87R7734 MEW-D
By: Landgraf H.B. No. 2702
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the protective order registry maintained by the Office
of Court Administration of the Texas Judicial System and the
removal of a vacated protective order from the registry.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 72.151(3), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(3) "Protective order" means:
(A) an order issued by a court in this state under
Chapter 83 or 85, Family Code, to prevent family violence, as
defined by Section 71.004, Family Code;
(B) an order issued by a court in this state under
Subchapter A, Chapter 7B, Code of Criminal Procedure, to prevent
sexual assault or abuse, stalking, trafficking, or other harm to
the applicant; or
(C) [. The term includes] a magistrate's order
for emergency protection issued under Article 17.292, Code of
Criminal Procedure, with respect to a person who is arrested for an
offense involving family violence.
SECTION 2. Section 72.152, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 72.152. APPLICABILITY. This subchapter applies only
to:
(1) an application for a protective order filed under:
(A) Chapter 82, Family Code;
(B) Subchapter A, Chapter 7B, Code of Criminal
Procedure; or
(C) [(B)] Article 17.292, Code of Criminal
Procedure, with respect to a person who is arrested for an offense
involving family violence; and
(2) a protective order issued under:
(A) Chapter 83 or 85, Family Code;
(B) Subchapter A, Chapter 7B, Code of Criminal
Procedure; or
(C) [(B)] Article 17.292, Code of Criminal
Procedure, with respect to a person who is arrested for an offense
involving family violence.
SECTION 3. Sections 72.154(b) and (d), Government Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(b) Publicly accessible information regarding each
protective order must consist of the following:
(1) the court that issued the protective order;
(2) the case number;
(3) the full name, county of residence, birth year,
and race or ethnicity of the person who is the subject of the
protective order;
(4) the dates the protective order was issued and
served; and
(5) [the date the protective order was vacated, if
applicable; and
[(6)] the date the protective order expired or will
expire, as applicable.
(d) The office may not allow a member of the public to access
through the registry any information related to a protective order
issued under Article 7B.002 or 17.292, Code of Criminal Procedure,
or Chapter 83, Family Code.
SECTION 4. Section 72.155(a), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The registry must include a copy of each application for
a protective order filed in this state and a copy of each protective
order issued in this state, including an [a vacated or] expired
order. Only an authorized user, the attorney general, a district
attorney, a criminal district attorney, a county attorney, a
municipal attorney, or a peace officer may access that information
under the registry.
SECTION 5. Section 72.157, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
follows:
(b) For a protective order [that is vacated or] that has
expired, the clerk of the applicable court shall modify the record
of the order in the registry to reflect the order's status as
[vacated or] expired.
(b-1) For a protective order that is vacated, the clerk of
the applicable court shall remove the record of the order from the
registry.
SECTION 6. Section 72.158(a), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) The office shall ensure that the public may access
information about protective orders, other than information about
orders under Article 7B.002 or 17.292, Code of Criminal Procedure,
or Chapter 83, Family Code, through the registry, only if:
(1) a protected person requests that the office grant
the public the ability to access the information described by
Section 72.154(b) for the order protecting the person; and
(2) the office approves the request.
SECTION 7. Section 72.152, Government Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to an application for a protective order
filed or a protective order issued on or after the effective date of
this Act.
SECTION 8. As soon as practicable after the effective date
of this Act, the Office of Court Administration of the Texas
Judicial System shall remove the record of any protective orders
that have been vacated from the protective order registry
established under Subchapter F, Chapter 72, Government Code, as
amended by this Act.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.