Texas 2019 - 86th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1687 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	86R11996 JRR-D
2	2	By: West S.B. No. 1687
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the release of certain inmates on medically recommended
8	8	intensive supervision.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Sections 508.115(a) and (d), Government Code,
11	11	are amended to read as follows:
12	12	(a) Not later than the 11th day before the date a parole
13	13	panel orders the release of an inmate on parole or medically
14	14	recommended intensive supervision [of an inmate] or not later than
15	15	the 11th day after the date the board recommends that the governor
16	16	grant executive clemency, the division shall notify the sheriffs,
17	17	each chief of police, the prosecuting attorneys, and the district
18	18	judges in the county in which the inmate was convicted and the
19	19	county to which the inmate is released that a parole panel is
20	20	considering release on parole or medically recommended intensive
21	21	supervision or the governor is considering clemency.
22	22	(d) The notice must include [state]:
23	23	(1) the inmate's name;
24	24	(2) the county in which the inmate was convicted;
25	25	[and]
26	26	(3) the offense for which the inmate was convicted;
27	27	and
28	28	(4) to the extent permitted by federal law,
29	29	information relating to the inmate's physical or mental health
30	30	condition if the inmate is being considered for release on
31	31	medically recommended intensive supervision under Section 508.146.
32	32	SECTION 2. Section 508.146, Government Code, is amended by
33	33	amending Subsections (a) and (e) and adding Subsection (g) to read
34	34	as follows:
35	35	(a) An inmate other than an inmate who is serving a sentence
36	36	of death or life without parole may be released on medically
37	37	recommended intensive supervision on a date designated by a parole
38	38	panel described by Subsection (e), except that an inmate with an
39	39	instant offense that is an offense described in Article 42A.054,
40	40	Code of Criminal Procedure, or an inmate who has a reportable
41	41	conviction or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of Criminal
42	42	Procedure, may only be considered if a medical condition of
43	43	terminal illness or long-term care has been diagnosed by a
44	44	physician, if:
45	45	(1) the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with
46	46	Medical or Mental Impairments, in cooperation with the Correctional
47	47	Managed Health Care Committee, identifies the inmate as [being]:
48	48	(A) [a person who is elderly or terminally ill, a
49	49	person with mental illness, an intellectual disability, or a
50	50	physical disability, or a person who has a condition] requiring
51	51	permanent long-term care, having a terminal illness, or being a
52	52	person with a severe and persistent mental illness or intellectual
53	53	and developmental disability, if the inmate is an inmate with an
54	54	instant offense that is described in Article 42A.054, Code of
55	55	Criminal Procedure; or
56	56	(B) being in a persistent vegetative state or
57	57	being a person with an organic brain syndrome with significant to
58	58	total mobility impairment, if the inmate is an inmate who has a
59	59	reportable conviction or adjudication under Chapter 62, Code of
60	60	Criminal Procedure;
61	61	(2) the parole panel determines that, based on the
62	62	inmate's condition and a medical evaluation, the inmate does not
63	63	constitute a threat to public safety; and
64	64	(3) the Texas Correctional Office on Offenders with
65	65	Medical or Mental Impairments, in cooperation with the [pardons and
66	66	paroles] division, has prepared for the inmate a medically
67	67	recommended intensive supervision plan that requires the inmate to
68	68	submit to electronic monitoring, places the inmate on
69	69	super-intensive supervision, or otherwise ensures appropriate
70	70	supervision of the inmate.
71	71	(e) Only a parole panel [panels] composed of three [the
72	72	presiding officer of the] board [and two] members appointed to the
73	73	panel by the presiding officer may make determinations regarding
74	74	the release of inmates on medically recommended intensive
75	75	supervision under Subsection (a) or of inmates released pending
76	76	deportation. If the Texas Correctional Office [Council] on
77	77	Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments identifies an inmate
78	78	as a candidate for release under the guidelines established by
79	79	Subsection (a)(1), the office [council] shall present to a parole
80	80	panel described by this subsection relevant information concerning
81	81	the inmate and the inmate's potential for release under this
82	82	section.
83	83	(g) For purposes of Subsection (a), "terminal illness"
84	84	means an incurable illness or condition that is expected to result
85	85	in death within one year regardless of life-sustaining treatment.
86	86	SECTION 3. (a) The Texas Department of Criminal Justice and
87	87	the Health and Human Services Commission jointly shall conduct a
88	88	study regarding the feasibility of contracting with a private
89	89	entity to house inmates released on medically recommended intensive
90	90	supervision under Section 508.146, Government Code, as amended by
91	91	this Act, who require skilled nursing services or 24-hour care.
92	92	(b) Not later than December 1, 2020, the Texas Department of
93	93	Criminal Justice shall report the results of the study conducted
94	94	under this section to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the
95	95	speaker of the house of representatives, and the standing
96	96	committees of the house of representatives and the senate with
97	97	primary jurisdiction over criminal justice matters.
98	98	(c) This section expires January 1, 2021.
99	99	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019.