Honorable Pete Gallego, Chair, House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence
FROM:
John S O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB3746 by Frullo (Relating to providing resources designed to combat crimes against children, especially crimes regarding child exploitation and child pornography trafficking involving the Internet.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would amend the Code of Criminal Procedure by adding Article 102.023 which creates a new $10 court cost for defendants convicted of an offense requiring registration as a sex offender. The court cost will be remitted to the state and deposited to a special fund to be called the Internet Crimes Against Children Fund. The fund will be used to support Internet Crimes Against Children task forces operated by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and law enforcement agencies. The Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA) and the Office of Court Administration (OCA) anticipate a small revenue gain from the court cost, but it is not anticipated to be significant.
In addition, the bill would require the OAG to assist felony prosecutors in obtaining administrative subpoenas for the purposes of investigating and prosecuting crimes involving the exploitation of a minor. It is anticipated that any additional costs associated with implementation of the legislation could be absorbed within existing resources.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 302 Office of the Attorney General