Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1153 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R1175 BEE-D
2	2	By: White H.B. No. 1153
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the consequences of a criminal conviction on a person's
8	8	eligibility for an occupational license; charging a fee.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 53.021(a), Occupations Code, is amended
11	11	to read as follows:
12	12	(a) A licensing authority may not suspend or revoke a
13	13	license, disqualify a person from receiving a license, or deny to a
14	14	person the opportunity to take a licensing examination on the
15	15	grounds that the person has been convicted of an offense unless the
16	16	offense:
17	17	(1) is on the list prepared by the licensing authority
18	18	under Section 53.022(a) [an offense that directly relates to the
19	19	duties and responsibilities of the licensed occupation;
20	20	[(2) an offense that does not directly relate to the
21	21	duties and responsibilities of the licensed occupation] and [that
22	22	was committed less than five years before the date] the person
23	23	applies for the license before the later of the fifth anniversary of
24	24	the date of:
25	25	(A) conviction; or
26	26	(B) the person's release from confinement if the
27	27	person's sentence for the offense included a term of confinement;
28	28	(2) is [(3) an offense] listed in Article 42A.054,
29	29	Code of Criminal Procedure; or
30	30	(3) is [(4)] a sexually violent offense, as defined
31	31	by Article 62.001, Code of Criminal Procedure.
32	32	SECTION 2. Section 53.022, Occupations Code, is amended to
33	33	read as follows:
34	34	Sec. 53.022. LICENSING AUTHORITY DETERMINATION OF [FACTORS
35	35	IN DETERMINING] WHETHER CONVICTION RELATES TO OCCUPATION. (a) A
36	36	licensing authority shall prepare and make available to the public
37	37	a list of offenses:
38	38	(1) that directly relate to the duties and
39	39	responsibilities of each occupation licensed by the authority; and
40	40	(2) on conviction of which the licensing authority may
41	41	take an action authorized by Section 53.021(a).
42	42	(b) In preparing the list of offenses under Subsection (a),
43	43	the licensing authority:
44	44	(1) must list specific offenses; and
45	45	(2) may not use nonspecific terms to describe
46	46	offenses, including the terms "moral turpitude" and "good
47	47	character."
48	48	(c) In determining whether an offense [a criminal
49	49	conviction] directly relates to the duties and responsibilities of
50	50	an occupation, the licensing authority shall consider:
51	51	(1) the nature and seriousness of the offense [crime];
52	52	(2) the relationship of the offense [crime] to the
53	53	purposes for requiring a license to engage in the occupation;
54	54	(3) the extent to which a license might offer an
55	55	opportunity to engage in further criminal activity of the same type
56	56	[as that in which the person previously had been involved]; and
57	57	(4) the relationship of the offense [crime] to the
58	58	ability, capacity, or fitness required to perform the duties and
59	59	discharge the responsibilities of the licensed occupation.
60	60	SECTION 3. Section 53.023(a), Occupations Code, is amended
61	61	to read as follows:
62	62	(a) In determining whether to take an action authorized by
63	63	Section 53.021(a) with respect to [the fitness to perform the
64	64	duties and discharge the responsibilities of the licensed
65	65	occupation of] a person who has been convicted of an offense that
66	66	appears on a list prepared under Section 53.022(a) [a crime], the
67	67	licensing authority shall consider, in addition to the factors
68	68	listed in Section 53.022(c) [53.022]:
69	69	(1) the extent and nature of the person's past criminal
70	70	activity;
71	71	(2) the age of the person when the offense [crime] was
72	72	committed;
73	73	(3) the amount of time that has elapsed since the
74	74	person's last criminal activity;
75	75	(4) the conduct and work activity of the person before
76	76	and after the criminal activity;
77	77	(5) evidence of the person's rehabilitation or
78	78	rehabilitative effort while incarcerated or after release; and
79	79	(6) other evidence of the person's fitness, including
80	80	letters of recommendation from:
81	81	(A) prosecutors and law enforcement and
82	82	correctional officers who prosecuted, arrested, or had custodial
83	83	responsibility for the person;
84	84	(B) the sheriff or chief of police in the
85	85	community where the person resides; and
86	86	(C) any other person in contact with the
87	87	convicted person.
88	88	SECTION 4. Section 53.025, Occupations Code, is amended to
89	89	read as follows:
90	90	Sec. 53.025. PUBLICATION OF LIST AND GUIDELINES. (a) Each
91	91	licensing authority shall issue guidelines relating to the practice
92	92	of the licensing authority under this chapter. The guidelines must
93	93	state the reasons a particular offense [crime] is on the list
94	94	prepared by the authority under Section 53.022(a) [considered to
95	95	relate to a particular license] and any other criterion that
96	96	affects the decisions of the licensing authority.
97	97	(b) A state licensing authority [that issues guidelines
98	98	under this section] shall file the guidelines and list of offenses
99	99	with the secretary of state for publication in the Texas Register.
100	100	(c) A local or county licensing authority [that issues
101	101	guidelines under this section] shall post the guidelines and list
102	102	of offenses at the courthouse for the county in which the licensing
103	103	authority is located or publish the guidelines and list in a
104	104	newspaper having countywide circulation in that county.
105	105	(d) Amendments to the guidelines or list of offenses, if
106	106	any, shall be issued annually.
107	107	SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 53, Occupations Code, is
108	108	amended by adding Section 53.053 to read as follows:
109	109	Sec. 53.053. BURDEN OF PROOF. In an administrative appeal
110	110	or a judicial review of a decision by a licensing authority to take
111	111	an action authorized by Section 53.021(a), the authority has the
112	112	burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that:
113	113	(1) the offense that the person has been convicted of
114	114	directly relates to the duties and responsibilities of the licensed
115	115	occupation; and
116	116	(2) after consideration of the relevant factors as
117	117	required by Section 53.023(a), the person lacks the fitness to
118	118	perform the duties and discharge the responsibilities of the
119	119	licensed occupation.
120	120	SECTION 6. Section 53.102(a), Occupations Code, is amended
121	121	to read as follows:
122	122	(a) A person may request a licensing authority to issue a
123	123	criminal history evaluation letter regarding the person's
124	124	eligibility for a license issued by that authority if the person [:
125	125	[(1) is enrolled or planning to enroll in an
126	126	educational program that prepares a person for an initial license
127	127	or is planning to take an examination for an initial license; and
128	128	[(2)] has reason to believe that the person is
129	129	ineligible for the license due to a conviction or deferred
130	130	adjudication for a felony or misdemeanor offense.
131	131	SECTION 7. Section 53.104(c), Occupations Code, is amended
132	132	to read as follows:
133	133	(c) A licensing authority must provide notice under
134	134	Subsection (a) or issue a letter under Subsection (b) not later than
135	135	the 30th [90th] day after the date the authority receives the
136	136	request.
137	137	SECTION 8. Section 53.105, Occupations Code, is amended to
138	138	read as follows:
139	139	Sec. 53.105. FEES. A licensing authority may charge a
140	140	person requesting an evaluation under this subchapter a reasonable
141	141	fee adopted by the authority[. Fees adopted by a licensing
142	142	authority under this subchapter must be in an amount sufficient] to
143	143	cover the cost of administering this subchapter, not to exceed $25
144	144	for each request.
145	145	SECTION 9. Section 53.152(a), Occupations Code, is amended
146	146	to read as follows:
147	147	(a) An entity that provides an educational program to
148	148	prepare an individual for issuance of an initial occupational
149	149	license shall notify each applicant to and enrollee in the
150	150	educational program of:
151	151	(1) the potential ineligibility of an individual who
152	152	has been convicted of an offense for issuance of an occupational
153	153	license on completion of the educational program;
154	154	(2) the [current] guidelines and list of offenses
155	155	issued under Section 53.025 by any licensing authority that may
156	156	issue an occupational license to an individual who completes the
157	157	educational program; and
158	158	(3) [any other state or local restriction or guideline
159	159	used by a licensing authority described by Subdivision (2) to
160	160	determine the eligibility of an individual who has been convicted
161	161	of an offense for an occupational license issued by the licensing
162	162	authority; and
163	163	[(4)] the right to request a criminal history
164	164	evaluation letter under Section 53.102.
165	165	SECTION 10. Sections 53.021(a-1) and (b) and 53.0211,
166	166	Occupations Code, are repealed.
167	167	SECTION 11. (a) Section 53.021, Occupations Code, as
168	168	amended by this Act, applies only to an action taken by a licensing
169	169	authority to suspend or revoke a license, disqualify a person from
170	170	receiving a license, or deny to a person the opportunity to take a
171	171	licensing examination on or after January 1, 2020. An action taken
172	172	by a licensing authority before that date is governed by the law in
173	173	effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the
174	174	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
175	175	(b) Section 53.053, Occupations Code, as added by this Act,
176	176	applies only to a proceeding commenced on or after January 1, 2020.
177	177	A proceeding commenced before that date is governed by the law in
178	178	effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the
179	179	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
180	180	(c) Sections 53.104(c) and 53.105, Occupations Code, as
181	181	amended by this Act, apply only to a request received by a licensing
182	182	authority under Subchapter D, Chapter 53, Occupations Code, as
183	183	amended by this Act, on or after January 1, 2020. A request
184	184	received before that date is governed by the law in effect
185	185	immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the former
186	186	law is continued in effect for that purpose.
187	187	SECTION 12. Not later than December 31, 2019, a licensing
188	188	authority shall publish or post the guidelines and list of offenses
189	189	as required by Section 53.025, Occupations Code, as amended by this
190	190	Act.
191	191	SECTION 13. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.