| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to the creation of the Justice Reinvestment Incentive |
|
|
Program. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 11, Local Government Code, is |
|
|
amended by adding Chapter 364 to read as follows: |
|
|
CHAPTER 364. JUSTICE REINVESTMENT INCENTIVE PROGRAM |
|
|
Sec. 364.0001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: |
|
|
(1) "Department" means the Texas Department of |
|
|
Criminal Justice. |
|
|
(2) "Local authorities" includes a district attorney, |
|
|
criminal district attorney, or county attorney, a judge of a |
|
|
district or county court having criminal jurisdiction, a county |
|
|
commissioners court, and the head of a law enforcement agency. |
|
|
Sec. 364.0002. JUSTICE REINVESTMENT PLAN. (a) The local |
|
|
authorities in a county may create and implement a two-year justice |
|
|
reinvestment plan to reduce the number of: |
|
|
(1) persons from the county who are convicted of |
|
|
felony offenses and committed to the department; and |
|
|
(2) incarceration years to which persons from the |
|
|
county are sentenced to serve in a facility operated by or under |
|
|
contract with the department. |
|
|
(b) A justice reinvestment plan may include the following |
|
|
strategies: |
|
|
(1) increased use of pre-arrest or pretrial diversion |
|
|
programs; |
|
|
(2) increased use of community supervision programs; |
|
|
(3) improvements to indigent defense programs; and |
|
|
(4) any other law enforcement or prosecutorial |
|
|
strategy designed to reduce incarceration as described by |
|
|
Subsection (a). |
|
|
Sec. 364.0003. INCENTIVE. (a) As compared to the two-year |
|
|
period preceding January 1, 2020, if a justice reinvestment plan |
|
|
operating for a two-year period results in a reduction in the number |
|
|
of persons from the county who are convicted of felony offenses and |
|
|
committed to the department by not less than 25 percent, the county |
|
|
may apply to the comptroller for an award of money in an amount |
|
|
equal to 90 percent of the amount of the actual cost savings to the |
|
|
state due to the reduction. |
|
|
(b) An application for an award under this section must |
|
|
include: |
|
|
(1) a description of the incarceration reduction |
|
|
strategies used by the county; |
|
|
(2) the reduction in the number of persons convicted |
|
|
and committed; and |
|
|
(3) the reduction in the number of incarceration years |
|
|
to which persons were sentenced. |
|
|
(c) If the comptroller finds that the county has implemented |
|
|
a justice reinvestment plan that meets the requirements of this |
|
|
section, the comptroller shall award to the county an amount |
|
|
consistent with Subsection (a). |
|
|
(d) At least one-half of an award made under this section |
|
|
must be used to offset supervision-related court costs or fees |
|
|
assessed against persons placed on pretrial supervision or |
|
|
community supervision. |
|
|
Sec. 364.0004. REPORT. The comptroller shall make |
|
|
available a report describing the justice reinvestment plans for |
|
|
which awards have been issued under this chapter. |
|
|
Sec. 364.0005. RULES. The comptroller shall adopt rules to |
|
|
implement this chapter. |
|
|
Sec. 364.0006. FUNDS. The comptroller may use any |
|
|
available funds to implement this chapter. |
|
|
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |