85R1696 AJZ-D
 
  By: Burton S.B. No. 481
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the reporting and disposition of proceeds and property
  from asset forfeiture proceedings under the Code of Criminal
  Procedure.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Articles 59.06(d-3) and (d-4), Code of Criminal
  Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
         (d-3)  Except as otherwise provided by this article, an
  expenditure of proceeds or property received under this chapter is
  considered to be for a law enforcement purpose if the expenditure is
  made for an activity of a law enforcement agency that relates to the
  criminal and civil enforcement of the laws of this state, including
  an expenditure made for:
               (1)  equipment, including vehicles, computers,
  firearms, protective body armor, furniture, software, uniforms,
  and maintenance equipment;
               (2)  supplies, including office supplies, mobile phone
  and data account fees for employees, and Internet services;
               (3)  investigative and training-related travel
  expenses, including payment for hotel rooms, airfare, meals, rental
  of and fuel for a motor vehicle, and parking;
               (4)  conferences and training expenses, including fees
  and materials;
               (5)  investigative costs, including payments to
  informants and lab expenses;
               (6)  crime prevention and treatment programs;
               (7)  facility costs, including building purchase,
  lease payments, remodeling and renovating, maintenance, and
  utilities;
               (8)  witness-related costs, including travel and
  security; and
               (9)  audit costs and fees, including:
                     (A)  audit preparation and professional fees paid
  to a person or entity under a contract or as otherwise authorized by
  law; and
                     (B)  costs of preparing any reports required to be
  submitted with the audit form to the attorney general.
         (d-4)  Except as otherwise provided by this article, an
  expenditure of proceeds or property received under this chapter is
  considered to be for an official purpose of an attorney's office if
  the expenditure is made for an activity of an attorney or office of
  an attorney representing the state that relates to the
  preservation, enforcement, or administration of the laws of this
  state, including an expenditure made for:
               (1)  equipment, including vehicles, computers, visual
  aid equipment for litigation, firearms, body armor, furniture,
  software, and uniforms;
               (2)  supplies, including office supplies, legal
  library supplies and access fees, mobile phone and data account
  fees for employees, and Internet services;
               (3)  prosecution and training-related travel expenses,
  including payment for hotel rooms, airfare, meals, rental of and
  fuel for a motor vehicle, and parking;
               (4)  conferences and training expenses, including fees
  and materials;
               (5)  investigative costs, including payments to
  informants and lab expenses;
               (6)  crime prevention and treatment programs;
               (7)  facility costs, including building purchase,
  lease payments, remodeling and renovating, maintenance, and
  utilities;
               (8)  legal fees, including court costs and[,] witness
  fees[,] and other witness-related [related] costs such as[,
  including] travel and security[, audit costs, and professional
  fees]; [and]
               (9)  state bar and legal association dues; and
               (10)  audit costs and fees, including:
                     (A)  audit preparation and professional fees paid
  to a person or entity under a contract or as otherwise authorized by
  law; and
                     (B)  costs of preparing any reports required to be
  submitted with the audit form to the attorney general.
         SECTION 2.  Article 59.06(g)(1), Code of Criminal Procedure,
  is amended to read as follows:
               (1)  All law enforcement agencies and attorneys
  representing the state who receive proceeds or property under this
  chapter shall account for the seizure, forfeiture, receipt, and
  specific expenditure of all the proceeds and property in an audit,
  which is to be performed annually by the commissioners court or
  governing body of a municipality, as appropriate. The annual
  period of the audit for a law enforcement agency is the fiscal year
  of the appropriate county or municipality and the annual period for
  an attorney representing the state is the state fiscal year. The
  audit must be completed on a form provided by the attorney general
  and must include a detailed report and explanation of all
  expenditures, including salaries and overtime pay, officer
  training, investigative equipment and supplies, and other items.
  The audit must also include a detailed report that itemizes all
  seizures of proceeds or property under this chapter and that
  indicates the specific criminal offense on which each seizure was
  based and, if charges were brought in connection with the offense,
  the disposition of those charges. Certified copies of the audit
  shall be delivered by the law enforcement agency or attorney
  representing the state to the attorney general not later than the
  60th day after the date on which the annual period that is the
  subject of the audit ends.
         SECTION 3.  Article 59.06(m), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
  repealed.
         SECTION 4.  The changes in law made by this Act in amending
  Article 59.06(g)(1), Code of Criminal Procedure, apply to any audit
  performed under that subsection on or after the effective date of
  this Act.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.