Amend CSHB 2292 by adding the following appropriately
numbered SECTIONS to Article 2 of the bill and renumbering
subsequent SECTIONS of the bill accordingly:
SECTION _____. Articles 59.01(1) and (2), Code of Criminal
Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
(1) "Attorney representing the state" means the
prosecutor with felony jurisdiction in the county in which a
forfeiture proceeding is held under this chapter or, in a
proceeding for forfeiture of contraband as defined under
Subdivision (2)(B)(iv) of this article, the city attorney of a
municipality if the property is seized in that municipality by a
peace officer employed by that municipality and the governing body
of the municipality has approved procedures for the city attorney
acting in a forfeiture proceeding. In a proceeding for forfeiture
of contraband as defined under Subdivision (2)(B)(vii) of this
article, the term includes the attorney general.
(2) "Contraband" means property of any nature,
including real, personal, tangible, or intangible, that is:
(A) used in the commission of:
(i) any first or second degree felony under
the Penal Code;
(ii) any felony under Section 15.031(b),
21.11, 38.04, 43.25, or 43.26 or Chapter 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 33A, or
35, Penal Code; or
(iii) any felony under The Securities Act
(Article 581-1 et seq., Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes);
(B) used or intended to be used in the commission
of:
(i) any felony under Chapter 481, Health
and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act);
(ii) any felony under Chapter 483, Health
and Safety Code;
(iii) a felony under Chapter 153, Finance
Code;
(iv) any felony under Chapter 34, Penal
Code;
(v) a Class A misdemeanor under Subchapter
B, Chapter 365, Health and Safety Code, if the defendant has been
previously convicted twice of an offense under that subchapter;
[or]
(vi) any felony under Chapter 152, Finance
Code; or
(vii) any felony under Chapter 31, 32, or
37, Penal Code, that involves the state Medicaid program, or any
felony under Chapter 36, Human Resources Code;
(C) the proceeds gained from the commission of a
felony listed in Paragraph (A) or (B) of this subdivision or a crime
of violence; or
(D) acquired with proceeds gained from the
commission of a felony listed in Paragraph (A) or (B) of this
subdivision or a crime of violence.
SECTION _____. Article 59.06, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended by adding Subsection (p) to read as follows:
(p) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), and to the extent
necessary to protect the commission's ability to recover amounts
wrongfully obtained by the owner of the property and associated
damages and penalties to which the commission may otherwise be
entitled by law, the attorney representing the state shall transfer
to the Health and Human Services Commission all forfeited property
defined as contraband under Article 59.01(2)(B)(vii). If the
forfeited property consists of property other than money or
negotiable instruments, the attorney representing the state may, if
approved by the commission, sell the property and deliver to the
commission the proceeds from the sale, minus costs attributable to
the sale. The sale must be conducted in a manner that is reasonably
expected to result in receiving the fair market value for the
property.