82R701 GCB-D
 
  By: Guillen H.B. No. 331
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the authority of the governing body of a municipality to
  create a municipal court equal justice and education fund and to
  require certain defendants to pay court costs for deposit in the
  fund.
         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 102.0175 to read as
  follows:
         Art. 102.0175.  COURT COSTS; MUNICIPAL COURT EQUAL JUSTICE
  AND EDUCATION FUND. (a) The governing body of a municipality by
  ordinance may create a municipal court equal justice and education
  fund and may require a defendant convicted of a misdemeanor offense
  in a municipal court or municipal court of record to pay a $1 equal
  justice and education fee as a cost of court for deposit in the
  fund.
         (b)  In this article, a person is considered convicted if:
               (1)  a sentence is imposed on the person; or
               (2)  the court defers final disposition of the person's
  case.
         (c)  The municipal court clerk shall collect the costs and
  pay the funds to the municipal treasurer, or to any other official
  who discharges the duties commonly delegated to the municipal
  treasurer, for deposit in a fund to be known as the municipal court
  equal justice and education fund.
         (d)  A fund designated by this article may be used only to
  finance:
               (1)  the purchase of services, materials, or equipment
  for a municipal court or municipal court of record to provide equal
  justice for individuals involved in the justice system, including
  the purchase of:
                     (A)  interpreter services;
                     (B)  mental health and counseling services; or
                     (C)  modifications to municipal court buildings
  and other accommodations for individuals with disabilities;
               (2)  the appointment of an attorney for an indigent
  defendant; or
               (3)  the education of municipal court judges and
  municipal court support personnel, including the payment of
  tuition, conference fees, and travel expenses incurred for
  educational purposes.
         (e)  The municipal court equal justice and education fund
  shall be administered by or under the direction of the governing
  body of the municipality.
         (f)  The presiding judge of the municipal court shall
  authorize expenditures from the fund and ensure that the
  expenditures comply with any applicable purchasing policies of the
  municipality. The judge shall provide to the governing body of the
  municipality on a quarterly basis a detailed description and
  accounting of all money spent under this article.
         (g)  The governing body of the municipality by ordinance may
  provide that any amount in the fund that is not spent during a
  fiscal year may remain in the fund for use in a subsequent fiscal
  year.
         SECTION 2.  Subchapter G, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 102.1211 to read as follows:
         Sec. 102.1211.  EQUAL JUSTICE AND EDUCATION FUND FEE ON
  CONVICTION IN MUNICIPAL COURT: CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE. The
  clerk of a municipal court shall collect from a defendant an equal
  justice and education fund fee of $1 under Article 102.0175, Code of
  Criminal Procedure, on conviction.
         SECTION 3.  Subchapter H, Chapter 102, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 102.1411 to read as follows:
         Sec. 102.1411.  EQUAL JUSTICE AND EDUCATION FUND FEE ON
  CONVICTION IN MUNICIPAL COURT OF RECORD: CODE OF CRIMINAL
  PROCEDURE. The clerk of a municipal court of record shall collect
  from a defendant an equal justice and education fund fee of $1 under
  Article 102.0175, Code of Criminal Procedure, on conviction.
         SECTION 4.  The change in law made by this Act applies only
  to a cost on conviction for an offense committed on or after the
  effective date of this Act. A cost on conviction for 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 section,
  an offense was committed before the effective date of this Act if
  any element of the offense occurred before that date.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.