| 5 | 6 | | WHEREAS, Residents of this state have made inquiries about |
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| 6 | 7 | | the process, rules, handling, and processing of recordings and |
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| 7 | 8 | | transcripts of emergency calls made to public safety agencies in |
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| 8 | 9 | | this state; and |
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| 9 | 10 | | WHEREAS, The principle of open and transparent government can |
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| 10 | 11 | | coexist with respect for the privacy of families grieving from the |
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| 11 | 12 | | loss of a loved one; and |
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| 12 | 13 | | WHEREAS, Certain entities have released the recording of an |
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| 13 | 14 | | emergency call that includes the voice of an individual who |
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| 14 | 15 | | subsequently died as a result of the emergency for which the call |
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| 15 | 16 | | was made; and |
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| 16 | 17 | | WHEREAS, The family members of those individuals can be |
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| 17 | 18 | | unnecessarily traumatized by hearing or learning of what are often |
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| 18 | 19 | | the last words of the individual who made the emergency call; now, |
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| 19 | 20 | | therefore, be it |
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| 20 | 21 | | RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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| 21 | 22 | | hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house |
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| 22 | 23 | | of representatives to provide for a joint interim legislative |
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| 23 | 24 | | committee to study the process, rules, handling, and processing of |
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| 24 | 25 | | the disclosure of recordings and transcripts of emergency calls |
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| 25 | 26 | | made by a subsequently deceased individual to a public safety |
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| 26 | 27 | | agency or a public safety answering point, as those terms are |
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| 27 | 28 | | defined by Section 771.001, Health and Safety Code; and, be it |
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| 28 | 29 | | further |
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| 29 | 30 | | RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including |
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| 30 | 31 | | findings and recommendations, to the 86th Texas Legislature when it |
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| 31 | 32 | | convenes in January 2019. |
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| 32 | | - | Hunter |
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| 33 | | - | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
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| 34 | | - | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
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| 35 | | - | I certify that H.C.R. No. 140 was adopted by the House on May |
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| 36 | | - | 24, 2017, by the following vote: 144 yeas, 0 nays, 4 present, not |
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| 37 | | - | voting. |
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| 38 | | - | ______________________________ |
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| 39 | | - | Chief Clerk of the House |
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| 40 | | - | I certify that H.C.R. No. 140 was adopted by the Senate on May |
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| 41 | | - | 28, 2017, by the following vote: 31 yeas, 0 nays |
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| 42 | | - | . |
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| 43 | | - | ______________________________ |
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| 44 | | - | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 45 | | - | RECEIVED: __________________ |
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| 46 | | - | Date |
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| 47 | | - | __________________ |
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| 48 | | - | Secretary of State |
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