By: Herrero, Guillen, Morales of Maverick H.B. No. 1906

(Senate Sponsor - Alvarado)

(In the Senate - Received from the House April 19, 2021; May 11, 2021, read first time and referred to Committee on Jurisprudence; May 21, 2021, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 5, Nays 0; May 21, 2021, sent to printer.) Click here to see the committee vote

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to grants awarded to reimburse counties for the cost of monitoring defendants and victims in criminal cases involving family violence.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 772, Government Code, is amended by adding Section 772.0077 to read as follows:

Sec. 772.0077. GRANT PROGRAM FOR MONITORING DEFENDANTS AND VICTIMS IN FAMILY VIOLENCE CASES. (a) In this section:

(1) "Criminal justice division" means the criminal justice division established under Section 772.006.

(2) "Family violence" has the meaning assigned by Section 71.004, Family Code.

(b) The criminal justice division shall establish and administer a grant program to reimburse counties for all or part of the costs incurred by counties as a result of monitoring in cases involving family violence defendants and victims who participate in a global positioning monitoring system under Article 17.292 or 17.49, Code of Criminal Procedure. A grant recipient may use funds from a grant awarded under the program only for monitoring conducted for the purpose of restoring a measure of security and safety for a victim of family violence.

(c) The criminal justice division shall establish:

(1) additional eligibility criteria for grant applicants;

(2) grant application procedures;

(3) guidelines relating to grant amounts;

(4) procedures for evaluating grant applications; and

(5) procedures for monitoring the use of a grant awarded under the program and ensuring compliance with any conditions of a grant.

(d) The criminal justice division shall include in the biennial report required by Section 772.006(a)(9) a detailed reporting of the results and performance of the grant program administered under this section.

(e) The criminal justice division may use any revenue available for purposes of this section.

SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2021.

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