| 1 | 1 | | 81R4279 JRJ-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Kolkhorst H.B. No. 504 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the creation of an offense for a parent's contribution |
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| 8 | 8 | | to a child's failure to comply with a sentence or court order |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to a disruptive activity or disruption of class on school |
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| 10 | 10 | | property. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 37, Education Code, is |
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| 13 | 13 | | amended by adding Section 37.127 to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | Sec. 37.127. PARENT CONTRIBUTING TO CHILD'S FAILURE TO |
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| 15 | 15 | | COMPLY WITH TERMS OF SENTENCE OR COURT ORDER. (a) In this section: |
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| 16 | 16 | | (1) "Child" means a person under 17 years of age. |
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| 17 | 17 | | (2) "Parent" includes a person standing in parental |
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| 18 | 18 | | relation. The term does not include a person as to whom the |
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| 19 | 19 | | parent-child relationship has been terminated or a person not |
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| 20 | 20 | | entitled to possession of or access to a child under a court order. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (b) A parent commits an offense if: |
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| 22 | 22 | | (1) the parent's child is convicted of or adjudicated |
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| 23 | 23 | | as having engaged in delinquent conduct or conduct indicating a |
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| 24 | 24 | | need for supervision for conduct constituting the commission of an |
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| 25 | 25 | | offense under Section 37.123, 37.124, or 37.126; |
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| 26 | 26 | | (2) the child has not complied with the terms of the |
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| 27 | 27 | | child's sentence or a court order relating to the conviction or |
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| 28 | 28 | | adjudication; and |
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| 29 | 29 | | (3) the parent with criminal negligence has |
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| 30 | 30 | | contributed to, caused, or encouraged the child to fail to comply |
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| 31 | 31 | | with the terms of the child's sentence or a court order relating to |
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| 32 | 32 | | the conviction or adjudication. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (c) An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor. |
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| 34 | 34 | | If the court orders deferred disposition for the parent under |
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| 35 | 35 | | Article 45.051, Code of Criminal Procedure, the court may require |
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| 36 | 36 | | the parent to provide personal services to a charitable or |
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| 37 | 37 | | educational institution as a condition of deferral. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (d) Except as provided by Subsection (e), a fine collected |
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| 39 | 39 | | under this section shall be deposited as follows: |
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| 40 | 40 | | (1) one-half shall be deposited to the credit of the |
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| 41 | 41 | | operating fund of, as applicable: |
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| 42 | 42 | | (A) the school district in which the parent's |
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| 43 | 43 | | child attends school; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (B) the open-enrollment charter school the |
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| 45 | 45 | | parent's child attends; or |
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| 46 | 46 | | (C) the juvenile justice alternative education |
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| 47 | 47 | | program that the parent's child has been ordered to attend; and |
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| 48 | 48 | | (2) one-half shall be deposited to the credit of: |
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| 49 | 49 | | (A) if the offense is prosecuted in a municipal |
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| 50 | 50 | | court, the general fund of the municipality in which the offense is |
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| 51 | 51 | | prosecuted; or |
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| 52 | 52 | | (B) if the offense is prosecuted in a court that |
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| 53 | 53 | | is not a municipal court, the general fund of the county in which |
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| 54 | 54 | | the offense is prosecuted. |
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| 55 | 55 | | (e) In the case of a parent whose child attends a private |
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| 56 | 56 | | school, a fine collected under this section shall be deposited in |
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| 57 | 57 | | its entirety to the credit of: |
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| 58 | 58 | | (1) if the offense is prosecuted in a municipal court, |
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| 59 | 59 | | the general fund of the municipality in which the offense is |
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| 60 | 60 | | prosecuted; or |
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| 61 | 61 | | (2) if the offense is prosecuted in a court that is not |
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| 62 | 62 | | a municipal court, the general fund of the county in which the |
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| 63 | 63 | | offense is prosecuted. |
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| 64 | 64 | | (f) If a parent refuses to obey a court order entered under |
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| 65 | 65 | | this section, the court may punish the parent for contempt of court |
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| 66 | 66 | | under Section 21.002, Government Code. |
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| 67 | 67 | | (g) A school district or open-enrollment charter school |
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| 68 | 68 | | shall notify a student's parent in writing at the beginning of the |
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| 69 | 69 | | school year of the provisions of Subsections (b), (c), and (f). The |
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| 70 | 70 | | fact that a parent does not receive a notice under this subsection |
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| 71 | 71 | | does not create a defense to prosecution under this section. |
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| 72 | 72 | | (h) For the 2009-2010 school year, a school district or |
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| 73 | 73 | | open-enrollment charter school shall provide the notice required |
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| 74 | 74 | | under Subsection (g) as soon as practicable after the beginning of |
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| 75 | 75 | | the school year. This subsection expires September 1, 2010. |
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| 76 | 76 | | SECTION 2. Section 37.127, Education Code, as added by this |
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| 77 | 77 | | Act, applies only to a parent's conduct relating to a child's |
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| 78 | 78 | | failure to comply with the terms of a sentence or a court order |
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| 79 | 79 | | imposed or rendered on or after the effective date of this Act. A |
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| 80 | 80 | | parent's conduct relating to a child's failure to comply with the |
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| 81 | 81 | | terms of a sentence or a court order imposed or rendered before the |
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| 82 | 82 | | effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect at the |
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| 83 | 83 | | time the failure to comply occurred, and the former law is continued |
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| 84 | 84 | | in effect for that purpose. |
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| 85 | 85 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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