By: Ellis S.B. No. 799
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the administration and operation of a pretrial services
1-2 office and the imposition of certain fees and costs.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Subsection (b), Article 17.031, Code of Criminal
1-5 Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
1-6 (b) If there is a pretrial services [personal bond] office
1-7 in the county from which the warrant for arrest was issued, the
1-8 court releasing a defendant on the defendant's [his] personal bond
1-9 will forward a copy of the personal bond to the pretrial services
1-10 [personal bond] office in that county.
1-11 SECTION 2. Article 17.42, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
1-12 amended to read as follows:
1-13 Art. 17.42. Pretrial Services [Personal Bond] OFFICE
1-14 Sec. 1. (a) Any county, or any judicial district with
1-15 jurisdiction in more than one county, with the approval of the
1-16 commissioners court of each county in the district, may establish a
1-17 pretrial services [personal bond] office to gather and review
1-18 information about an accused that may have a bearing on whether the
1-19 accused [he] will comply with the conditions of bail [a personal
1-20 bond] and report its findings to each court in the county or
1-21 judicial district, as appropriate, having criminal jurisdiction
1-22 [the court before which the case is pending]. A pretrial services
1-23 office established under this subsection may operate programs,
1-24 including programs that require testing for controlled substances,
2-1 to supervise persons released on personal, cash, or surety bond.
2-2 Sec. 2. (a) The judges of the district and statutory county
2-3 courts that are served by a pretrial services office as provided by
2-4 Section 1, with the approval of the commissioners court of each
2-5 county that established the pretrial services office, are entitled
2-6 to participate in the management of the pretrial services office.
2-7 (b) The commissioners court of a county that establishes the
2-8 office or the district and county judges of a judicial district
2-9 that establishes or participates in the management of the office
2-10 may employ a director of the office.
2-11 (c) [(b)] The director may employ the staff authorized by
2-12 the commissioners court of the county or the commissioners court of
2-13 each county in the judicial district.
2-14 Sec. 3. If a judicial district establishes an office, each
2-15 county in the district shall pay its pro rata share of the costs of
2-16 administering the office according to its population.
2-17 Sec. 4. (a) If a court uses the pretrial services office to
2-18 release a defendant on personal bond or to provide supervision of a
2-19 defendant released on a personal, cash, or surety bond, the court:
2-20 (1) shall assess either a personal bond fee or a
2-21 supervision fee for a defendant released on personal bond; or
2-22 (2) may assess a supervision fee for a defendant
2-23 released on surety or cash bond.
2-24 (b) The amount of a personal bond fee assessed under
2-25 Subsection (a) shall be [releases an accused on personal bond on
2-26 the recommendation of a personal bond office, the court shall
3-1 assess a personal bond fee of] $20 or three percent of the amount
3-2 of the bail fixed for the accused, whichever is greater.
3-3 (c) The amount of a supervision fee assessed under
3-4 Subsection (a) shall be not less than $25 or more than $40 each
3-5 month during which the defendant is under the supervision of the
3-6 pretrial services office.
3-7 (d) In assessing a fee under Subsection (a), the [The] court
3-8 may:
3-9 (1) waive the fee or assess a lesser fee if good cause
3-10 is shown; or
3-11 (2) require payment of the fee as:
3-12 (A) a condition of release;
3-13 (B) a condition of the bond; or
3-14 (C) court costs.
3-15 (e) The court may require a defendant to pay costs incurred
3-16 by a pretrial services office in requiring the defendant to submit
3-17 to electronic monitoring or testing for controlled substances or to
3-18 provide the defendant with an interlock ignition device or other
3-19 services related to the supervision of the defendant.
3-20 (f) [(b)] Fees collected under this article may be used
3-21 solely to defray expenses of the pretrial services [personal bond]
3-22 office, including defraying the expenses of extradition.
3-23 (g) [(c)] Fees collected under this article shall be
3-24 deposited in the county treasury, or if the office serves more than
3-25 one county, the fees shall be apportioned to each county in the
3-26 district according to each county's pro rata share of the costs of
4-1 the office.
4-2 Sec. 5. (a) A pretrial services [personal bond pretrial
4-3 release] office established under this article shall:
4-4 (1) prepare a record containing information about any
4-5 accused person identified by case number only who, after review by
4-6 the office, is released by a court on personal bond;
4-7 (2) update the record on a monthly basis; and
4-8 (3) post a copy of the record in the office of the
4-9 clerk of the county court in any county served by the office.
4-10 (b) In preparing a record under Subsection (a), the office
4-11 shall include in the record a statement of:
4-12 (1) the offense with which the person is charged;
4-13 (2) the dates of any court appearances scheduled in
4-14 the matter that were previously unattended by the person;
4-15 (3) whether a warrant has been issued for the person's
4-16 arrest for failure to appear in accordance with the terms of the
4-17 person's release;
4-18 (4) whether the person has failed to comply with
4-19 conditions of release on personal bond; and
4-20 (5) the presiding judge or magistrate who authorized
4-21 the personal bond.
4-22 (c) This section does not apply to a pretrial services
4-23 [personal bond pretrial release] office that on January 1, 1995,
4-24 was operated by a community corrections and supervision department.
4-25 Sec. 6. (a) Not later than April 1 of each year, a pretrial
4-26 services [personal bond] office established under this article
5-1 shall submit to the commissioners court that established the office
5-2 or district and county judges that established or participate in
5-3 the management of the office an annual report containing
5-4 information about the operations of the office during the preceding
5-5 year.
5-6 (b) In preparing an annual report under Subsection (a), the
5-7 office shall include in the report a statement of:
5-8 (1) the office's operating budget;
5-9 (2) the number of positions maintained for office
5-10 staff;
5-11 (3) the number of accused persons who, after review by
5-12 the office, were released by a court on personal bond; and
5-13 (4) the number of persons described by Subdivision
5-14 (3):
5-15 (A) who were convicted of the same offense or of
5-16 any felony within the six years preceding the date on which charges
5-17 were filed in the matter pending during the person's release;
5-18 (B) who failed to attend a scheduled court
5-19 appearance;
5-20 (C) for whom a warrant was issued for the
5-21 person's arrest for failure to appear in accordance with the terms
5-22 of the person's release; or
5-23 (D) who were arrested for any other offense
5-24 while on the personal bond.
5-25 (c) This section does not apply to a pretrial services
5-26 [personal bond pretrial release] office that on January 1, 1995,
6-1 was operated by a community corrections and supervision department.
6-2 SECTION 3. Subsection (g), Article 17.03, Code of Criminal
6-3 Procedure, is repealed.
6-4 SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act to Section 4,
6-5 Article 17.42, Code of Criminal Procedure, applies only to a person
6-6 released on bond or a defendant placed on community supervision on
6-7 or after the effective date of this Act.
6-8 SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
6-9 SECTION 6. The importance of this legislation and the
6-10 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-11 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-12 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-13 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.