<updated at 4:30pm>
Six weeks remain. This is usually the point of a session when it feels there is too much time for all of the bills you don’t want to pass and not enough time for all the bills you do want to pass. The reality lies somewhere in between those two extremes, but as sine die approaches, reality often has little to do with events in Austin.
Preview
If you are wondering what legislators will be up to next week … join the crowd! We have hit the stage of a session at which notice is scant and getting worse. Everything beyond Tuesday’s schedule is hidden by the fog of legislative opacity, but we will do the best we can to keep you updated on the things that we think are important to you. Read on for details about those bills and for news of an amicus brief that might interest you.
Prosecutor accountability bills
Bills in this category that saw action this week include:
HB 799 by Cody Harris (denying prosecutors access to Brady information) was heard in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee and left pending. No prosecutors testified for or against the bill.
HB 3247 by Cain (felony offense of prosecutorial misconduct) was heard in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee; Chambers County DA Cheryl Henry and Dallas County Asst. CDA Ellyce Lindberg testified against the bill, which was also left pending in committee.
HB 3675 by Ortega (mandatory management training for certain prosecutors) was heard in House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence and left pending. No prosecutors testified for or against the bill.
Remember, there are no prohibitions on ex parte communications when it comes to legislating. (In fact, that’s the basis of this crazy process!) Therefore, when a bill is left pending in a committee, members of that committee are still taking input and deciding whether to support or oppose it and you are welcome to contact any of them.
Finances
SB 22 by Springer (rural sheriff and prosecutor funding) has been referred to the House County Affairs Committee. That committee already approved a different version that excludes prosecutors in favor of constables, and that bill—HB 1487 by Gerdes—is in the House Calendars Committee now.
SB 740 by Huffman (limiting urban prosecutors’ budget reductions) was referred to the House Committee on State Affairs.
SB 2310 by Hinojosa (pay parity bill) has been referred to the House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence Committee.
Remote proceedings
The legislature is once again considering giving the judiciary the post-pandemic authority to conduct remote proceedings in certain criminal matters. This was a big issue for some of you last session in the midst of the pandemic, and bills to empower judges to hold proceedings in person or remotely, as they saw fit, ultimately failed to pass due to opposition in the state senate. During the interim, the Texas Supreme Court adopted rules to grant them some of those powers in civil cases (see our Week 0 Update/Preview for more details about that), but they do not (yet) apply in criminal matters.
Enter HB 4622 by Leach (R-Plano), a substitute version of which was passed out of the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee this week. That latest version—which can only be read HERE because it is not yet online—differs in several ways from the rules now applicable to civil proceedings. The substitute version also lays out new procedures for remote proceedings in juvenile matters (similar to HB 422 by VanDeaver) that grant lawyers/parties less say in having remote proceedings than would apply in criminal cases under the bill.
We heard many concerns about these ideas in 2021 but have heard nary a peep from any of you about this topic this session, so please read this new language that we linked above and let us (and your legislators) know if you have concerns about a judge forcing you into remote proceedings in the situations described by the latest version of that bill. The bill heads to the House Calendars Committee next.
Other action
Other bills that saw movement this week include:
HB 20 by Schaefer (Border Protection Unit) was heard in the House State Affairs Committee and left pending.
HB 180 by Moody (withdrawal of execution warrant by prosecutor) passed the House.
HB 213 by Moody (early parole for youthful felons) was approved by a committee and now heads to the Calendars Committee.
HB 513 by Metcalf (controlled substance causing death) passed the House.
HB 1730 by Schaefer (enhancements for repeated indecent exposures) passed the House.
HB 1910 by Anchia (forgery punishment presumption) passed the House.
HB 2864 by Raymond (vet court admission over prosecutor’s objection) was heard in the House Corrections Committee and left pending.
SB 950 by Kolkhorst (AG representation of counties sued in federal court) passed the Senate.
SB 2424 by Birdwell (offense of improper entry from a foreign nation) passed the Senate.
House Calendars Committee
Guess what? Even if you can’t make it to Austin to engage with legislators on bills that are important to you, you can still have a role in the process that determines which bills get considered on the House floor if you have a relationship with anyone on that committee. (Membership available HERE.) As you read about bills—good or bad—that get referred to that committee, let those committee members know your thoughts, even if it is from the comfort of your office or home.
Future floor debates
Other than HB 1760 by Hefner (carrying guns on college campuses) and HB 1589 by Cook (family violence enhancements), there aren’t many bills in our world scheduled for debate on the House floor on Monday or Tuesday, which are the only days posted as of now. However, that is sure the change as the week progresses, so keep an eye on your inbox if events merit.
Across the rotunda, bills eligible for debate on the Senate floor early next week include
SB 1269 by Hughes (expanded discovery from DFPS but limited use of evidence by DFPS), SB 1445 by Paxton (TCOLE sunset reauthorization), SB 1518 by King (terrorist offender registry), SB 1709 (sedition and EOCA), and SB 2275 by Hughes (limits SCOTX rulemaking authority in civil actions).
Future committee hearings
Here are just a few of the bills scheduled to be heard in committees next week. For the full agenda of each committee, click on the link to the committee itself.
Subsequent committee postings may be added later, so keep checking our website for the latest information.
Monday, April 17
House Business & Industry – 8:30 a.m., Room E2.012
- HB 4507 by Moody authorizing price gouging actions by local prosecutors during emergencies
House Corrections – 11:30 a.m. or upon adjournment, E2.028
- HB 2129 by Burns authorizing theft diversion programs by merchants in lieu of arrest
- HB 3363 by Frank compensating counties for certain costs of confinement
- HB 3547 by Anchia limiting parolees’ access to hospitals as visitors
- HB 3603 by Anderson relating to restitution by parolees
- HB 3882 by Wilson authorizing veterans court participation over a prosecutor’s objection
Tuesday, April 18
House Criminal Jurisprudence (asset forfeiture subcommittee) – 8:00 a.m., E2.016
- HB 1874 by Noble awarding attorneys’ fees to defendants in unsuccessful forfeitures
- HB 2992 by Harrison creating an online searchable database for forfeiture proceedings
- HB 3758 by S. Thompson replacing civil asset forfeiture with criminal forfeiture
Senate Criminal Justice – 8:30 a.m. or upon adj., E2.012
- SB 435 by Middleton authorizing disclosure of crime scene evidence to victims’ families
- SB 726 by Kolkhorst increasing punishment for certain intoxication manslaughters
- SB 760 by Lamantia relating to blood drawn from a body during an inquest
- SB 840 by West increasing penalties for assaulting certain hospital personnel
- SB 1248 by Flores relating to smuggling of persons in parklands
- SB 1433 by Hinojosa relating to the emergency detention of persons with mental illness
- SB 1516 by King revising procedures governing writs of habeas corpus
- SB 1969 by Bettencourt increasing penalties for certain crimes near schools and daycares
- SB 2134 by Miles relating to telemedicine in the juvenile system
- SB 2479 by Zaffirini changing procedures relating to persons with mental illness or intellectual disability
- SB 2589 by Schwertner revising punishments for juvenile crimes committed at TJJD facilities
- SB 2593 by Springer creating a defense to prosecution for peace officers using less-lethal projectiles
House Select Committee on Community Safety – 9:00 a.m. or upon adj., E2.012
- (Click the link above for the 18 gun-related bills set for discussion in this committee)
House Criminal Jurisprudence (procedure subcommittee) – 10:30 a.m. or upon adj., E2.016
- HB 303 by Bernal relating to fines and jail confinement for Class Cs
- HB 322 by Cortez removing the presumption of incompetency following a prior finding
- HB 1017 by Sherman relating to family violence findings
- HB 1136 by Jetton relating to the period of sex offender registration for compelling prostitution
- HB 1178 by Rogers authorizing non-lawyer JPs to issue DWI blood search warrants
- HB 1230 by J. Gonzalez relating to the confidentiality of certain witness information
- HB 1232 by J. Gonzalez relating to authorizations for the use of tracking equipment
- HB 1921 by Dutton adjusting the fine amount discharged by jail layouts
- HB 1940 by Cook authorizing extraneous offense evidence in adult sex crime trials
- HB 2380 by Vasut adjusting the fine amount discharged by jail layouts
- HB 2961 by Cook relating to jury instructions on conspiracy
- HB 3005 by Flores expanding pseudonym protections to victims of certain offenses
- HB 3686 by J. Jones relating to expunctions after certain drug crime dismissals
- HB 3688 by J. Jones requiring written explanations by the prosecution for dismissals
- HB 3871 by Cook revising procedures governing writs of habeas corpus
- HB 4037 by Hayes requiring pretrial hearings to be held w/in 30 days of competency restoration
- HB 4671 by Hayes relating to the qualifications and summoning of grand jurors
- HB 5007 by Plesa mandating automatic expunction upon certain acquittals
- HB 5041 by Garcia authorizing non-prosecutors to be appointed as attorneys pro tem
- HB 5159 by Bhojani authorizing additional closing arguments following an Allen charge
Wednesday, April 19
House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence – 8:00 a.m., E2.016 <NEW>
- HB 4504 by Moody relating to nonsubstantive revisions of the CCP
- HB 4657 by Oliverson authorizing the AG to represent certain county officials
- HB 4674 by Hayes relating to the qualifications, summoning, and pay of jurors
- HB 4946 by Flores prohibiting challenges to certain prospective jurors
House County Affairs – 10:30 a.m., E2.012 <NEW>
- SB 22 by Springer creating a grant program for rural sheriffs and prosecutors
- HB 1409 by Orr authorizing sex offender child safety zones in unincorporated areas
- HB 2186 by Y. Davis relating to photo ID for filing real property records
- HB 2560 by Metcalf authorizing sex offender child safety zones in unincorporated areas
- HB 3264 by Meza defining intoxication for the purposes of removal from office
Thursday, April 20
House Environmental Regulation – 10:30 a.m., E2.030 <NEW>
- HB 3913 by Morales Shaw relating to civil penalties recovered by local governments
<<NOTE: For the rest of the session, our advanced notice of committee hearings will be limited. Please visit our Legislative webpage for the latest committee postings.>>
Austin-bound?
If you are ready to clear your calendar and come to Austin for a few days to weigh in on the bills we’ve discussed this session, please call or email Shannon to reserve that week ahead of time. Ditto for any questions you might have—call or email Rob or Shannon to get the scoop before you make plans.
Amicus brief opportunity
The Tarrant County Criminal DA’s Office intends to submit an amicus brief to the U.S. Supreme Court in support of an appeal of the Fifth Circuit’s decision in United States v. Rahimi, (— F.4th —, 2023 WL 23117796 (5th Cir. March 2, 2023)), overturning the federal statute prohibiting the possession of firearms by someone subject to a protective order. That office is supporting the appeal because the Rahimi opinion calls into question the validity of Texas laws prohibiting the possession of firearms by someone subject to a protective order. (Click HERE for a recent Texas Prosecutor journal article about that potential impact.)
If you would like to join their amicus brief or have questions about it, please email Asst. CDA Fredericka Sargent at [email protected] no later than Tuesday, April 18.
Scattershooting
Here are some recent stories you might’ve missed:
- “Lawmakers’ attempts to tighten drug laws could saddle crime labs with an unsustainable workload” (Texas Tribune)
- “Texas Senate approves ban on local governments using public funds on lobbyists” (Austin American-Statesman)
- “Expanded access to medical marijuana gains traction as Texas House advances bill” (Texas Tribune)
- “Don’t Be Fooled by the Legislature’s Tough Talk About Ken Paxton” (Texas Monthly)
- “With tweet about a pardon, Gov. Greg Abbott injects politics into Texas’ criminal justice system” (Texas Tribune)
Quotes of the Week
“[Abbott is] essentially treating them like his minions, like puppets. In my 35-plus years of doing parole work, I have never seen a governor make a request of a parole board like this. … He didn’t allege any kind of specific misconduct, he just engages in this puerile dog whistle. He is a former attorney general. He was a justice for the [Texas] Supreme Court. He should know better.”
—Gary Cohen, an attorney who specializes in pardon applications, referring to the governor’s social media comments about the recent murder conviction of Daniel Perry in Austin.
“It’s shocking. It’s a little girl’s goat, not Pablo Escobar.”
—Ryan Gordon, an animal welfare attorney in California, as quoted in an LA Times story about local fair officials who obtained a search warrant for the recovery of a 4-H goat kept by the little girl who raised it and then had the goat slaughtered to “teach [our] youth that they … have to abide by the rules.”
“[The] first third of #txlege is pomp and circumstance, second third of #txlege is working, and final third of #txlege is fighting. [In] other words, we are right on schedule.”
—Tweet by Jason Sabo, Austin lobbyist and political strategist.
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