81(R) SB 418 - Introduced version

TO:	Honorable John Carona, Chair, Senate Committee on Transportation & Homeland Security

FROM:	John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB418 by Carona (Relating to requiring law enforcement agencies to compile and maintain certain information in a criminal street gang intelligence database.), As Introduced

The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to require a criminal justice agency to compile criminal information into an intelligence database for the purpose of investigating or prosecuting the criminal activities of criminal combinations or criminal street gangs. The bill would require a local law enforcement agency to compile and maintain in a local or regional intelligence database criminal information relating to a criminal street gang as provided by a criminal justice agency. Under current statute, these requirements are optional. The bill would take effect September 1, 2009.

Based on analysis by affected state agencies, it is assumed that provisions of the bill could be implemented using existing resources.

Fiscal impact to local law enforcement agencies would depend on whether the agency already compiles and maintains a local or regional intelligence database related to criminal street gang activity. Costs varied by agencies reporting they would incur costs, but each indicated the costs for staff and computer programming would be insignificant. The highest estimated cost for the first year of implementation was reported by Harris County at $372,196 and the lowest estimated cost was reported by the Abilene Police Department at $20,000. Staffing costs would continue in each subsequent year, while capital outlay and programming would not, other than periodically.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 81ST LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 28, 2009