Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB772 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Bernal H.B. No. 772
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the amount of a fine or cost imposed in a criminal case
7	7	by a justice or municipal court and to the court's authority to
8	8	order a defendant confined in jail for failure to pay a fine or cost
9	9	or for contempt.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Article 45.041(c), Code of Criminal Procedure,
12	12	is amended to read as follows:
13	13	(c) The justice or judge shall credit the defendant for time
14	14	served in jail as provided by Article 42.03. The credit shall be
15	15	applied to the amount of the fine and costs at the rate of not less
16	16	than $50 for each period served that is not less than eight hours or
17	17	more than 24 hours, as specified by the justice or judge [provided
18	18	by Article 45.048].
19	19	SECTION 2. The heading to Article 45.046, Code of Criminal
20	20	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
21	21	Art. 45.046. HEARING ON DEFAULT [COMMITMENT].
22	22	SECTION 3. Article 45.046(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
23	23	is amended to read as follows:
24	24	(a) When a judgment and sentence have been entered against a
25	25	defendant and the defendant defaults in the discharge of the
26	26	judgment, the judge may order the defendant to appear [confined in
27	27	jail until discharged by law if the judge] at a hearing and show
28	28	cause as to why the defendant defaulted in discharging the judgment
29	29	[makes a written determination that:
30	30	[(1) the defendant is not indigent and has failed to
31	31	make a good faith effort to discharge the fine and costs; or
32	32	[(2) the defendant is indigent and:
33	33	[(A) has failed to make a good faith effort to
34	34	discharge the fines and costs under Article 45.049; and
35	35	[(B) could have discharged the fines and costs
36	36	under Article 45.049 without experiencing any undue hardship].
37	37	SECTION 4. Subchapter B, Chapter 45, Code of Criminal
38	38	Procedure, is amended by adding Article 45.0465 to read as follows:
39	39	Art. 45.0465. CONFINEMENT FOR FAILURE TO SATISFY JUDGMENT
40	40	OR FOR CONTEMPT PROHIBITED. A justice or municipal court may not
41	41	order the confinement of a person, including a child as defined by
42	42	Article 45.058(h), for:
43	43	(1) the failure to pay all or any part of a fine or
44	44	costs imposed for the conviction of an offense punishable by fine
45	45	only; or
46	46	(2) contempt of a judgment entered for the conviction
47	47	of an offense punishable by fine only.
48	48	SECTION 5. Article 45.048(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
49	49	is amended to read as follows:
50	50	(a) A defendant confined [placed] in jail [on account of
51	51	failure to pay the fine and costs] shall be discharged on habeas
52	52	corpus by showing that the defendant was confined in jail:
53	53	(1) in violation of Article 45.0465 or 45.050(b) [is
54	54	too poor to pay the fine and costs]; or
55	55	(2) as a result of:
56	56	(A) failure to pay the applicable fine or costs
57	57	imposed by a judgment entered for the conviction of an offense
58	58	punishable by fine only; or
59	59	(B) contempt of a judgment described by Paragraph
60	60	(A) or, if the defendant is a child, contempt of an order of a
61	61	justice or municipal court [has remained in jail a sufficient
62	62	length of time to satisfy the fine and costs, at the rate of not less
63	63	than $50 for each period of time served, as specified by the
64	64	convicting court in the judgment in the case].
65	65	SECTION 6. The heading to Article 45.050, Code of Criminal
66	66	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
67	67	Art. 45.050. [FAILURE TO PAY FINE; FAILURE TO APPEAR;]
68	68	CONTEMPT: JUVENILES.
69	69	SECTION 7. Article 45.050(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
70	70	is amended to read as follows:
71	71	(b) A justice or municipal court may not order the
72	72	confinement of a child for:
73	73	[(1) the failure to pay all or any part of a fine or
74	74	costs imposed for the conviction of an offense punishable by fine
75	75	only;
76	76	(2) the failure to appear for an offense committed by
77	77	the child; or
78	78	(3) contempt of an [another] order of a justice or
79	79	municipal court.
80	80	SECTION 8. Section 21.002(c), Government Code, is amended
81	81	to read as follows:
82	82	(c) Subject to Articles 45.0465 and 45.050(b), Code of
83	83	Criminal Procedure, the [The] punishment for contempt of a justice
84	84	court or municipal court is a fine of not more than $100 or
85	85	confinement in the county or municipal [city] jail for not more than
86	86	three days, or both such a fine and confinement in jail.
87	87	SECTION 9. Articles 45.046(b) and 45.048(b), Code of
88	88	Criminal Procedure, are repealed.
89	89	SECTION 10. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
90	90	this section, the changes in law made by this Act apply only to a
91	91	judgment that has not been discharged before the effective date of
92	92	this Act and a judgment entered on or after the effective date of
93	93	this Act.
94	94	(b) Article 45.050(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, as
95	95	amended by this Act, applies only to an order entered on or after
96	96	the effective date of this Act.
97	97	(c) Not later than September 2, 2021, a county or municipal
98	98	jail shall release each person who, on the effective date of this
99	99	Act, is confined in the county or municipal jail for:
100	100	(1) the failure to pay all or any part of a fine or
101	101	costs imposed for the conviction of an offense punishable by fine
102	102	only, including confinement ordered under Article 45.046, Code of
103	103	Criminal Procedure, as that article existed before the effective
104	104	date of this Act;
105	105	(2) contempt of a judgment entered for the conviction
106	106	of an offense punishable by fine only; or
107	107	(3) contempt of an order of a justice or municipal
108	108	court, if the person is a child as defined by Article 45.058(h),
109	109	Code of Criminal Procedure.
110	110	SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.