered by a court to pay child
support and has been convicted of failure to pay that child support, to pay
restitution directly to a local registry or the child support division. 

PURPOSE

As enrolled, S.B. 118 establishes provisions regarding the payment of
restitution for the offense of criminal nonsupport of a child. 

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 Chapter 2, Code of Criminal Procedure, by adding Article
2.025, as follows: 

Art. 2.025.  SPECIAL DUTY OF DISTRICT OR COUNTY ATTORNEY RELATING TO CHILD
SUPPORT.  Requires a district or county attorney to transfer money to the
local registry or Title IV-D agency designated as the place of payment in a
child support order, if the attorney receives payment as court-ordered
child support from a person required by a court order to pay child support
to the local registry or Title IV-D agency. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Article 42.037(g)(4), Code of Criminal Procedure, to
require an order of restitution to require the defendant to make
restitution directly to the victim or  other eligible person, except as
provided by Subsection (n).  

SECTION 3.  Amends Article 42.037, Code of Criminal Procedure, by adding
Subsection (n), to set forth the manner of payment for a defendant that is
convicted of or receives deferred adjudication for an offense under Section
25.05, Penal Code, if the defendant was supposed to pay child support to a
local registry or Title IV-D agency, and if the court orders restitution. 

SECTION 4.  Makes application of Article 42.037, Code of Criminal
Procedure, as amended by this Act, prospective. 

SECTION 5.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

SECTION 6.  Emergency clause.