By:  Flynn                                                        H.B. No. 2628



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to imposing a cost on conviction to reimburse counties for 
medical expenses incurred by jail inmates.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 102, Code of Criminal 
Procedure, is amended by adding Article 102.022 to read as follows:
	Art. 102.022.  COSTS ON CONVICTION TO REIMBURSE INMATE 
MEDICAL EXPENSES.  (a)  A defendant convicted of an offense in a 
justice court, county court, county court at law, district court, 
or municipal court shall pay a $3 fee as a cost of court.
	(b)  In this article, a person is considered convicted if:              
		(1)  a sentence is imposed on the person;                              
		(2)  the person receives community supervision, 
including deferred adjudication; or
		(3)  the court defers final disposition of the person's 
case.        
	(c)  The clerks of the respective courts shall collect the 
costs and pay them to the county treasurer or to any other official 
who discharges the duties commonly delegated to the county 
treasurer for deposit in a fund to be known as the inmate medical 
expense fund.  A fund designated by this subsection may be used only 
to reimburse the county or a hospital district for medical, dental, 
or other health care-related services provided to inmates of the 
county jail.
	(d)  The inmate medical expense fund shall be administered by 
or under the direction of the commissioners court.
	(e)  During the first month of the county's fiscal year, the 
commissioners court shall determine if the amount of fees collected 
under this article in the preceding year exceeded the actual 
expenses incurred for inmate medical care.  Any excess fees 
collected during the previous year shall be allocated to the 
county's general revenue fund.
	SECTION 2.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.                      
	(b)  The imposition of a cost of court under Article 102.022, 
Code of Criminal Procedure, as added by this Act, applies only to an 
offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.  An 
offense committed before the effective date of this Act is covered 
by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the former 
law is continued in effect for that purpose.  For purposes of this 
subsection, an offense was committed before the effective date of 
this Act if any element of the offense was committed before that 
date.