BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

Senate Research Center	C.S.S.B. 12
	By: West
	Criminal Justice
	3/6/2017
	Committee Report (Substituted)

 

 

 

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

 

S.B. 12 as filed creates a grant program that will equip members of law enforcement statewide with protective vests. The grant program will be administered through the Office of the Governor (governor's office) similar to the process created for S.B. 158, 84th Legislature, Regular Session, 2015, the body camera bill.

 

All law enforcement agencies will be eligible to apply for grants to outfit officers assigned to patrol duties or who respond to calls for assistance, with protective vests.

 

S.B. 12 has the support of the lieutenant governor.

 

Under S.B. 12, an agency that receives grant funding is required to report to the governor's office the number of vests purchased and the cost of each vest. Currently, local governing bodies or local law enforcement agencies have the responsibility of securing funding for the purchase of protective vests. Federal and private grants are also used to assist in the purchase of protective vests.

 

S.B. 12 may use any available funding for the purchase of protective vests, including federal funding and donations. (Original Author's / Sponsor's Statement of Intent)

 

C.S.S.B. 12 is amended to require law enforcement agencies to have in place a policy on the deployment and use of protective vests to be eligible to receive grant funding

 

C.S.S.B. 12 is amended to define the type of protective vest that can be purchased by a law enforcement agency to be eligible to receive grant funding.

 

C.S.S.B. 12 amends current law relating to the creation of a grant program to assist law enforcement agencies with the purchase of bulletproof vests.

 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

 

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

 

SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter A, Chapter 772, Government Code, by adding Section 772.0073, as follows:

Sec. 772.0073. BULLETPROOF VEST GRANT PROGRAM. (a) Defines "criminal justice division."

(b) Requires the criminal justice division (division) to establish and administer a grant program to provide financial assistance to a law enforcement agency in this state that seeks to equip its peace officers with bulletproof vests (vests).

(c) Requires a vest purchased with a grant received under this section to be classified by the National Institute of Justice at the Level III or Level IV body armor standard, or using an equivalent classification that denotes the vest is capable of stopping rifle ammunition.

(d) Authorizes a law enforcement agency to apply for a grant under this section only if the agency first adopts a policy addressing the deployment and allocation of vests to its officers.

(e) Requires a law enforcement agency receiving a grant under this section, as soon as practicable after receiving the grant, to provide to the division proof of purchase of �vests, including the price of each vest and the number of vests purchased.

(f) Requires, not later than December 1 of each year, the division to submit to the Legislative Budget Board a report that provides, for the preceding state fiscal year the name of each law enforcement agency that applied for a grant under this section, the amount of money distributed to each law enforcement agency that received a grant under this section, and the number of vests purchased by each agency.

(g) Authorizes the division to use any revenue available for purposes of this section.�

SECTION 2. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2017.