Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB422 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R549 TSR-F
2	2	By: Fallon H.B. No. 422
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the eligibility for service retirement annuities from
8	8	the Employees Retirement System of Texas of certain elected
9	9	officials convicted of certain offenses.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Article 42.01, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
12	12	amended by adding Section 12 to read as follows:
13	13	Sec. 12. In addition to the information described by
14	14	Section 1, the judgment should reflect affirmative findings entered
15	15	pursuant to Article 42.0196.
16	16	SECTION 2. Chapter 42, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
17	17	amended by adding Article 42.0196 to read as follows:
18	18	Art. 42.0196. FINDING REGARDING OFFENSE RELATED TO
19	19	PERFORMANCE OF PUBLIC SERVICE. (a) In the trial of an offense
20	20	described by Section 814.1021, Government Code, the judge shall
21	21	make an affirmative finding of fact and enter the affirmative
22	22	finding in the judgment in the case if the judge determines that the
23	23	offense committed was related to the defendant's service as a
24	24	member of the elected class described by Section 814.1021(b),
25	25	Government Code, while a member of the Employees Retirement System
26	26	of Texas.
27	27	(b) A judge that makes the affirmative finding described by
28	28	this article shall make the determination and enter the order
29	29	required by Section 814.1021(j), Government Code.
30	30	SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 814, Government Code, is
31	31	amended by adding Section 814.1021 to read as follows:
32	32	Sec. 814.1021. CERTAIN ELECTED MEMBERS INELIGIBLE FOR
33	33	RETIREMENT ANNUITY. (a) In this section, "qualifying felony"
34	34	means any felony involving:
35	35	(1) bribery;
36	36	(2) embezzlement, extortion, or other theft of public
37	37	money;
38	38	(3) perjury;
39	39	(4) coercion of public servant or voter;
40	40	(5) tampering with governmental record;
41	41	(6) misuse of official information;
42	42	(7) conspiracy or the attempt to commit any of the
43	43	above crimes; or
44	44	(8) abuse of official capacity.
45	45	(b) This section applies only to a member of the elected
46	46	class of the retirement system as described by Section
47	47	812.002(a)(1) or (2).
48	48	(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), a member is not
49	49	eligible to receive a service retirement annuity for service credit
50	50	in the elected class under the retirement system if the member is
51	51	convicted of a qualifying felony committed while in office and
52	52	arising directly from the official duties of that elected office.
53	53	(d) The retirement system shall suspend payments of an
54	54	annuity to a person ineligible to receive the annuity under
55	55	Subsection (c) on receipt by the retirement system of notice and the
56	56	terms of the person's conviction. A person whose conviction is
57	57	overturned on appeal or who meets the requirements for innocence
58	58	under Section 103.001(a)(2), Civil Practice and Remedies Code:
59	59	(1) is entitled to receive an amount equal to the
60	60	accrued total of payments and interest earned on the payments
61	61	withheld during the suspension period; and
62	62	(2) may resume receipt of annuity payments on payment
63	63	to the retirement system of an amount equal to the contributions
64	64	refunded to the person under Subsection (e).
65	65	(e) A member who is not eligible to receive a service
66	66	retirement annuity under Subsection (c) is entitled to a refund of
67	67	the member's retirement annuity contributions, including interest
68	68	earned on those contributions.
69	69	(f) Benefits payable to an alternate payee under Chapter 804
70	70	who is recognized by a domestic relations order established before
71	71	September 1, 2017, are not affected by a member's ineligibility to
72	72	receive a retirement annuity under Subsection (c).
73	73	(g) On conviction of a member for a qualifying felony, a
74	74	court may, in the interest of justice and in the same manner as in a
75	75	divorce proceeding, award half of the service retirement annuity
76	76	forfeited by the member as the separate property of an innocent
77	77	spouse if the annuity is partitioned or exchanged by written
78	78	agreement of the spouses as provided by Subchapter B, Chapter 4,
79	79	Family Code. The amount awarded to the innocent spouse may not be
80	80	converted to community property.
81	81	(h) Ineligibility for a retirement annuity under this
82	82	section does not impair a person's right to any other retirement
83	83	benefit for which the person is eligible.
84	84	(i) The board of trustees of the retirement system shall
85	85	adopt rules and procedures to implement this section.
86	86	(j) A court shall:
87	87	(1) order the suspension of service retirement annuity
88	88	payments for a person convicted of an offense described by
89	89	Subsection (c); and
90	90	(2) notify the retirement system of the terms of a
91	91	conviction ordered under Subdivision (1).
92	92	SECTION 4. Section 12, Article 42.01, Code of Criminal
93	93	Procedure, and Article 42.0196, Code of Criminal Procedure, as
94	94	added by this Act, apply only to a judgment of conviction entered on
95	95	or after the effective date of this Act.
96	96	SECTION 5. (a) Section 814.1021, Government Code, as added
97	97	by this Act, applies only to a member of the Employees Retirement
98	98	System of Texas who is or was a member of the state legislature or
99	99	holds or has held a statewide elected office and, on or after the
100	100	effective date of this Act, commits an offense that is a qualifying
101	101	felony as defined by that section. A person who commits a
102	102	qualifying felony before the effective date of this Act is subject
103	103	to the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the
104	104	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
105	105	(b) For purposes of this section, an offense was committed
106	106	before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense
107	107	occurred before that date.
108	108	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.