By Hilderbran                                         H.B. No. 2012
         76R4571 DRH-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to requiring a defendant to compensate a county that
 1-3     collects a fee, fine, restitution, or other costs through a
 1-4     collection contract with a public or private vendor.
 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-6           SECTION 1.  Article 103.0031, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
 1-7     amended to read as follows:
 1-8           Art. 103.0031.  COLLECTION CONTRACTS.  (a)  The commissioners
 1-9     court of a county may enter into a contract with a public or
1-10     private vendor for the provision of collection services for fines,
1-11     fees, restitution, and other costs ordered to be paid by a court
1-12     serving the county.
1-13           (b)  A judge who requires a defendant to pay a fine, fee,
1-14     restitution, or other costs may require the defendant to pay an
1-15     administrative fee to a county if the county collects the fine,
1-16     fee, restitution, or costs through a contract entered into under
1-17     Subsection (a).  The amount of the administrative fee may not
1-18     exceed the actual cost to the county of collecting from the
1-19     defendant, through the services of the public or private vendor,
1-20     the fine, fee, restitution, or costs.
1-21           (c)  An administrative fee collected under this article shall
1-22     be deposited to a special account in the county treasury.  Money in
1-23     the account may be used only for the provision of collection
1-24     services under this article.
 2-1           SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
 2-2     only to the imposition of an administrative fee on a defendant
 2-3     convicted of an offense committed on or after the effective date of
 2-4     this Act.  For purposes of this section, an offense is committed
 2-5     before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense
 2-6     occurs before the effective date.
 2-7           (b)  The imposition of an administrative fee on a defendant
 2-8     convicted of an offense committed before the effective date of this
 2-9     Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
2-10     and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
2-11           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
2-12           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
2-13     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-14     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-15     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-16     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.