BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3978

By: Gutierrez

Corrections

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

It has been noted that defendants are currently allowed to make a specified donation in lieu of working a specified number of hours at a community service project. C.S.H.B. 3978 seeks to expand the qualifying recipient of such a donation.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 3978 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to include a charitable organization that is exempt from federal income tax under the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and that supports drug courts serving the community in which the defendant resides among the organizations a judge may order a defendant to make a specified donation to in lieu of working a specified number of hours at a community service project.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2019.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 3978 differs from the original in minor or nonsubstantive ways by conforming to certain bill drafting conventions.

The substitute changes the bill's effective date to September 1, 2019.