| 1 | 1 | | 88R11569 CJD-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Sherman, Sr. H.B. No. 3330 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the establishment of a task force on the statewide alert |
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| 8 | 8 | | systems for abducted children and missing persons with intellectual |
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| 9 | 9 | | disabilities. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. (a) In this section: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (1) "Child" means an individual younger than 18 years |
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| 13 | 13 | | of age. |
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| 14 | 14 | | (2) "Commission" means the Texas Commission on Law |
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| 15 | 15 | | Enforcement. |
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| 16 | 16 | | (3) "Task force" means the task force on the statewide |
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| 17 | 17 | | alert systems for abducted children and missing persons with |
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| 18 | 18 | | intellectual disabilities established by this Act. |
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| 19 | 19 | | (b) The task force is composed of the following 16 members |
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| 20 | 20 | | appointed by the presiding officer of the commission: |
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| 21 | 21 | | (1) a child with a physical disability; |
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| 22 | 22 | | (2) a child with a mental illness or intellectual |
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| 23 | 23 | | disability; |
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| 24 | 24 | | (3) a family member of a person with a mental illness |
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| 25 | 25 | | or intellectual disability; |
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| 26 | 26 | | (4) an employee of a local behavioral health |
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| 27 | 27 | | authority; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (5) a member of a community resource coordination |
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| 29 | 29 | | group as defined by Section 531.151, Government Code; |
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| 30 | 30 | | (6) an employee or volunteer of a nonprofit |
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| 31 | 31 | | organization that supports the self-advocacy of children; |
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| 32 | 32 | | (7) an employee or volunteer of a nonprofit |
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| 33 | 33 | | organization that provides services to children with disabilities; |
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| 34 | 34 | | (8) an employee or volunteer of a nonprofit |
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| 35 | 35 | | organization that provides services to children with mental health |
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| 36 | 36 | | needs; |
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| 37 | 37 | | (9) a school counselor certified under Subchapter B, |
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| 38 | 38 | | Chapter 21, Education Code, who has experience in offering |
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| 39 | 39 | | trauma-informed care to students; |
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| 40 | 40 | | (10) a physician with experience working with patients |
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| 41 | 41 | | with disabilities or a psychiatrist; |
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| 42 | 42 | | (11) an attorney licensed in this state whose practice |
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| 43 | 43 | | includes juvenile justice or family law; |
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| 44 | 44 | | (12) an attorney licensed in this state whose practice |
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| 45 | 45 | | includes probate or civil jurisprudence; |
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| 46 | 46 | | (13) a representative of the Texas Education Agency; |
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| 47 | 47 | | (14) a representative of the Health and Human Services |
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| 48 | 48 | | Commission; |
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| 49 | 49 | | (15) a representative of the Department of Family and |
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| 50 | 50 | | Protective Services; and |
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| 51 | 51 | | (16) a representative of the Department of Public |
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| 52 | 52 | | Safety. |
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| 53 | 53 | | (c) The task force shall elect a presiding officer from |
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| 54 | 54 | | among its membership. |
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| 55 | 55 | | (d) The presiding officer of the commission shall fill a |
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| 56 | 56 | | vacancy on the task force in the same manner as the original |
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| 57 | 57 | | appointment. |
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| 58 | 58 | | (e) The task force shall meet at least quarterly at the call |
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| 59 | 59 | | of the presiding officer. The task force may meet in person or by |
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| 60 | 60 | | electronic means. |
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| 61 | 61 | | (f) A task force member is not entitled to compensation for |
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| 62 | 62 | | service on the task force but, if authorized by the presiding |
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| 63 | 63 | | officer of the task force, may be reimbursed from funds available |
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| 64 | 64 | | for the purpose for actual and necessary expenses incurred in |
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| 65 | 65 | | performing task force duties. |
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| 66 | 66 | | (g) The task force may accept gifts, grants, and donations |
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| 67 | 67 | | to carry out the task force's duties under this Act. |
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| 68 | 68 | | (h) The commission shall establish a task force to study the |
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| 69 | 69 | | classification of cases for the statewide alert systems for |
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| 70 | 70 | | abducted children and missing persons with intellectual |
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| 71 | 71 | | disabilities provided under Subchapter L, Chapter 411, Government |
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| 72 | 72 | | Code, and the application of those systems to each case. The study |
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| 73 | 73 | | shall include: |
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| 74 | 74 | | (1) an analysis of children and persons with |
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| 75 | 75 | | intellectual disabilities reported missing throughout the state, |
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| 76 | 76 | | including: |
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| 77 | 77 | | (A) whether a statewide alert system was |
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| 78 | 78 | | activated as a result of the report; |
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| 79 | 79 | | (B) the following for each person reported |
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| 80 | 80 | | missing, if known: |
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| 81 | 81 | | (i) age; |
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| 82 | 82 | | (ii) gender; |
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| 83 | 83 | | (iii) ethnicity; |
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| 84 | 84 | | (iv) sexual orientation and gender |
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| 85 | 85 | | identity; |
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| 86 | 86 | | (v) human or sex trafficking risk score |
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| 87 | 87 | | calculated using a risk assessment regularly used by law |
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| 88 | 88 | | enforcement agencies in this state; |
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| 89 | 89 | | (vi) urban or rural designation, as defined |
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| 90 | 90 | | by the United States Census Bureau in the most recent census, for |
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| 91 | 91 | | the person's residence; and |
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| 92 | 92 | | (vii) opportunity zone, as defined by the |
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| 93 | 93 | | Internal Revenue Service, for the person's residence; and |
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| 94 | 94 | | (C) the law enforcement response to the missing |
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| 95 | 95 | | persons report, including: |
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| 96 | 96 | | (i) if a 911 or 311 call was made in |
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| 97 | 97 | | relation to the missing person's disappearance, the 911 or 311 |
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| 98 | 98 | | classification applied to the call in the applicable computer-aided |
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| 99 | 99 | | dispatch system, including missing, runaway, abducted, or |
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| 100 | 100 | | kidnapped; |
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| 101 | 101 | | (ii) the classification of the missing |
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| 102 | 102 | | persons case within any applicable law enforcement database, |
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| 103 | 103 | | including a jail management system or offender management system; |
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| 104 | 104 | | (iii) any indication included in the report |
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| 105 | 105 | | indicating the mental health condition of the missing person; |
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| 106 | 106 | | (iv) whether law enforcement agencies in |
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| 107 | 107 | | adjoining municipalities or counties were notified of the missing |
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| 108 | 108 | | person; and |
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| 109 | 109 | | (v) the law enforcement agency's |
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| 110 | 110 | | communication with the missing person's parent, caregiver, or |
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| 111 | 111 | | another person who reported the person missing; and |
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| 112 | 112 | | (2) a description of any trends or patterns in the data |
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| 113 | 113 | | analyzed under Subdivision (1) that indicate that a group or subset |
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| 114 | 114 | | of missing persons cases are treated differently than others based |
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| 115 | 115 | | on a characteristic of the missing person. |
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| 116 | 116 | | (i) The task force shall compile information regarding each |
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| 117 | 117 | | law enforcement agency and agency providing 911 dispatch operations |
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| 118 | 118 | | in this state. The information must include: |
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| 119 | 119 | | (1) whether the agency has a written mental health |
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| 120 | 120 | | policy applicable to alleged victims or offenders, including |
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| 121 | 121 | | whether the policy has specific provisions relating to victims or |
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| 122 | 122 | | offenders who are children; |
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| 123 | 123 | | (2) the number of employees of the agency that have |
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| 124 | 124 | | received specialized training in mental health related fields; |
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| 125 | 125 | | (3) a description of each training course described by |
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| 126 | 126 | | Subdivision (2) attended by an employee of the agency; and |
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| 127 | 127 | | (4) the frequency with which each employee attended a |
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| 128 | 128 | | training course described by Subdivision (2). |
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| 129 | 129 | | (j) Based on the result of the study conducted under |
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| 130 | 130 | | Subsection (h) and the information compiled under Subsection (i), |
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| 131 | 131 | | the task force shall develop recommendations to increase the |
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| 132 | 132 | | consistent application of the statewide alert systems for abducted |
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| 133 | 133 | | children and missing persons with intellectual disabilities, |
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| 134 | 134 | | including by standardizing case classifications and other law |
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| 135 | 135 | | enforcement procedures for missing persons cases, including |
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| 136 | 136 | | missing persons cases involving a missing person with a mental |
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| 137 | 137 | | illness. |
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| 138 | 138 | | (k) Not later than September 1 of each even-numbered year, |
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| 139 | 139 | | the task force shall prepare and submit to each member of the |
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| 140 | 140 | | legislature, the Commission on Jail Standards, the Department of |
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| 141 | 141 | | Public Safety, the Texas Juvenile Justice Department, the Texas |
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| 142 | 142 | | Civil Commitment Office, and the commission a written report that |
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| 143 | 143 | | includes the results of the study conducted under Subsection (h), |
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| 144 | 144 | | the information compiled under Subsection (i), and the |
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| 145 | 145 | | recommendations developed under Subsection (j) and any other |
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| 146 | 146 | | legislative or regulatory recommendations. |
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| 147 | 147 | | (l) Chapter 2110, Government Code, does not apply to the |
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| 148 | 148 | | task force. |
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| 149 | 149 | | (m) The task force is abolished and this Act expires |
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| 150 | 150 | | September 1, 2030. |
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| 151 | 151 | | SECTION 2. Not later than November 1, 2023, the presiding |
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| 152 | 152 | | officer of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement shall appoint |
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| 153 | 153 | | the members of the task force on statewide alert systems for |
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| 154 | 154 | | abducted children and missing persons with intellectual |
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| 155 | 155 | | disabilities as required by Section 1 of this Act. |
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| 156 | 156 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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