Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB887 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R6773 LEH-D
2	2	By: Hernandez H.B. No. 887
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to protections under civil and criminal law for certain
8	8	young victims of trafficking; increasing the penalty for
9	9	trafficking of persons.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Title 2, Family Code, is amended by adding
12	12	Subtitle D to read as follows:
13	13	SUBTITLE D. SPECIAL DECLARATORY ACTIONS
14	14	CHAPTER 46. SPECIAL IMMIGRANT STATUS FOR CERTAIN VICTIMS OF
15	15	TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS
16	16	Sec. 46.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "young adult"
17	17	means a person who is at least 18 years of age and younger than 21
18	18	years of age.
19	19	Sec. 46.002. PETITION FOR COURT DECLARATION. A young adult
20	20	who is not a citizen or permanent resident of the United States and
21	21	who has been a victim of conduct prohibited under Chapter 20A, Penal
22	22	Code, may file a suit requesting the court to declare that the young
23	23	adult has been abused, neglected, or abandoned and otherwise meets
24	24	the requirements for special immigrant status as defined by 8
25	25	U.S.C. Section 1101(a)(27)(J). The suit may be filed in a court
26	26	that has family law jurisdiction.
27	27	Sec. 46.003. COURT ORDER. The court, on presentation of
28	28	proper evidence of a young adult's eligibility under this chapter,
29	29	shall render an order declaring that:
30	30	(1) the young adult is court-dependent;
31	31	(2) reunification with one or both of the young adult's
32	32	parents is not viable due to abuse, neglect, or abandonment, as
33	33	defined by state or federal law; and
34	34	(3) it is not in the young adult's best interest to be
35	35	returned to the young adult's or the parent's previous country of
36	36	origin or country of last habitual residence.
37	37	Sec. 46.004. EXTENDED JURISDICTION. A court that renders
38	38	an order under this chapter may retain jurisdiction over the young
39	39	adult until the earliest of:
40	40	(1) the young adult's 21st birthday;
41	41	(2) the date the young adult is granted lawful
42	42	permanent resident status;
43	43	(3) the date an appeal of the denial of an application
44	44	for permanent residency based on a petition for special immigrant
45	45	status is denied; or
46	46	(4) if an appeal described by Subdivision (3) is not
47	47	filed, the day after the last day to file an appeal of the denial of
48	48	an application for permanent residency based on a petition for
49	49	special immigrant status.
50	50	SECTION 2. Chapter 51, Family Code, is amended by adding
51	51	Section 51.0414 to read as follows:
52	52	Sec. 51.0414. EXTENDED JURISDICTION. (a) This section
53	53	applies only to a person otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of
54	54	the court who:
55	55	(1) is not a citizen or permanent resident of the
56	56	United States; and
57	57	(2) has been a victim of conduct prohibited under
58	58	Chapter 20A, Penal Code.
59	59	(b) With respect to issues relating to the person's special
60	60	immigrant status, the court retains jurisdiction over a person to
61	61	whom this section applies if an application seeking special
62	62	immigrant status as defined by 8 U.S.C. Section 1101(a)(27)(J) has
63	63	been filed with the appropriate federal authority on behalf of the
64	64	person.
65	65	(c) The court retains jurisdiction under this section until
66	66	the earliest of:
67	67	(1) the person's 21st birthday;
68	68	(2) the date the person is granted lawful permanent
69	69	resident status;
70	70	(3) the date an appeal of the denial of an application
71	71	for permanent residency based on a petition for special immigrant
72	72	status is denied; or
73	73	(4) if an appeal described by Subdivision (3) is not
74	74	filed, the day after the last day to file an appeal of the denial of
75	75	an application for permanent residency based on a petition for
76	76	special immigrant status.
77	77	SECTION 3. Subchapter A, Chapter 155, Family Code, is
78	78	amended by adding Section 155.006 to read as follows:
79	79	Sec. 155.006. EXTENDED JURISDICTION. (a) If an
80	80	application seeking special immigrant status as defined by 8 U.S.C.
81	81	Section 1101(a)(27)(J) has been filed with the appropriate federal
82	82	authority on behalf of a child over whom the court has continuing,
83	83	exclusive jurisdiction, and if the child has been a victim of
84	84	conduct prohibited under Chapter 20A, Penal Code, the court may
85	85	extend the court's jurisdiction over the child after the child's
86	86	18th birthday until the earliest of:
87	87	(1) the child's 21st birthday;
88	88	(2) the date the child is granted lawful permanent
89	89	resident status;
90	90	(3) the date an appeal of the denial of an application
91	91	for permanent residency based on a petition for special immigrant
92	92	status is denied; or
93	93	(4) if an appeal described by Subdivision (3) is not
94	94	filed, the day after the last day to file an appeal of the denial of
95	95	an application for permanent residency based on a petition for
96	96	special immigrant status.
97	97	(b) The court's jurisdiction under this section is limited
98	98	to issues relating to the child's special immigrant status.
99	99	SECTION 4. Subchapter A, Chapter 262, Family Code, is
100	100	amended by adding Section 262.0021 to read as follows:
101	101	Sec. 262.0021. EXTENDED JURISDICTION. (a) If an
102	102	application seeking special immigrant status as defined by 8 U.S.C.
103	103	Section 1101(a)(27)(J) has been filed with the appropriate federal
104	104	authority on behalf of a child over whom the court has jurisdiction
105	105	under this subtitle, and if the child has been a victim of conduct
106	106	prohibited under Chapter 20A, Penal Code, the court may extend the
107	107	court's jurisdiction over the child after the child's 18th birthday
108	108	until the earliest of:
109	109	(1) the child's 21st birthday;
110	110	(2) the date the child is granted lawful permanent
111	111	resident status;
112	112	(3) the date an appeal of the denial of an application
113	113	for permanent residency based on a petition for special immigrant
114	114	status is denied; or
115	115	(4) if an appeal described by Subdivision (3) is not
116	116	filed, the day after the last day to file an appeal of the denial of
117	117	an application for permanent residency based on a petition for
118	118	special immigrant status.
119	119	(b) The court's jurisdiction under this section is limited
120	120	to issues relating to the child's special immigrant status.
121	121	SECTION 5. Section 20A.02, Penal Code, is amended by
122	122	amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (b-1) and (b-2) to
123	123	read as follows:
124	124	(b) An [Except as otherwise provided by this subsection, an]
125	125	offense under Subsection (a)(1), (2), (3), or (4) [this section] is
126	126	a felony of the second degree. The minimum term of imprisonment
127	127	for that offense is increased to 10 years if the victim of the
128	128	offense is at least 18 years of age and younger than 21 years of age
129	129	at the time the offense is committed.
130	130	(b-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (b), an offense under
131	131	Subsection (a)(1), (2), (3), or (4) is a felony of the first degree
132	132	if the commission of the offense results in the death of the person
133	133	who is trafficked.
134	134	(b-2) An offense under [this section is a felony of the
135	135	first degree if:
136	136	[(1) the applicable conduct constitutes an offense
137	137	under] Subsection (a)(5), (6), (7), or (8) is a felony of the first
138	138	degree, regardless of whether the actor knows the age of the child
139	139	at the time the actor commits the offense[; or
140	140	[(2) the commission of the offense results in the
141	141	death of the person who is trafficked].
142	142	SECTION 6. Section 2(a), Article 38.37, Code of Criminal
143	143	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
144	144	(a) Subsection (b) applies only to the trial of a defendant
145	145	for:
146	146	(1) an offense under any of the following provisions
147	147	of the Penal Code:
148	148	(A) Section 20A.02(a)(7) or (8), if punishable as
149	149	a felony of the first degree under Section 20A.02(b-2)
150	150	[20A.02(b)(1)] (Sex Trafficking of a Child);
151	151	(B) Section 21.02 (Continuous Sexual Abuse of
152	152	Young Child or Children);
153	153	(C) Section 21.11 (Indecency With a Child);
154	154	(D) Section 22.011(a)(2) (Sexual Assault of a
155	155	Child);
156	156	(E) Sections 22.021(a)(1)(B) and (2) (Aggravated
157	157	Sexual Assault of a Child);
158	158	(F) Section 33.021 (Online Solicitation of a
159	159	Minor);
160	160	(G) Section 43.25 (Sexual Performance by a
161	161	Child); or
162	162	(H) Section 43.26 (Possession or Promotion of
163	163	Child Pornography)[, Penal Code]; or
164	164	(2) an attempt or conspiracy to commit an offense
165	165	described by Subdivision (1).
166	166	SECTION 7. The change in law made by this Act applies only
167	167	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
168	168	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
169	169	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
170	170	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
171	171	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
172	172	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
173	173	before that date.
174	174	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.