BILL ANALYSIS
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
House Bill 2711 is aimed at providing quality battery intervention programs for offenders who have been convicted of an offense involving family violence, as defined by Section 71.004, Family Code. Current statute does not outline criteria for providers who are eligible to receive referrals. HB 2711 will provide guidelines that will be created in conjunction with the Community Justice Assistance Division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and a nonprofit organization.
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
Amends Code of Criminal Procedure Article 42.12 to add Subsections C1 and C2 to state that a judge may require a defendant to attend at the direction of the Community Supervision and Corrections Department a Battering Intervention and Prevention Program (BIPP). Battering Intervention Prevention Programs are defined by Article 42.141. And if one is not available an offender should be referred to an accredited provider or counselor who has completed 40 hours of training in domestic violence with 12 hours of continuing education.
It further amends Article 42.141 to define BIPP as one that meets the guidelines adopted by the Community Justice Assistance Division (CJAD) of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice with the assistance of a statewide nonprofit organization described by Section 3(1) of this article. It also amends Article 42.141 Duties of the Division so as to seek the assistance of a nonprofit in developing program guidelines and in accrediting any program and counselors either for profit or nonprofit providing battering intervention services as conforming to those guidelines. It further amends Article 42.141, Duties of the non-profit organization to require the division to collect a one time application fee of $500 from each program or provider that applies for accreditation under this section.
Further amended is Chapter 51, Subchapter D of the Government Code Section 51.321 to allow the commissioners court of a county to adopt a family violence fee of not less than $3 or more than $15 dollars, at the time a suit for dissolution of a marriage occurs. The fee is to be collected by the district clerk. The clerk may not collect a fee from a person who is protected by Title 4 subtitle B and Article 17.292, Code of Criminal Procedure. The district clerk shall remit $3 for each collected fee to the Comptroller for deposit to the credit of the battering intervention account in the general revenue fund to be used for the accreditation of programs. Further adds that the district clerk shall pay the remaining portion to the county, to be filed in the county treasury to the credit of family violence prevention account.
Amends Section 85.022, Family Code to add that the court may order a person that has committed family violence to perform acts that would prevent or reduce family violence and may order that person to complete a battering intervention and prevention program. This section is also amended that if by March 1, 2006 only those that are certified as BIPP or those that have completed 40 hours of family violence intervention training and followed by an annual 12 hours of continued education can be accredited. Sets forth September 1, 2007 that all must be accredited under Section 4A, Article 42.141, Code of Criminal Procedure.
Section 7(36) authorizes a commissioners court the ability to collect a fee for the dissolution of marriage under Chapter 6, Family Code. The fee should be no less than 3 dollars and no more than fifteen dollars.
EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2005.