Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2969 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R24310 KJE-F
2	2	By: Herrero H.B. No. 2969
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2969:
4	4	By: Herrero C.S.H.B. No. 2969
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the provision of funding for indigent defense services.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Sections 79.016(a) and (c), Government Code, are
12	12	amended to read as follows:
13	13	(a) A board member who is a chief public defender for or [who
14	14	is] an attorney employed by an entity [a public defender's office in
15	15	a county] that applies for funds under Section 79.037 shall
16	16	disclose that fact before a vote by the board regarding an award of
17	17	funds to that entity [county] and may not participate in that [such
18	18	a] vote.
19	19	(c) The commission may not award funds under Section 79.037
20	20	to an entity [a county] served by a chief public defender or other
21	21	attorney who fails to make a disclosure to the board as required by
22	22	Subsection (a).
23	23	SECTION 2. Section 79.037, Government Code, is amended by
24	24	amending Subsections (a), (b), and (c) and adding Subsections (e),
25	25	(f), (g), and (h) to read as follows:
26	26	(a) The commission shall:
27	27	(1) provide technical support to:
28	28	(A) assist counties in improving their indigent
29	29	defense systems; and
30	30	(B) promote compliance by counties with the
31	31	requirements of state law relating to indigent defense;
32	32	(2) to assist a county [counties] in providing
33	33	indigent defense services in the county, distribute in the form of
34	34	grants any funds appropriated for the purposes of this section to
35	35	one or more of the following entities:
36	36	(A) the county;
37	37	(B) a law school's legal clinic or program that
38	38	provides indigent defense services in the county; and
39	39	(C) a regional public defender that meets the
40	40	requirements of Subsection (e) and provides indigent defense
41	41	services in the county; and
42	42	(3) monitor each entity [county] that receives a grant
43	43	under Subdivision (2) and enforce compliance [by the county] with
44	44	the conditions of the grant, including enforcement by:
45	45	(A) withdrawing grant funds; or
46	46	(B) requiring reimbursement of grant funds by the
47	47	entity [county].
48	48	(b) The commission shall determine for each county the
49	49	entity or entities within the county that are eligible to receive
50	50	[distribute] funds for the provision of indigent defense services
51	51	under [as required by] Subsection (a)(2). The determination must
52	52	be made based on the entity's:
53	53	(1) [a county's] compliance with standards adopted by
54	54	the board; and
55	55	(2) [the county's] demonstrated commitment to
56	56	compliance with the requirements of state law relating to indigent
57	57	defense.
58	58	(c) The board shall adopt policies to ensure that funds
59	59	under Subsection (a)(2) are allocated and distributed [to counties]
60	60	in a fair manner.
61	61	(e) The commission may distribute funds under Subsection
62	62	(a)(2) to a regional public defender's office formed under Article
63	63	26.044, Code of Criminal Procedure, if:
64	64	(1) the regional public defender's office serves two
65	65	or more counties;
66	66	(2) each county that enters an agreement to create or
67	67	designate and to jointly fund the regional public defender's office
68	68	satisfies the commission that the county will timely provide funds
69	69	to the office for the duration of the grant for at least half of the
70	70	office's operational costs;
71	71	(3) each participating county by local rule adopts and
72	72	submits to the commission guidelines under Article 26.04(f), Code
73	73	of Criminal Procedure, detailing the types of cases to be assigned
74	74	to the office; and
75	75	(4) each participating county and the regional public
76	76	defender's office agree in writing to a method that the commission
77	77	determines to be appropriate under Subsection (f) to pay all costs
78	78	associated with the defense of cases assigned to the office that
79	79	remain pending in the county after the termination of the agreement
80	80	or the county's participation in the agreement.
81	81	(f) The commission shall select, by rule or under a contract
82	82	with a regional public defender's office, a method for the payment
83	83	of costs under Subsection (e)(4), which may include any combination
84	84	of the following:
85	85	(1) allowing an office to establish and maintain a
86	86	reserve of funds sufficient to cover anticipated costs, in an
87	87	amount determined appropriate by the commission;
88	88	(2) guaranteeing all or part of the costs to be paid;
89	89	or
90	90	(3) establishing a schedule of fees for the payment of
91	91	costs in the manner provided by Article 26.05, Code of Criminal
92	92	Procedure.
93	93	(g) Any change to a schedule of fees established under
94	94	Subsection (f)(3) must first be approved by the commission.
95	95	(h) A regional public defender's office shall collect each
96	96	participating county's portion of the operational costs as that
97	97	portion is provided by the county to the office.
98	98	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.