BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 1429

By: Campos

Juvenile Justice & Family Issues

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

The Crime Victims' Compensation (CVC) Program offers financial assistance to victims of crime for critical crime-related expenses, such as medical and mental health care costs, as well as relocation costs for a new safer home, and numerous other supports. The CVC Program was enacted with the belief that victims should not have to personally pay for expenses arising after a violent crime. With that said, the CVC Program, under its current limitation to compensation related to family violence, only provides assistance if the violence took place between residents in the same household who are related to the abuser by blood or marriage. Clarifying access to CVC for dating violence victims and child victims is critical. According to a Texas Council on Family Violence 2021 report, "Honoring Texas Victims, Family Violence Homicides in 2021," and statistics from the National Coalition against Domestic Violence, dating violence is often an overlooked form of intimate partner violence, yet current or former dating partners commit the highest percentage of victimizations. Data also indicates that young women ages 18-24 experience the highest rates of intimate partner violence, compared to other age groups. Additionally, children who experience both child abuse and family violence need further support and should not be excluded from key CVC assistance. H.B. 1429 seeks to resolve these issues and continue program improvement by removing limiting language inconsistent with providing the best support for all Texans who experience household family violence. The legislation does not change other CVC Program eligibility requirements, but aligns the types of victimization covered under CVC with a more accurate definition of family violence victims, which already appears in statute.

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

H.B. 1429 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to make the following changes with respect to the Crime Victims' Compensation Act:

· aligns the definition of "family violence" with the definition under applicable Family Code provisions to expand the conduct considered family violence for purposes of the act to include dating violence and certain abuse by a family or household member toward a child of the family or household; and

· removes the condition that an individual who resides in the same permanent household as a victim at the time applicable criminally injurious conduct occurred be related to the victim by consanguinity or affinity in order for the individual to be considered a household member for purposes of qualifying for compensation under the act.

The bill's provisions apply only to compensation for criminally injurious conduct occurring on or after the bill's effective date. The bill provides for the continuation of the law in effect before the bill's effective date for purposes of criminally injurious conduct, or any element of the offense underlying the conduct, that occurred before that date.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.