Honorable Harold V. Dutton, Jr., Chair, House Committee on Juvenile Justice & Family Issues
FROM:
Ursula Parks, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB1803 by Goldman (Relating to public access to juvenile court proceedings.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would amend the Family Code to provide procedures for determining whether the public should be excluded from juvenile court proceedings and would provide any party or a member of the public objecting to an order excluding the public from a juvenile court proceeding to make an immediate appeal that a court of appeals would be required to expeditiously review. In addition, the bill would repeal a provision in current law requiring the court to close a hearing where the victim is under the age of 14 unless it finds that the interests of the child or the public would be better served by opening the hearings to the public.
Based on the analysis of the Office of Court Administration and the Juvenile Justice Department, duties and responsibilities associated with implementing the provisions of the bill could be accomplished utilizing existing resources.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated. Local courts may realize increased costs due to additional filings and hearings; however, that would depend on the number of cases filed.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 644 Juvenile Justice Department