HBA-MSH H.B. 1536 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1536 By: Coleman Civil Practices 3/7/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law a person who is wrongfully imprisoned is entitled to a maximum of $50,000 in total compensation. No adjustments have been made to the amount of the total maximum compensation since this provision was enacted. As a result, the amount of compensation does not appropriately reflect the amount of time a person has been wrongfully imprisoned. House Bill 1536 amends provisions relating to compensation to provide that a claimant to entitled to $20,000 for each year of wrongful imprisonment and removes the requirement that a person must have plead "not guilty" to the crime to be eligible to receive compensation. 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. ANALYSIS House Bill 1536 amends the Civil Practice and Remedies Code to remove the provision that requires a person to have plead "not guilty" to the charge for which the person was sentenced to be entitled to compensation for being wrongly imprisoned. The bill provides that a person wrongfully imprisoned is entitled to $20,000 for each full year that the person was wrongfully imprisoned, prorated for each part of a year the person was imprisoned and adjusted for inflation. The bill sets forth provisions regarding the annual computation of the multiplier to be used to adjust such damages. The bill deletes provisions relating to monetary damages for physical and mental pain and suffering. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.