| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to reports concerning and the reporting of the use of |
|
|
certain funds by community supervision and corrections departments |
|
|
and to the preparation of commitment reduction plans by those |
|
|
departments. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Chapter 492, Government Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Section 492.017 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 492.017. LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATIONS REQUEST. (a) The |
|
|
board shall require the department to submit each legislative |
|
|
appropriations request, accompanied by the most recent report |
|
|
prepared by the community justice assistance division of the |
|
|
department under Section 509.004(c), to the board for approval |
|
|
before the department submits the appropriations request to the |
|
|
Legislative Budget Board. |
|
|
(b) In deciding whether to approve a legislative |
|
|
appropriations request submitted under Subsection (a), the board |
|
|
shall consider the most recent report prepared by the community |
|
|
justice assistance division of the department under Section |
|
|
509.004(c). |
|
|
SECTION 2. Chapter 493, Government Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Section 493.0081 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 493.0081. LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATIONS REQUEST. The |
|
|
department shall include in each legislative appropriations |
|
|
request submitted to the Legislative Budget Board the information |
|
|
contained in the most recent report prepared by the community |
|
|
justice assistance division under Section 509.004(c). |
|
|
SECTION 3. Section 509.004, Government Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Subsections (c), (d), and (e) to read as follows: |
|
|
(c) The division shall prepare a report that contains a |
|
|
detailed summary of the programs and services provided by |
|
|
departments, as described in each community justice plan submitted |
|
|
to the division under Section 509.007. The report must include: |
|
|
(1) all financial information relating to the programs |
|
|
and services described in each community justice plan; and |
|
|
(2) information concerning the amount of state aid and |
|
|
funding that is not state aid used to support each program or |
|
|
service provided by a department. |
|
|
(d) As soon as is practicable after the completion of the |
|
|
report, the division shall submit the report prepared under |
|
|
Subsection (c) to the Texas Board of Criminal Justice and the |
|
|
executive director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. |
|
|
(e) Not later than the date on which the Texas Department of |
|
|
Criminal Justice is required to submit the department's legislative |
|
|
appropriations request to the Legislative Budget Board, the |
|
|
division shall submit the report prepared under Subsection (c) to |
|
|
the Legislative Budget Board. |
|
|
SECTION 4. Section 509.007, Government Code, is amended to |
|
|
read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 509.007. COMMUNITY JUSTICE PLAN. (a) The division |
|
|
shall require as a condition to payment of state aid to a department |
|
|
or county under Section 509.011 and eligibility for payment of |
|
|
costs under Section 499.124 that a community justice plan be |
|
|
submitted for the department. The community justice council shall |
|
|
submit the plan required by this subsection. A community justice |
|
|
council may not submit a plan under this section unless the plan is |
|
|
first approved by the judges described by Section 76.002 who |
|
|
established the department served by the council. The council |
|
|
shall submit a revised plan to the division each even-numbered |
|
|
[odd-numbered] year not later than March 1 [by a date designated by
|
|
|
the division]. A plan may be amended at any time with the approval |
|
|
of the division. |
|
|
(b) A community justice plan required under this section |
|
|
must include: |
|
|
(1) a statement of goals and priorities and of |
|
|
commitment by the community justice council, the judges described |
|
|
by Section 76.002 who established the department, and the |
|
|
department director to achieve a targeted level of alternative |
|
|
sanctions; |
|
|
(2) a description of methods for measuring the success |
|
|
of programs provided by the department or provided by an entity |
|
|
served by the department; [and] |
|
|
(3) a proposal for the use of state jail felony |
|
|
facilities and, at the discretion of the community justice council, |
|
|
a regional proposal for the construction, operation, maintenance, |
|
|
or management of a state jail felony facility by a county, a |
|
|
community supervision and corrections department, or a private |
|
|
vendor under a contract with a county or a community supervision and |
|
|
corrections department; |
|
|
(4) a description of the programs and services the |
|
|
department provides or intends to provide, including a separate |
|
|
description of any programs or services the department intends to |
|
|
provide to enhance public safety, reduce recidivism, strengthen the |
|
|
investigation and prosecution of criminal offenses, improve |
|
|
programs and services available to victims of crime, and increase |
|
|
the amount of restitution collected from persons supervised by the |
|
|
department; and |
|
|
(5) an outline of the department's projected |
|
|
programmatic and budgetary needs, based on the programs and |
|
|
services the department both provides and intends to provide. |
|
|
SECTION 5. Chapter 509, Government Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Section 509.0071 to read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 509.0071. COMMITMENT REDUCTION PLAN. (a) In addition |
|
|
to submitting a community justice plan to the division under |
|
|
Section 509.007, a department may submit a commitment reduction |
|
|
plan to the division not later than the 60th day after the date on |
|
|
which the time for gubernatorial action on the state budget has |
|
|
expired under Section 14, Article IV, Texas Constitution. |
|
|
(b) A commitment reduction plan submitted under this |
|
|
section may contain a request for additional state funding in the |
|
|
manner described by Subsection (c). A commitment reduction plan |
|
|
must contain: |
|
|
(1) a target number by which the county or counties |
|
|
served by the department will, relative to the number of |
|
|
individuals committed to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice |
|
|
from the county or counties in the preceding state fiscal year, |
|
|
reduce the number of individuals committed to the Texas Department |
|
|
of Criminal Justice from the county or counties during the state |
|
|
fiscal biennium for which the commitment reduction plan is |
|
|
submitted; |
|
|
(2) a calculation, based on the most recent Criminal |
|
|
Justice Uniform Cost Report published by the Legislative Budget |
|
|
Board, of the savings to the state that will result from the county |
|
|
or counties reaching the target number described by Subdivision |
|
|
(1); |
|
|
(3) an explanation of the programs and services the |
|
|
department intends to provide using any funding received by the |
|
|
department under Subsection (c)(1), including any programs or |
|
|
services designed to enhance public safety, reduce recidivism, |
|
|
strengthen the investigation and prosecution of criminal offenses, |
|
|
improve programs and services available to victims of crime, and |
|
|
increase the amount of restitution collected from persons |
|
|
supervised by the department; |
|
|
(4) a pledge by the department to provide accurate |
|
|
data to the division at the time and in the manner required by the |
|
|
division; and |
|
|
(5) a pledge to repay the state a percentage of the |
|
|
lump sum received under Subsection (c)(1) that is equal to the |
|
|
percentage by which the department fails to reach the target number |
|
|
described by Subdivision (1), if the department does not reach that |
|
|
target number. |
|
|
(c) After reviewing a commitment reduction plan submitted |
|
|
by a department, if the division is satisfied that the commitment |
|
|
reduction plan is feasible and would achieve desirable outcomes, |
|
|
the division may award to the department: |
|
|
(1) a one-time lump sum in an amount equal to 35 |
|
|
percent of the savings to the state described by Subsection (b)(2); |
|
|
and |
|
|
(2) on a biannual basis, and from the 65 percent of the |
|
|
savings to the state that remains after payment of the lump sum |
|
|
described by Subdivision (1), the following incentive payments for |
|
|
the department's performance in the six months immediately |
|
|
preceding the payment: |
|
|
(A) 15 percent, for reducing the percentage of |
|
|
persons supervised by the department who commit a new felony while |
|
|
under the supervision of the department; |
|
|
(B) five percent, for increasing the percentage |
|
|
of persons supervised by the department who are not delinquent in |
|
|
making any restitution payments; and |
|
|
(C) five percent, for increasing the percentage |
|
|
of persons supervised by the department who are gainfully employed, |
|
|
as determined by the division. |
|
|
(d) A department may use funds received under Subsection (c) |
|
|
to provide any program or service that the department is authorized |
|
|
to provide under other law, including implementing, administering, |
|
|
and supporting evidence-based community supervision strategies, |
|
|
electronic monitoring, substance abuse and mental health |
|
|
counseling and treatment, specialized community supervision |
|
|
caseloads, intermediate sanctions, victims' services, restitution |
|
|
collection, short-term incarceration in county jails, specialized |
|
|
courts, pretrial services and intervention programs, and work |
|
|
release and day reporting centers. |
|
|
(e) Any funds received by a department under Subsection (c) |
|
|
are in addition to any per capita or formula funding received by the |
|
|
department under Section 509.011. |
|
|
SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |