Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3316 Compare Versions

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Version 2 (New)

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1		-	H.B. No. 3316
	1	+	By: White (Senate Sponsor - Schwertner) H.B. No. 3316
	2	+	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 13, 2019;
	3	+	May 14, 2019, read first time and referred to Committee on Criminal
	4	+	Justice; May 19, 2019, reported adversely, with favorable
	5	+	Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0;
	6	+	May 19, 2019, sent to printer.)
	7	+	Click here to see the committee vote
	8	+	COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 3316 By: Whitmire
2	9
3	10
	11	+	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
4	12		AN ACT
5	13		relating to the Texas Crime Stoppers Council.
6	14		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
7	15		SECTION 1. Section 414.001, Government Code, is amended by
8	16		amending Subdivision (2) and adding Subdivisions (3) and (4) to
9	17		read as follows:
10	18		(2) "Crime stoppers organization" means:
11	19		(A) a private, nonprofit organization that is
12	20		operated on a local or statewide level, that accepts [and expends]
13	21		donations and expends funds for rewards to persons who submit tips
14	22		under Section 414.0015(a), [report to the organization information
15	23		about criminal activity] and that forwards the information received
16	24		from tips to the appropriate law enforcement agency, school
17	25		district, or open-enrollment charter school as provided by Section
18	26		414.0015(b); or
19	27		(B) a public organization that is operated on a
20	28		local or statewide level, that pays rewards to persons who submit
21	29		tips under Section 414.0015(a) [report to the organization
22	30		information about criminal activity], and that forwards the
23	31		information received from tips to the appropriate law enforcement
24	32		agency, school district, or open-enrollment charter school as
25	33		provided by Section 414.0015(b).
26	34		(3) "Open-enrollment charter school" means a school
27	35		that has been granted a charter under Subchapter D, Chapter 12,
28	36		Education Code.
29	37		(4) "School district" means a public school district
30	38		created under the laws of this state.
31	39		SECTION 2. Chapter 414, Government Code, is amended by
32	40		adding Section 414.0015 to read as follows:
33	41		Sec. 414.0015. CRIME STOPPERS TIPS. (a) The council, a
34	42		crime stoppers organization, or a person accepting information on
35	43		behalf of the council or a crime stoppers organization may accept
36	44		tips submitted by any person regarding:
37	45		(1) criminal activity;
38	46		(2) conduct or threatened conduct that constitutes a
39	47		danger to public safety or an individual; or
40	48		(3) conduct or threatened conduct that would disrupt
41	49		the efficient and effective operations of a school district or
42	50		open-enrollment charter school.
43	51		(b) A crime stoppers organization may forward a tip
44	52		submitted under Subsection (a) to the appropriate law enforcement
45	53		agency, school district, or open-enrollment charter school, except
46	54		that a tip regarding conduct or threatened conduct described only
47	55		by Subsection (a)(3) may be forwarded only to the appropriate
48	56		school district or open-enrollment charter school.
49	57		SECTION 3. Section 414.002, Government Code, is amended by
50	58		amending Subsections (b), (c), and (d) and adding Subsection (e) to
51	59		read as follows:
52	60		(b) The council consists of five voting members appointed by
53	61		the governor with the advice and consent of the senate. At least
54	62		three members must be:
55	63		(1) a current or former official or employee of a
56	64		school district or open-enrollment charter school; or
57	65		(2) a person [persons] who has [have] participated in
58	66		a crime stoppers organization in any of the following capacities:
59	67		(A) [(1)] as a law enforcement coordinator;
60	68		(B) [(2)] as a member of the board of directors;
61	69		(C) [(3)] as a media representative; or
62	70		(D) [(4)] as an administrative officer.
63	71		(c) The term of office of a voting member is four years.
64	72		(d) At its first meeting after the beginning of each fiscal
65	73		year the council shall elect from among its voting members a
66	74		chairman and other officers that the council considers necessary.
67	75		(e) In addition to the voting members appointed under
68	76		Subsection (b), the council may annually appoint a current student
69	77		of a public school in this state who participates in the Texas Crime
70	78		Stoppers Ambassador Program as a nonvoting student advisor to the
71	79		council.
72	80		SECTION 4. Section 414.003, Government Code, is amended to
73	81		read as follows:
74	82		Sec. 414.003. PER DIEM AND EXPENSES. A voting member of the
75	83		council is entitled to:
76	84		(1) a per diem as determined by appropriation; and
77	85		(2) reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses
78	86		incurred in performing duties as a member.
79	87		SECTION 5. Section 414.005, Government Code, is amended to
80	88		read as follows:
81	89		Sec. 414.005. DUTIES. The council shall:
82	90		(1) encourage, advise, and assist in the creation of
83	91		crime stoppers organizations;
84	92		(2) foster the detection of crime and encourage
85	93		persons to submit tips under Section 414.0015(a) [report
86	94		information about criminal acts];
87	95		(3) encourage news and other media to [broadcast
88	96		reenactments and to] inform the public of the functions of crime
89	97		stoppers organizations' operations and programs;
90	98		(4) promote the process of crime stoppers
91	99		organizations to forward information from tips submitted under
92	100		Section 414.0015(a) [about criminal acts] to the appropriate law
93	101		enforcement agencies, school districts, and open-enrollment
94	102		charter schools;
95	103		(5) help law enforcement agencies detect and combat
96	104		crime by increasing the flow of information to and between law
97	105		enforcement agencies;
98	106		(6) create specialized programs targeted at detecting
99	107		specific crimes or types of crimes identified as priorities by the
100	108		council, including at least one program that:
101	109		(A) encourages individuals to submit tips
102	110		regarding [report] sex offenders who have failed to register under
103	111		Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure;
104	112		(B) encourages individuals to submit tips
105	113		regarding [report] criminal activity relating to the trafficking of
106	114		persons, as described under Chapter 20A, Penal Code; and
107	115		(C) financially rewards each individual who
108	116		submits a tip [makes a report] described by Paragraph (A) or (B)
109	117		that leads or substantially contributes to the arrest or
110	118		apprehension:
111	119		(i) of a sex offender who has failed to
112	120		register under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal Procedure; or
113	121		(ii) of a person suspected of engaging in
114	122		conduct that constitutes an offense under Chapter 20A, Penal Code;
115	123		[and]
116	124		(7) encourage, advise, and assist crime stoppers
117	125		organizations in implementing any programs created under
118	126		Subdivision (6), including a program specifically described by
119	127		Subdivision (6); and
120	128		(8) encourage, advise, and assist in the creation of
121	129		campus-based crime stoppers organizations to increase the
122	130		detection of criminal activity and other conduct or threatened
123	131		conduct that may be submitted to a crime stoppers organization
124	132		under Section 414.0015(a).
125	133		SECTION 6. Section 414.007, Government Code, is amended to
126	134		read as follows:
127	135		Sec. 414.007. CONFIDENTIALITY OF CRIME STOPPERS [COUNCIL]
128	136		RECORDS. A record relating to a tip received under Section
129	137		414.0015(a) maintained by the council, a crime stoppers
130	138		organization, a law enforcement agency, a school district, or an
131	139		open-enrollment charter school, including the identity of the
132	140		person who submitted the tip, is [Council records relating to
133	141		reports of criminal acts are] confidential and is not subject to
134	142		disclosure under Chapter 552.
135	143		SECTION 7. Sections 414.008(a), (b), and (e), Government
136	144		Code, are amended to read as follows:
137	145		(a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, evidence
138	146		relating to [of] a communication between a person submitting a tip
139	147		under Section 414.0015(a) [report of a criminal act to the council
140	148		or a crime stoppers organization] and a [the] person who accepted
141	149		the tip under that subsection [report on behalf of the council or
142	150		organization] is not admissible in a court or an administrative
143	151		proceeding and may not be considered in a hearing regarding the
144	152		expulsion of a student under Subchapter A, Chapter 37, Education
145	153		Code, or any other student disciplinary proceeding.
146	154		(b) A record [Records] of the council, [or] a crime stoppers
147	155		organization, a law enforcement agency, a school district, or an
148	156		open-enrollment charter school concerning a tip submitted under
149	157		Section 414.0015(a) [report of criminal activity] may not be
150	158		compelled to be produced before a court or other tribunal except on
151	159		a motion:
152	160		(1) filed in a criminal trial court by a defendant who
153	161		alleges that the record [records or report] contains evidence that
154	162		is exculpatory to the defendant in the trial of that offense; or
155	163		(2) filed in a civil case by a plaintiff who alleges
156	164		that denial of access to the record [the records] concerning the tip
157	165		[report of criminal activity] abrogates any part of a cognizable
158	166		common law cause of action, if the plaintiff alleging abrogation:
159	167		(A) was charged with or convicted of a criminal
160	168		offense based at least partially on the tip [report] and the charges
161	169		were dismissed, the plaintiff was acquitted, or the conviction was
162	170		overturned, as applicable; and
163	171		(B) in the motion establishes a prima facie case
164	172		that the plaintiff's abrogated claim is based on injuries from the
165	173		criminal charge or conviction caused by the wrongful acts of
166	174		another performed in connection with the tip [report].
167	175		(e) The court shall return to the council, [or] crime
168	176		stoppers organization, law enforcement agency, school district, or
169	177		open-enrollment charter school the materials that are produced
170	178		under this section but not disclosed to the movant. The council,
171	179		[or] crime stoppers organization, law enforcement agency, school
172	180		district, or open-enrollment charter school shall store the
173	181		materials at least until the first anniversary of the following
174	182		appropriate date:
175	183		(1) the date of expiration of the time for all direct
176	184		appeals in a criminal case; or
177	185		(2) the date a plaintiff's right to appeal in a civil
178	186		case is exhausted.
179	187		SECTION 8. Section 414.009(a), Government Code, is amended
180	188		to read as follows:
181	189		(a) A person who is a member or employee of the council, a
182	190		crime stoppers organization, a law enforcement agency, a school
183	191		district, or an open-enrollment charter school or who accepts a tip
184	192		under Section 414.0015(a) [report of criminal activity] on behalf
185	193		of the council or a crime stoppers organization commits an offense
186	194		if the person intentionally or knowingly discloses [divulges] to a
187	195		person not a member of or employed by the council, a crime stoppers
188	196		organization, a law enforcement agency, a school district, or an
189	197		open-enrollment charter school the [content of a report of a
190	198		criminal act or the] identity of a [the] person who submitted a tip
191	199		or the content of that tip [made the report] without the person's
192	200		consent, unless:
193	201		(1) the person disclosing the information has received
194	202		authorization to disclose the information from the chief executive
195	203		of the crime stoppers organization that originally received the
196	204		tip, and the chief executive has reasonably determined that failing
197	205		to disclose the identity of a person who submitted the tip creates a
198	206		probability of imminent physical injury to another; or
199	207		(2) the disclosure is otherwise required by law or
200	208		court order [of the person who made the report].
201	209		SECTION 9. Sections 414.010(a) and (d), Government Code,
202	210		are amended to read as follows:
203	211		(a) Except as provided by Subsection (d), a crime stoppers
204	212		organization certified by the council to receive money in the form
205	213		of payments from defendants placed on community supervision under
206	214		Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal Procedure, or money in the form of
207	215		repayments of rewards under Articles 37.073 and 42.152, Code of
208	216		Criminal Procedure, may transfer [use] not more than 20 percent of
209	217		the money [annually] received during each calendar year to accounts
210	218		used solely to pay costs incurred in administering the organization
211	219		and shall use the remainder of the money, including any interest
212	220		earned on the money, only for the payment of rewards to [reward]
213	221		persons who submit tips under Section 414.0015(a) [report
214	222		information concerning criminal activity]. Not later than January
215	223		31 of each year, a crime stoppers organization that receives or
216	224		expends money under this section shall file a detailed report with
217	225		the council.
218	226		(d) A [If the amount of funds received by a] crime stoppers
219	227		organization under this section [exceeds three times the amount of
220	228		funds that the organization uses to pay rewards during a fiscal year
221	229		based on the average amount of funds used to pay rewards during each
222	230		of the preceding three fiscal years, the organization] may deposit
223	231		excess funds, in an amount established by council rule, [the excess
224	232		amount of funds] in [a] separate accounts [interest-bearing
225	233		account] to be used by the organization solely for law enforcement
226	234		or public safety purposes relating to crime stoppers or juvenile
227	235		justice, as established by council rule [including intervention,
228	236		apprehension, and adjudication]. An organization that deposits
229	237		excess funds in an account as provided by this subsection may use
230	238		any interest earned on the funds to pay costs incurred in
231	239		administering the organization.
232	240		SECTION 10. Section 414.012, Government Code, is amended to
233	241		read as follows:
234	242		Sec. 414.012. STATEWIDE CRIME REPORTING SYSTEMS. The
235	243		council shall establish a free statewide telephone service and
236	244		other appropriate systems to allow tips under Section 414.0015(a)
237	245		[information about criminal acts] to be submitted [reported] to the
238	246		council and shall make the telephone service and other reporting
239	247		systems accessible at all times to persons residing in areas of the
240	248		state not served by a crime stoppers organization. The council
241	249		shall forward any [the] information it receives [received] to
242	250		appropriate crime stoppers organizations, law enforcement
243	251		agencies, school districts, or open-enrollment charter schools
244	252		[crime stoppers organization].
245	253		SECTION 11. Section 414.013, Government Code, is amended to
246	254		read as follows:
247	255		Sec. 414.013. IMMUNITY FROM CIVIL LIABILITY. (a) A person
248	256		who submits [communicates] to the council or a crime stoppers
249	257		organization a tip under Section 414.0015(a) [report of criminal
250	258		activity that leads to the arrest of, the filing of charges against,
251	259		or the conviction of a person for a criminal offense] is immune from
252	260		civil liability for damages resulting from the submission
253	261		[communication] unless the submission [communication] was:
254	262		(1) intentionally, wilfully, or wantonly negligent or
255	263		false;
256	264		(2) made [or done] with conscious indifference or
257	265		reckless disregard for the safety of others; or
258	266		(3) made to further the commission of a criminal act.
259	267		(b) A person who in the course and scope of the person's
260	268		duties or functions receives, forwards, or acts on a tip submitted
261	269		under Section 414.0015(a) [report of criminal activity
262	270		communicated to the council or a crime stoppers organization] is
263	271		immune from civil liability for damages resulting from an act or
264	272		omission in the performance of the person's duties or functions
265	273		unless the act or omission was:
266	274		(1) intentional or[,] wilfully or wantonly negligent;
267	275		[, or]
268	276		(2) done with conscious indifference or reckless
269	277		disregard for the safety of others; or
270	278		(3) done to further the commission of a criminal act.
271	279		SECTION 12. Section 351.901(a), Local Government Code, is
272	280		amended by amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivisions (3) and
273	281		(4) to read as follows:
274	282		(1) "Crime stoppers organization" means a private,
275	283		nonprofit organization or a public organization that:
276	284		(A) is operated on a local or statewide level;
277	285		(B) accepts [and expends] donations and expends
278	286		funds for rewards to persons who submit tips under Section
279	287		414.0015(a), Government Code [report to the organization
280	288		information about criminal activity]; and
281	289		(C) forwards the information received from tips
282	290		to the appropriate law enforcement agency, school district, or
283	291		open-enrollment charter school as provided by Section 414.0015(b),
284	292		Government Code.
285	293		(3) "Open-enrollment charter school" means a school
286	294		that has been granted a charter under Subchapter D, Chapter 12,
287	295		Education Code.
288	296		(4) "School district" means a public school district
289	297		created under the laws of this state.
290	298		SECTION 13. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.
291		-	______________________________ ______________________________
292		-	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
293		-	I certify that H.B. No. 3316 was passed by the House on May
294		-	10, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 131, Nays 10, 2 present, not
295		-	voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
296		-	No. 3316 on May 24, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 124, Nays 17,
297		-	2 present, not voting.
298		-	______________________________
299		-	Chief Clerk of the House
300		-	I certify that H.B. No. 3316 was passed by the Senate, with
301		-	amendments, on May 22, 2019, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays
302		-	0.
303		-	______________________________
304		-	Secretary of the Senate
305		-	APPROVED: __________________
306		-	Date
307		-	__________________
308		-	Governor
	299	+	* * * * *