Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2911 Compare Versions

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Version 2 (New)

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1	1	By: Lucio III (Senate Sponsor - Menéndez) H.B. No. 2911
2	2	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 10, 2017;
3	3	May 12, 2017, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal
4	4	Justice; May 19, 2017, reported favorably by the following vote:
5	5	Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 19, 2017, sent to printer.)
6	6	Click here to see the committee vote
7	7
8	8
9	9	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
10	10	AN ACT
11	11	relating to a reemployment program as a condition of community
12	12	supervision for certain veterans who commit a misdemeanor offense.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
15	15	amended by adding Subchapter H-1 to read as follows:
16	16	SUBCHAPTER H-1. VETERANS REEMPLOYMENT PROGRAM
17	17	Art. 42A.381. VETERANS REEMPLOYMENT PROGRAM. In this
18	18	subchapter "veterans reemployment program" means a program that
19	19	provides education and training to veterans with the goal that the
20	20	veterans become gainfully employed.
21	21	Art. 42A.382. ELIGIBILITY. (a) A defendant placed on
22	22	deferred adjudication community supervision for or convicted of a
23	23	misdemeanor offense is eligible to participate in a veterans
24	24	reemployment program established under this subchapter if the
25	25	defendant is a veteran of the United States armed forces, including
26	26	a member of the reserves, national guard, or state guard.
27	27	(b) The judge granting community supervision to a defendant
28	28	described by Subsection (a) shall inform the defendant of the
29	29	defendant's eligibility for the program but may not require the
30	30	defendant to participate in the program.
31	31	(c) A judge may additionally impose any condition of
32	32	community supervision that the judge is authorized to impose under
33	33	this chapter on a defendant who chooses to participate in the
34	34	program under this subchapter.
35	35	Art. 42A.383. EDUCATION AND TRAINING COURSES. (a) A
36	36	participant in the program shall diligently attend workforce
37	37	development education and training courses developed or approved by
38	38	the Texas Workforce Commission under Chapter 316, Labor Code, as
39	39	directed by the court.
40	40	(b) The education and training courses under this article
41	41	must focus on providing a participant with useful workplace skills
42	42	most likely to lead to gainful employment by the participant.
43	43	(c) The education and training courses may be
44	44	individualized based on any physical or intellectual limitations of
45	45	the participant.
46	46	Art. 42A.384. COMPLETION OF PROGRAM. A participant
47	47	successfully completes the veterans reemployment program if the
48	48	participant completes the education and training courses required
49	49	by the court and:
50	50	(1) obtains employment and retains that employment for
51	51	three continuous months;
52	52	(2) diligently searches for employment for a
53	53	continuous period of six months; or
54	54	(3) is determined by the court to be unemployable
55	55	because of a disability.
56	56	Art. 42A.385. FAILURE TO COMPLETE PROGRAM. (a) The judge
57	57	may not revoke the community supervision of a defendant who fails to
58	58	complete the program under this subchapter.
59	59	(b) If the defendant fails to complete the program under
60	60	this subchapter, the judge may:
61	61	(1) modify the defendant's conditions of community
62	62	supervision; and
63	63	(2) extend the period of community supervision so that
64	64	the defendant may comply with the conditions under Subdivision (1).
65	65	SECTION 2. Subchapter E-1, Chapter 411, Government Code, is
66	66	amended by adding Section 411.0729 to read as follows:
67	67	Sec. 411.0729. PROCEDURE FOR CERTAIN VETERANS. On
68	68	successful completion of the veterans reemployment program created
69	69	under Subchapter H-1, Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal Procedure, and
70	70	all other conditions of the defendant's community supervision,
71	71	regardless of whether the defendant meets the eligibility criteria
72	72	under this subchapter, after notice to the state and a hearing on
73	73	whether issuance of an order of nondisclosure is in the best
74	74	interest of justice, the court shall enter an order of
75	75	nondisclosure with respect to all records of the offense for which
76	76	the defendant was convicted or placed on deferred adjudication
77	77	community supervision.
78	78	SECTION 3. Subtitle B, Title 4, Labor Code, is amended by
79	79	adding Chapter 316 to read as follows:
80	80	CHAPTER 316. VETERANS REEMPLOYMENT EDUCATION AND TRAINING COURSES
81	81	Sec. 316.001. VETERANS REEMPLOYMENT PROGRAM. In this
82	82	chapter "veterans reemployment program" means the community
83	83	supervision program created under Subchapter H-1, Chapter 42A, Code
84	84	of Criminal Procedure.
85	85	Sec. 316.002. EDUCATION AND TRAINING COURSES. (a) The
86	86	commission shall develop or approve education and training courses
87	87	to assist veterans convicted of or placed on deferred adjudication
88	88	community supervision for a misdemeanor offense under Subchapter
89	89	H-1, Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal Procedure, in obtaining
90	90	workforce skills and becoming gainfully employed.
91	91	(b) The education and training courses must provide
92	92	instruction in workforce skills appropriate for veterans with
93	93	disabilities.
94	94	SECTION 4. Not later than January 1, 2018, the Texas
95	95	Workforce Commission shall develop or approve education and
96	96	training courses as required under Chapter 316, Labor Code, as
97	97	added by this Act.
98	98	SECTION 5. Subchapter H-1, Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal
99	99	Procedure, applies only to a person placed on community
100	100	supervision, including deferred adjudication community
101	101	supervision, on or after January 1, 2018.
102	102	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
103	103	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
104	104	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
105	105	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
106	106	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
107	107	* * * * *