| 1 | 1 | | By: Lucio S.B. No. 1464 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Filed March 12, 2015; March 19, 2015, read |
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| 3 | 3 | | first time and referred to Subcommittee on Border Security; |
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| 4 | 4 | | April 14, 2015, reported adversely, with favorable Committee |
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| 5 | 5 | | Substitute to Committee on Veteran Affairs and Military |
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| 6 | 6 | | Installations; April 20, 2015, reported adversely, with favorable |
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| 7 | 7 | | Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; |
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| 8 | 8 | | April 20, 2015, sent to printer.) |
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| 9 | 9 | | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 10 | 10 | | COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1464 By: Lucio |
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| 11 | 11 | | |
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| 12 | 12 | | |
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| 13 | 13 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 14 | 14 | | AN ACT |
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| 15 | 15 | | relating to the creation of the transnational and organized crime |
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| 16 | 16 | | division within the office of the attorney general. |
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| 17 | 17 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 18 | 18 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 402, Government Code, is |
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| 19 | 19 | | amended by adding Section 402.038 to read as follows: |
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| 20 | 20 | | Sec. 402.038. TRANSNATIONAL AND ORGANIZED CRIME DIVISION. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (a) The office of the attorney general shall establish a |
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| 22 | 22 | | transnational and organized crime division. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (b) To address matters related to border security and |
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| 24 | 24 | | organized crime, the transnational and organized crime division |
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| 25 | 25 | | shall: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (1) establish within the division a prosecution unit |
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| 27 | 27 | | to provide critical assistance to local prosecutors; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (2) using existing funds, establish within the |
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| 29 | 29 | | division a trafficking of persons unit to: |
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| 30 | 30 | | (A) assist local law enforcement agencies and |
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| 31 | 31 | | local prosecutors in investigating and prosecuting trafficking of |
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| 32 | 32 | | persons and related crimes; and |
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| 33 | 33 | | (B) work with the appropriate local and state |
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| 34 | 34 | | agencies to identify victims of trafficking of persons and to |
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| 35 | 35 | | provide the types of assistance available for those victims under |
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| 36 | 36 | | Chapter 56, Code of Criminal Procedure; and |
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| 37 | 37 | | (3) develop initiatives to provide greater state |
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| 38 | 38 | | assistance, support, and coordination among state law enforcement |
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| 39 | 39 | | agencies, local law enforcement agencies, and local prosecutors. |
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| 40 | 40 | | (c) Assistance provided by the division under this section |
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| 41 | 41 | | may include the assistance authorized under Section 402.028. |
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| 42 | 42 | | SECTION 2. Not later than December 1, 2015, the office of |
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| 43 | 43 | | the attorney general shall establish the transnational and |
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| 44 | 44 | | organized crime division as required by Section 402.038, Government |
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| 45 | 45 | | Code, as added by this Act. |
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| 46 | 46 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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| 47 | 47 | | * * * * * |
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