SRC-BWC, JEC S.B. 68 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research Center S.B. 68 2001S0018/3 11/07/00By: Moncrief Jurisprudence 1/22/2001 As Filed DIGEST AND PURPOSE Currently, protective orders apply only to married couples, couples with a child, or cohabitating couples. There have been recent incidents of domestic-violence-related murders where the victims have been unable to obtain a protective order because the victim did not meet the above criteria. As proposed, S.B. 68 enables individuals, who have had a continuous social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with an abusive partner, to apply for an order to protect the victim and the victim's child. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 71, Family Code, to add Section 71.0021, as follows: Sec. 71.0021. DATING VIOLENCE. Defines "dating violence," "dating relationship," and specifies that a casual acquaintanceship or ordinary fraternization in a business or social context does not constitute a "dating relationship." SECTION 2. Amends Section 71.004, Family Code, to include dating violence, as defined by Section 71.0021, in the definition of family violence. SECTION 3. Amends Section 82.002, Family Code, to authorize an adult member of a family or household, with regard to family violence under Section 71.004(1) or (2), to file an application for a protective order to protect the applicant or any other member of the applicant's family or household. Deletes certain language regarding adults. Authorizes an adult member of the dating relationship, with regard to family violence under Section 71.004(3), to file an application for a protective order to protect the applicant. Authorizes any adult to apply for a protective order to protect a child from family violence. Makes nonsubstantive changes. SECTION 4. Amends Section 83.001, Family Code, to authorize the court, if the court finds from the information contained in an application for a protective order that there is a clear and present danger of family violence, without further notice to the individual alleged to have committed family violence, rather than any other member of the family or household, and without a hearing, to enter a temporary ex parte order for the protection of the applicant or any other member of the family or household of the applicant. SECTION 5. Amends Section 83.004, Family Code, to authorize any individual, rather than any member of the family or household, affected by a temporary ex parte order to file a motion at any time to vacate the order. SECTION 6. Amends Section 85.001, Family Code, to authorize the court, if the court finds that family violence has occurred and is likely to occur in the future, to render a protective order as provided by Section 85.021 applying to both parties that it is in the best interest of the person protected by the order, rather than the family or household, or member of the family or household of the person protected by the order. SECTION 7. Amends Section 85.007, Family Code, to make conforming changes. SECTION 8. Amends Section 85.022, Family Code, to make conforming changes. SECTION 9. Amends Section 85.042, Family Code, to require the clerk of the court issuing an original or modified protective order under this subtitle to send a copy of the order, along with certain other information, to the chief of police of the municipality in which the person, rather than member of the family or household, protected by the order resides, if the person resides in a municipality, or to the appropriate constable and the sheriff of the county in which the person resides if the person does not reside in a municipality. SECTION 10. Effective date: September 1, 2001.