C.S.H.B. 687 78 ) BILL ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 687 By: Lewis Judicial Affairs Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, county and/or district clerks must complete 20 hours of continuing education regarding the clerk's duties during each calendar year. Of these 20 hours, three hours must be regarding the handling of registry funds, and one hour must be regarding fraudulent court documents and fraudulent document filings. C.S.H.B. 687 would lower the required hours for continuing education regarding registry funds from three hours to one hour. It is believed that one hour of continuing education regarding registry funds would be sufficient each year, and that the clerks could more profitably use the additional two hours to seek instruction in other areas of the clerk's duties. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 687 amends the Government Code to require county and/or district clerks to complete one hour of continuing education regarding the handling of registry funds each calendar year. EFFECTIVE DATE January 1, 2004. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The substitute makes no substantive changes to H.B. 687. The substitute merely reverts to the wording of existing law to eliminate some confusion that had surrounded the wording of H.B. 687.