By Goolsby                                             H.B. No. 155
         77R1245 JMC-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the expunction of arrest records by a person in the
 1-3     business of publishing or disclosing conviction or arrest
 1-4     information and to the creation of an offense prohibiting the use
 1-5     or release of certain arrest information by that person.
 1-6           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-7           SECTION 1. Section 2(b), Article 55.02, Code of Criminal
 1-8     Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
 1-9           (b)  The petition must be verified and shall include the
1-10     following or an explanation for why one or more of the following is
1-11     not included:
1-12                 (1)  the petitioner's:
1-13                       (A)  full name;
1-14                       (B)  sex;
1-15                       (C)  race;
1-16                       (D)  date of birth;
1-17                       (E)  driver's license number;
1-18                       (F)  social security number; and
1-19                       (G)  address at the time of the arrest;
1-20                 (2)  the offense charged against the petitioner;
1-21                 (3)  the date the offense charged against the
1-22     petitioner was alleged to have been committed;
1-23                 (4)  the date the petitioner was arrested;
1-24                 (5)  the name of the county where the petitioner was
 2-1     arrested and if the arrest occurred in a municipality, the name of
 2-2     the municipality;
 2-3                 (6)  the name of the agency that arrested the
 2-4     petitioner;
 2-5                 (7)  the case number and court of offense; and
 2-6                 (8)  a list of all law enforcement agencies, jails or
 2-7     other detention facilities, magistrates, courts, prosecuting
 2-8     attorneys, correctional facilities, central state depositories of
 2-9     criminal records, and other officials or agencies or other entities
2-10     of this state or of any political subdivision of this state, [and
2-11     of] all central federal depositories of criminal records, and all
2-12     persons in the business of publishing or disclosing conviction or
2-13     arrest information that the petitioner has reason to believe have
2-14     records or files that are subject to expunction.
2-15           SECTION 2. Section 3(c), Article 55.02, Code of Criminal
2-16     Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
2-17           (c)  When the order of expunction is final, the clerk of the
2-18     court shall send a certified copy of the order by certified mail,
2-19     return receipt requested, to the Crime Records Service of the
2-20     Department of Public Safety and to each person, including each
2-21     official or agency or other entity of this state or of any
2-22     political subdivision of this state, designated by the person who
2-23     is the subject of the order.  The Department of Public Safety shall
2-24     notify any central federal depository of criminal records by any
2-25     means, including electronic transmission, of the order with an
2-26     explanation of the effect of the order and a request that the
2-27     records in possession of the depository, including any information
 3-1     with respect to the order, be destroyed or returned to the court.
 3-2           SECTION 3. Section 5(a), Article 55.02, Code of Criminal
 3-3     Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
 3-4           (a)  On receipt of the order, each person, including each
 3-5     official or agency or other entity, named in the order shall:
 3-6                 (1)  return all records and files that are subject to
 3-7     the expunction order to the court or, if removal is impracticable,
 3-8     obliterate all portions of the record or file that identify the
 3-9     person who is the subject of the order and notify the court of its
3-10     action; and
3-11                 (2)  delete from its public records all index
3-12     references to the records and files that are subject to the
3-13     expunction order.
3-14           SECTION 4. Section 411.135, Government Code, is amended by
3-15     amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
3-16     follows:
3-17           (c)  Except as provided by Subsection (d), a [A] person who
3-18     obtains information from the department under Subsection (a)  may:
3-19                 (1)  use the information for any purpose; or
3-20                 (2)  release the information to any other person.
3-21           (d)  A person in the business of publishing or disclosing
3-22     conviction or arrest information commits an offense if in the
3-23     course of business the person uses or releases arrest information
3-24     that the person obtained from the department under Subsection (a)
3-25     and that the person knows is derived from a record or file that is
3-26     the subject of an expunction order issued under Article 55.02, Code
3-27     of Criminal Procedure.  An offense under this subsection is a Class
 4-1     B misdemeanor.
 4-2           SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001, and
 4-3     applies only to a petition for expunction filed on or after that
 4-4     date.