LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
 
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT STATEMENT
 
86TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION
 
April 16, 2019

TO:
Honorable Larry Taylor, Chair, Senate Committee on Education
 
FROM:
John McGeady, Assistant Director     Sarah Keyton, Assistant Director
Legislative Budget Board
 
IN RE:
SB1256 by Bettencourt ( Relating to employing, terminating, and reporting the misconduct of public school personnel and related entity personnel, including creating a registry of persons ineligible for hire; creating criminal offenses.), Committee Report 1st House, Substituted

The provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions are subject of this analysis.  The bill would amend the Education Code as it relates to reporting certain misconduct. Under the provisions of the bill, failure to file a report about certain misconduct or a criminal record of an educator by certain persons under certain circumstances would become a new criminal offense. The offense would be punishable by a state jail felony.
 
A state jail felony is punishable by confinement in a state jail for a term from 180 days to 2 years or Class A misdemeanor punishment, and in addition, an optional fine not to exceed $10,000. 

 
Creating a new criminal offense is expected to result in additional demands upon the correctional resources of counties or of the State due to an increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or admitted into state correctional institutions. This analysis assumes the provisions of the bill addressing felony sanctions would not result in a significant impact on state correctional populations the demand for state correctional resources.




Source Agencies:
LBB Staff:
WP, LM, JPo