88R19298 AJZ-D
 
  By: Hefner, Moody, Cook, Slawson, Ordaz H.B. No. 3659
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to civil asset forfeiture proceedings, to the seizure and
  forfeiture of certain property, and to the reporting and
  disposition of proceeds and property from civil asset forfeiture.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Article 59.02, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
  amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to
  read as follows:
         (a)  Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (a-1),
  property [Property] that is contraband is subject to seizure and
  forfeiture under this chapter.
         (a-1)(1)  Property that is contraband is not subject to
  seizure and forfeiture under this chapter if the property:
                     (A)  is not otherwise unlawful to possess; and
                     (B)  has an aggregate value of less than $2,500.
               (2)  For purposes of determining the aggregate value of
  contraband under Subdivision (1), the owner or interest holder is
  not required to have simultaneously owned or had an interest in all
  of the property constituting contraband.
               (3)  Subdivision (1) does not apply to money that is
  used by law enforcement during an undercover criminal investigation
  of an offense under Subchapter D, Chapter 481, Health and Safety
  Code.
         SECTION 2.  Article 59.021(d), Code of Criminal Procedure,
  is amended to read as follows:
         (d)  After seizure of the substitute property, the
  disposition shall proceed as other cases in this chapter except
  that the attorney representing the state must prove by clear and
  convincing [a preponderance of the] evidence:
               (1)  that the contraband described by Subsection (b)
  was subject to seizure and forfeiture under this chapter;
               (2)  the highest fair market value of that contraband
  during the period in which the owner of the substitute property
  owned, or had an interest in, the contraband;
               (3)  the fair market value of the substitute property
  at the time it was seized; and
               (4)  that the owner of the substitute property owned or
  had an interest in contraband with an aggregate value of $200,000 or
  more in connection with the commission of an underlying offense
  giving rise to the forfeiture.
         SECTION 3.  Article 59.05(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (b)  All cases under this chapter shall proceed to trial in
  the same manner as in other civil cases. The state has the burden of
  proving by clear and convincing [a preponderance of the] evidence
  that property is subject to forfeiture.
         SECTION 4.  Chapter 59, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
  amended by adding Article 59.063 to read as follows:
         Art. 59.063.  UNIFORM REPORTING REQUIREMENT FOR LAW
  ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES. (a) A law enforcement agency engaged in the
  seizure, forfeiture, receipt, or expenditure of proceeds and
  property under this chapter shall submit a monthly report to the
  attorney general's office. The monthly report must:
               (1)  include all of the information required by the
  audit under Article 59.06(g)(1); and 
               (2)  specify the number of seizures challenged or not
  challenged by an owner or interest holder of the property.
         (b)  Each law enforcement agency shall file the report
  described by Subsection (a) covering the seizure, forfeiture,
  receipt, or expenditure of proceeds and property under this chapter
  by the agency during the preceding month. An agency that did not
  engage in a seizure or forfeiture during the reporting period must
  indicate that fact in the report.
         (c)  The attorney general's office shall adopt a standard
  form for the submission of a report under this section.
         (d)  Subject to Subsection (e), the attorney general's
  office shall publish on the office's Internet website a monthly
  report that includes each agency's specific information submitted
  to the office under this section. The report must also aggregate the
  information by law enforcement agency and include the total value
  of proceeds and property seized by all law enforcement agencies
  during the reporting period. 
         (e)  The attorney general's report under Subsection (d) and
  the Internet website may not include:
               (1)  the name, address, contact information, or other
  identifying information of an owner or interest holder of the
  seized or forfeited property or of another individual or entity
  involved in the forfeiture proceeding; or
               (2)  the location, vehicle identification number, or
  serial number of any seized or forfeited property.
         SECTION 5.  Articles 59.02, 59.021, and 59.05, Code of
  Criminal Procedure, as amended by this Act, apply only to a
  forfeiture proceeding that begins on or after the effective date of
  this Act. A forfeiture proceeding that begins before the effective
  date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the
  proceeding begins, and the former law is continued in effect for
  that purpose.
         SECTION 6.   This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.