| TO: | Honorable Harold V. Dutton, Jr., Chair, House Committee on Juvenile Justice & Family Issues |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB2291 by Farias (Relating to a victim-offender mediation program administered by certain juvenile boards.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted |
The bill would amend Chapter 53 of the Family Code to require the Juvenile Probation Commission (JPC) to establish guidelines for victim-offender mediation programs in counties with a population of at least 100,000 for youth who are alleged to have engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision. A victim would be able to request mediation with the youth alleged to have engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a need for supervision relating to non-violent property offenses. If the youth agrees to participate in and successfully completes the victim-offender mediation, the youth would not be subject to a disposition hearing. Chapter 102, Code of Criminal Procedure and Chapter 102, Government Code, would be amended to allow a commissioners' court of a county with a population of at least 100,000 to collect a $5 court cost for a person convicted or receiving deferred adjudication for an offense in county court to pay for juvenile victim offender mediation programs. The bill would take effect September 1, 2007.
JPC anticipates no significant fiscal implication with the passage of this bill and estimates it will be able to absorb any costs associated with this bill within the agency's current budget.
JPC reports there are currently 34 counties with a population of at least 100,000. JPC anticipates a local government impact, based on the assumption that local juvenile probation departments would pay the costs of the victim-offender mediation programs. The fiscal impact would vary depending on the number of eligible cases for which a victim would request mediation in each department. However, the additional court costs that counties could charge to those convicted in county court would offset the local impact.
| Source Agencies: | 665 Juvenile Probation Commission
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, MN, GG, AI, KJG
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