Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3715 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Johnson of Harris H.B. No. 3715
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to statewide alerts for missing adults.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Section 411.383(b), Government Code, is amended
9	9	to read as follows:
10	10	(b) The director shall adopt rules and issue directives as
11	11	necessary to ensure proper implementation of the alert. The rules
12	12	and directives must include:
13	13	(1) the procedures to be used by a local law
14	14	enforcement agency to verify whether a senior citizen:
15	15	(A) is missing; and
16	16	(B) has a mental or physical disability or other
17	17	[an] impaired mental or physical condition;
18	18	(2) a description of the circumstances under which a
19	19	local law enforcement agency is required to report a missing senior
20	20	citizen to the department; and
21	21	(3) the procedures to be used by an individual or
22	22	entity to report information about a missing senior citizen to
23	23	designated media outlets in Texas.
24	24	SECTION 2. Section 411.386, Government Code, is amended to
25	25	read as follows:
26	26	Sec. 411.386. NOTIFICATION TO DEPARTMENT OF MISSING SENIOR
27	27	CITIZEN. (a) A local law enforcement agency may notify the
28	28	department if the agency:
29	29	(1) receives notice of a missing senior citizen;
30	30	(2) verifies that at the time the senior citizen is
31	31	reported missing:
32	32	(A) the person reported missing is 65 years of
33	33	age or older;
34	34	(B) the senior citizen's location is unknown; and
35	35	(C) the senior citizen has a mental or physical
36	36	disability or other [an] impaired mental or physical condition; and
37	37	(3) determines that the senior citizen's disappearance
38	38	poses a credible threat to the senior citizen's health and safety.
39	39	(b) The local law enforcement agency shall:
40	40	(1) require the family or legal guardian of the
41	41	missing senior citizen to provide documentation of the senior
42	42	citizen's mental or physical disability or other impaired mental or
43	43	physical condition to verify the disability or condition as
44	44	required by Subsection (a)(2)(C); and
45	45	(2) as soon as practicable, determine whether the
46	46	senior citizen's disappearance poses a credible threat to the
47	47	senior citizen's health and safety for purposes of Subsection
48	48	(a)(3).
49	49	SECTION 3. Chapter 411, Government Code, is amended by
50	50	adding Subchapter P to read as follows:
51	51	SUBCHAPTER P. ALERT FOR MISSING ADULTS
52	52	Sec. 411.441. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
53	53	(1) "Adult" means a person who is 18 years of age or
54	54	older but younger than 65 years of age.
55	55	(2) "Alert" means the statewide alert for missing
56	56	adults that is developed and implemented under this subchapter.
57	57	(3) "Local law enforcement agency" means a local law
58	58	enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the investigation of a
59	59	missing adult.
60	60	Sec. 411.442. ALERT FOR MISSING ADULTS. With the
61	61	cooperation of the Texas Department of Transportation, the office
62	62	of the governor, and other appropriate law enforcement agencies in
63	63	this state, the department shall develop and implement a statewide
64	64	alert to be activated on behalf of a missing adult.
65	65	Sec. 411.443. ADMINISTRATION. (a) The director is the
66	66	statewide coordinator of the alert.
67	67	(b) The director shall adopt rules and issue directives as
68	68	necessary to ensure proper implementation of the alert. The rules
69	69	and directives must include:
70	70	(1) the procedures to be used by a local law
71	71	enforcement agency to verify whether an adult is:
72	72	(A) missing; and
73	73	(B) in danger because of the adult's mental or
74	74	physical disability or other mental or physical condition;
75	75	(2) a description of the circumstances under which a
76	76	local law enforcement agency is required to report a missing adult
77	77	to the department; and
78	78	(3) the procedures to be used by an individual or
79	79	entity to report information about a missing adult to designated
80	80	media outlets in Texas.
81	81	(c) The director shall prescribe forms for use by local law
82	82	enforcement agencies in requesting activation of the alert system.
83	83	Sec. 411.444. DEPARTMENT TO RECRUIT PARTICIPANTS. The
84	84	department shall recruit public and commercial television and radio
85	85	broadcasters, private commercial entities, state or local
86	86	governmental entities, the public, and other appropriate persons to
87	87	assist in developing and implementing the alert system.
88	88	Sec. 411.445. STATE AGENCIES. (a) A state agency
89	89	participating in the alert system shall:
90	90	(1) cooperate with the department and assist in
91	91	developing and implementing the alert system; and
92	92	(2) establish a plan for providing relevant
93	93	information to its officers, investigators, or employees, as
94	94	appropriate, once the alert system has been activated.
95	95	(b) In addition to its duties as a state agency under
96	96	Subsection (a), the Texas Department of Transportation shall
97	97	establish a plan for providing relevant information to the public
98	98	through an existing system of dynamic message signs located across
99	99	the state.
100	100	Sec. 411.446. NOTIFICATION TO DEPARTMENT OF MISSING ADULT.
101	101	(a) A local law enforcement agency shall notify the department if
102	102	the agency:
103	103	(1) receives notice of a missing adult;
104	104	(2) verifies that at the time the adult is reported
105	105	missing:
106	106	(A) the person reported missing is 18 years of
107	107	age or older but younger than 65 years of age;
108	108	(B) the adult's location is unknown; and
109	109	(C) the adult has been missing for less than 72
110	110	hours;
111	111	(3) confirms that a preliminary investigation has
112	112	taken place with respect to the disappearance and that, as a result
113	113	of that investigation, the agency believes that the missing adult
114	114	is in danger because of the adult's mental or physical disability or
115	115	other mental or physical condition; and
116	116	(4) believes sufficient information is available to
117	117	disseminate to the public that could assist in locating the adult or
118	118	a vehicle being used by the adult.
119	119	(b) The department may modify the criteria described by
120	120	Subsection (a) as necessary for the proper implementation of the
121	121	alert system.
122	122	Sec. 411.447. ACTIVATION OF ALERT. (a) When a local law
123	123	enforcement agency notifies the department under Section 411.446,
124	124	the department shall confirm the accuracy of the information and,
125	125	if confirmed, immediately issue an alert under this subchapter in
126	126	accordance with department rules.
127	127	(b) In issuing the alert, the department shall send the
128	128	alert to designated media outlets in Texas. Following receipt of
129	129	the alert, participating radio stations and television stations and
130	130	other participating media outlets may issue the alert at designated
131	131	intervals to assist in locating the missing adult.
132	132	(c) The department shall also send the alert to:
133	133	(1) any appropriate local law enforcement agency; and
134	134	(2) the Texas Department of Transportation.
135	135	Sec. 411.448. CONTENT OF ALERT. The alert must include:
136	136	(1) all appropriate information that is provided by
137	137	the local law enforcement agency under Section 411.446 and that may
138	138	lead to the safe recovery of the missing adult; and
139	139	(2) a statement instructing any person with
140	140	information related to the missing adult to contact a local law
141	141	enforcement agency.
142	142	Sec. 411.449. TERMINATION OF ALERT. (a) The director shall
143	143	terminate any activation of the alert with respect to a particular
144	144	missing adult not later than the earlier of the date on which:
145	145	(1) the missing adult is located or the situation is
146	146	otherwise resolved; or
147	147	(2) the notification period ends, as determined by
148	148	department rule.
149	149	(b) A local law enforcement agency that locates a missing
150	150	adult who is the subject of an alert under this subchapter shall
151	151	notify the department as soon as possible that the missing adult has
152	152	been located.
153	153	SECTION 4. Not later than December 1, 2017, the public
154	154	safety director of the Department of Public Safety of the State of
155	155	Texas shall adopt rules as necessary to implement Sections 411.383
156	156	and 411.386, Government Code, as amended by this Act, and
157	157	Subchapter P, Chapter 411, Government Code, as added by this Act.
158	158	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.