By Gallego H.B. No. 3255
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to compensation to certain victims of domestic violence
1-3 from the compensation to victims of crime fund.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Article 56.32(9), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 (9) "Pecuniary loss" means the amount of expense
1-8 reasonably and necessarily incurred as a result of personal injury
1-9 or death for:
1-10 (A) medical, hospital, nursing, or psychiatric
1-11 care or counseling, or physical therapy;
1-12 (B) actual loss of past earnings and anticipated
1-13 loss of future earnings and necessary travel expenses because of:
1-14 (i) a disability resulting from the
1-15 personal injury;
1-16 (ii) the receipt of medically indicated
1-17 services related to the disability resulting from the personal
1-18 injury; or
1-19 (iii) participation in or attendance at
1-20 investigative, prosecutorial, or judicial processes related to the
1-21 criminally injurious conduct and participation in or attendance at
1-22 any postconviction or postadjudication proceeding relating to
1-23 criminally injurious conduct;
1-24 (C) care of a child or dependent;
2-1 (D) funeral and burial expenses;
2-2 (E) loss of support to a dependent, consistent
2-3 with Article 56.41(b)(5);
2-4 (F) reasonable and necessary costs of cleaning
2-5 the crime scene; [and]
2-6 (G) reasonable replacement costs for clothing,
2-7 bedding, or property of the victim seized as evidence or rendered
2-8 unusable as a result of the criminal investigation; and
2-9 (H) reasonable and necessary costs, as provided
2-10 by Article 56.42(d), incurred by a victim of domestic violence for
2-11 relocation and housing rental assistance payments.
2-12 SECTION 2. Article 56.42, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
2-13 amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
2-14 (d) A victim who is a victim of domestic violence may
2-15 receive a onetime-only assistance payment in an amount not to
2-16 exceed:
2-17 (1) $2,000 to be used for relocation expenses,
2-18 including expenses for rental deposit, utility connections,
2-19 expenses relating to the moving of belongings, motor vehicle
2-20 mileage expenses, and for out-of-state moves, transportation,
2-21 lodging, and meals; and
2-22 (2) $1,800 to be used for housing rental expenses.
2-23 SECTION 3. (a) The changes in law made by this Act apply
2-24 only to a victim of a criminal offense committed or a violation
2-25 that occurs on or after the effective date of this Act. For the
2-26 purposes of this Act, a criminal offense is committed or a
2-27 violation occurs before the effective date of this Act if any
3-1 element of the offense or violation occurs before that date.
3-2 (b) A criminal offense committed or violation that occurs
3-3 before the effective date of this Act is covered by the law in
3-4 effect when the criminal offense was committed or the violation
3-5 occurred, and the former law is continued in effect for this
3-6 purpose.
3-7 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
3-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
3-12 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
3-13 passage, and it is so enacted.