BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 682

By: Huffman

Ways & Means

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Several years ago, the Texas Legislature authorized appraisal districts to have access to Department of Public Safety (DPS) criminal history information on applicants for employment with the district, allowing appraisal districts to review an individual's criminal background to ensure that individuals with a serious criminal background were not considered for employment as an appraisal review board (ARB) member. More recently, the legislature authorized the local administrative judge in Harris County to appoint the members of the ARB for the Harris County Appraisal District.  However, in preparing its review board applicant packets, the Harris County Appraisal District was unable to obtain the necessary criminal history information on applicants from DPS for the local judge to review since the statute limits access to this information to the appraisal district itself, limits the subject of such information to prospective employees of the district, and does not expressly apply to prospective appointees.

S.B. 682 seeks to address the need for access to criminal history record information for prospective appointees to an appraisal review board by allowing the local administrative district judge responsible for appointing members to an appraisal review board in certain appraisal districts to access DPS criminal history information through the appraisal district.

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

S.B. 682 amends the Government Code to entitle an appraisal district to obtain from the Department of Public Safety (DPS) criminal history record information that relates to an applicant for appointment to the appraisal district's appraisal review board.  The bill authorizes the appraisal district, if the appraisal review board members are appointed by the local administrative district judge, to provide the criminal history record information obtained from DPS to the local administrative district judge or to the appraisal review board commissioners appointed by the local administrative district judge.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2011.