| 1 | 1 | | By: Phillips H.B. No. 4109 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to the collection of money by certain prosecuting |
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| 7 | 7 | | attorneys. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Section 41.005, Government Code, is amended as |
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| 10 | 10 | | follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 41.005. COLLECTION OF MONEY. (a) Not later than the |
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| 12 | 12 | | 30th day after the date on which a district attorney, criminal |
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| 13 | 13 | | district attorney, or county attorney receives any money collected |
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| 14 | 14 | | for the state or a county, the district or county attorney shall, |
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| 15 | 15 | | after deducting the commissions provided by this section, pay the |
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| 16 | 16 | | money into the treasury of the state or of the county to which it |
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| 17 | 17 | | belongs. |
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| 18 | 18 | | (b) The district attorney, criminal district attorney, or |
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| 19 | 19 | | county attorney may retain a commission from money collected for |
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| 20 | 20 | | the state or a county, including money collected on a bond |
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| 21 | 21 | | forfeiture. The amount of the commission in any one case is 15 10 |
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| 22 | 22 | | percent of the total amount of principal and interest first $1,000 |
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| 23 | 23 | | collected and five percent of the amount collected over $1,000. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (c) Subsections (a) and (b) of this section also apply to |
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| 25 | 25 | | money realized for the state under the laws governing escheat. |
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| 26 | 26 | | (d) Not later than the last day of August of each year, each |
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| 27 | 27 | | district attorney, |
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| 28 | 28 | | criminal district attorney, and county attorney |
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| 29 | 29 | | shall file in the office of the comptroller or of the county |
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| 30 | 30 | | treasurer, as appropriate the case may be, a sworn account of all |
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| 31 | 31 | | money received by the attorney him by virtue of the attorney's his |
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| 32 | 32 | | office during the preceding year and payable into the state or |
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| 33 | 33 | | county treasury. |
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| 34 | 34 | | (e) A commission retained under this section, including a |
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| 35 | 35 | | commission retained from money collected on a bond forfeiture in |
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| 36 | 36 | | which a district attorney, criminal district attorney, or county |
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| 37 | 37 | | attorney represents the state, shall be deposited in the county |
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| 38 | 38 | | treasury in a special fund to be administered by the district |
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| 39 | 39 | | attorney, criminal district attorney, or county attorney, as |
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| 40 | 40 | | applicable. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (f) Expenditures from the fund under Subsection (e) shall be |
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| 42 | 42 | | at the sole discretion of the district attorney, criminal district |
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| 43 | 43 | | attorney, or county attorney, as applicable, and may be used only to |
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| 44 | 44 | | defray the salaries and expenses of the prosecutor's office, except |
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| 45 | 45 | | that the district attorney, criminal district attorney, or county |
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| 46 | 46 | | attorney may not supplement the attorney's own salary from the |
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| 47 | 47 | | fund. |
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| 48 | 48 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 49 | 49 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 50 | 50 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 51 | 51 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 52 | 52 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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