| 1 | 1 | | By: Harless (Senate Sponsor - Huffman) H.B. No. 1823 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Received from the House April 27, 2011; |
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| 3 | 3 | | May 3, 2011, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal |
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| 4 | 4 | | Justice; May 19, 2011, reported favorably by the following vote: |
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| 5 | 5 | | Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 19, 2011, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 9 | 9 | | AN ACT |
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| 10 | 10 | | relating to the authority of certain persons to execute bail bonds |
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| 11 | 11 | | and act as sureties. |
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| 12 | 12 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 13 | 13 | | SECTION 1. Article 17.07, Code of Criminal Procedure, is |
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| 14 | 14 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 15 | 15 | | Art. 17.07. CORPORATION TO FILE WITH COUNTY CLERK POWER OF |
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| 16 | 16 | | ATTORNEY DESIGNATING AGENT. (a) Any corporation authorized by the |
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| 17 | 17 | | law of this State to act as a surety, shall before executing any |
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| 18 | 18 | | bail bond as authorized in the preceding Article, first file in the |
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| 19 | 19 | | office of the county clerk of the county where such bail bond is |
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| 20 | 20 | | given, a power of attorney designating and authorizing the named |
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| 21 | 21 | | agent, agents or attorney of such corporation to execute such bail |
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| 22 | 22 | | bonds and thereafter the execution of such bail bonds by such agent, |
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| 23 | 23 | | agents or attorney, shall be a valid and binding obligation of such |
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| 24 | 24 | | corporation. |
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| 25 | 25 | | (b) A corporation may limit the authority of an agent |
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| 26 | 26 | | designated under Subsection (a) by specifying the limitation in the |
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| 27 | 27 | | power of attorney that is filed with the county clerk. |
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| 28 | 28 | | SECTION 2. Article 17.10, Code of Criminal Procedure, is |
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| 29 | 29 | | amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows: |
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| 30 | 30 | | (c) A person, for compensation, may not act as a surety on a |
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| 31 | 31 | | bail bond if the person has been finally convicted of: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (1) a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude; or |
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| 33 | 33 | | (2) a felony. |
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| 34 | 34 | | SECTION 3. A limitation of the authority of an agent under |
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| 35 | 35 | | Article 17.07(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, as added by this Act, |
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| 36 | 36 | | is applicable only to a bail bond that is executed: |
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| 37 | 37 | | (1) on or after the effective date of this Act; and |
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| 38 | 38 | | (2) after the limitation of authority described by |
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| 39 | 39 | | Article 17.07(b) is filed with the county clerk, as provided by that |
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| 40 | 40 | | article. |
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| 41 | 41 | | SECTION 4. Article 17.10(c), Code of Criminal Procedure, as |
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| 42 | 42 | | added by this Act, applies only to a person convicted of an offense |
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| 43 | 43 | | committed on or after the effective date of this Act. A person |
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| 44 | 44 | | convicted of an offense committed before the effective date of this |
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| 45 | 45 | | Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was |
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| 46 | 46 | | committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that |
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| 47 | 47 | | purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed |
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| 48 | 48 | | before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense |
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| 49 | 49 | | occurred before that date. |
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| 50 | 50 | | SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |
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| 51 | 51 | | * * * * * |
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