87R5874 ANG-D
 
  By: Walle H.B. No. 1930
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to landlord and tenant dispute information reported by
  justice courts to the Office of Court Administration of the Texas
  Judicial System and made accessible to the public.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter C, Chapter 71, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 71.0354 to read as follows:
         Sec. 71.0354.  LANDLORD AND TENANT DISPUTE INFORMATION:
  JUSTICE COURTS.  As a component of the official monthly report
  submitted to the Office of Court Administration of the Texas
  Judicial System, a justice court shall report by category each case
  filed in the court involving a dispute between a landlord and tenant
  under Chapter 24, Property Code, or Title 8, Property Code,
  including:
               (1)  forcible entry and detainer suits;
               (2)  suits involving the disconnection of utilities;
               (3)  repair and remedy suits;
               (4)  suits involving security deposits;
               (5)  suits involving the provision of security and
  safety devices; and
               (6)  any other category of suit involving a landlord or
  tenant brought under Title 8, Property Code, and designated by the
  office.
         SECTION 2.  Subchapter C, Chapter 72, Government Code, is
  amended by adding Section 72.038 to read as follows:
         Sec. 72.038.  LANDLORD AND TENANT DISPUTE DATABASE. (a)  The
  office shall establish and maintain an electronic database that
  contains information on cases filed in justice courts related to
  landlord and tenant disputes. The database must contain for each
  case:
               (1)  the justice court in which the case is filed,
  including the precinct, municipality, and county in which the court
  is located;
               (2)  if publicly available:
                     (A)  the street name, municipality, and zip code
  of the defendant's residence;
                     (B)  the street name, municipality, and zip code
  of the plaintiff's residence;
                     (C)  the tenant's address, excluding the
  apartment number for a tenant who lives in a multifamily apartment
  complex; and
                     (D)  the defendant's demographic information,
  including race and ethnicity; 
               (3)  any legal counsel representing the defendant;
               (4)  the date of the hearing;
               (5)  the disposition of the case;
               (6)  the date judgment is issued; and
               (7)  the judgment amount.
         (b)  The office shall make the information required by
  Subsection (a) available in an electronic spreadsheet format that
  is easily downloaded from the office's publicly accessible Internet
  website and is searchable by date and jurisdiction.
         SECTION 3.  (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
  date of this Act, the Office of Court Administration of the Texas
  Judicial System shall:
               (1)  prescribe the categories of landlord and tenant
  suits a justice court is required to report under Section 71.0354,
  Government Code, as added by this Act, and the procedures for
  reporting under that section; and
               (2)  establish the landlord and tenant dispute database
  as required by Section 72.038, Government Code, as added by this
  Act.
         (b)  Notwithstanding Section 71.0354, Government Code, as
  added by this Act, a justice court is not required to report
  landlord and tenant dispute information under that section until
  after the Office of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial
  System establishes the categories and procedures for reporting
  under that section.
         SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.