Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB5114 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R6546 MCF-F
2	2	By: Sherman, Sr. H.B. No. 5114
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the award of work-for-time credits to certain persons
8	8	placed on community supervision or released on parole or to
9	9	mandatory supervision.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Earning Safe Reentry
12	12	Through Work Act.
13	13	SECTION 2. Subchapter O, Chapter 42A, Code of Criminal
14	14	Procedure, is amended by adding Articles 42A.703 and 42A.704 to
15	15	read as follows:
16	16	Art. 42A.703. WORK-FOR-TIME CREDIT. (a) In this article:
17	17	(1) "Business day" means a day other than Saturday,
18	18	Sunday, or a state or federal holiday.
19	19	(2) "Division" means the community justice assistance
20	20	division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
21	21	(3) "Supporting documentation" means documentation
22	22	verifying a defendant's employment, including an employment
23	23	record, letter, or contract or pay stubs.
24	24	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a defendant placed
25	25	on community supervision is entitled to receive time credits toward
26	26	the completion of the defendant's period of community supervision
27	27	in an amount equal to five days for each 30-day period in which the
28	28	defendant was employed not less than 130 hours, as verified under
29	29	Subsection (e).
30	30	(c) A defendant may not receive time credits under this
31	31	article during the 60-day period preceding the expiration of the
32	32	defendant's period of community supervision, taking into account
33	33	any time credits to which the defendant is entitled under this
34	34	article and Article 42A.702.
35	35	(d) A defendant shall, for each 30-day period described by
36	36	Subsection (b), submit to the defendant's supervision officer
37	37	supporting documentation not later than the fifth business day
38	38	after the expiration of the 30-day period.
39	39	(e) A supervision officer to whom supporting documentation
40	40	is submitted under Subsection (d) shall:
41	41	(1) verify the defendant was employed not less than
42	42	130 hours during the 30-day period; and
43	43	(2) enter the supporting documentation and record the
44	44	time credits received in the system developed under Subsection (g)
45	45	not later than the fifth business day after receiving the
46	46	supporting documentation.
47	47	(f) If a supervision officer is not able to verify the
48	48	defendant's employment according to the received supporting
49	49	documentation, the officer shall:
50	50	(1) deny the time credits; and
51	51	(2) record the denial in the system developed under
52	52	Subsection (g).
53	53	(g) The division shall:
54	54	(1) establish a system to record and track time
55	55	credits received or denied under this article; and
56	56	(2) require each community supervision and
57	57	corrections department established under Chapter 76, Government
58	58	Code, to use the system.
59	59	(h) The court that convicted the defendant shall order that
60	60	all of the time credits to which the defendant is entitled under
61	61	this article be forfeited if, before the expiration of the period of
62	62	community supervision:
63	63	(1) the court revokes the defendant's community
64	64	supervision; or
65	65	(2) the defendant is convicted of a new offense, other
66	66	than a traffic offense that is punishable by fine only.
67	67	(i) Not later than the 60th day before the expiration of the
68	68	defendant's period of community supervision, taking into account
69	69	any time credits to which the defendant is entitled under this
70	70	article and Article 42A.702, the defendant's supervision officer
71	71	shall notify the court that convicted the defendant of the time
72	72	credits received by the defendant under this article.
73	73	Art. 42A.704. NOTIFICATION TO COURT OF TIME CREDITS. A
74	74	defendant's supervision officer shall notify the court if the time
75	75	credits to which the defendant is entitled under Articles 42A.702
76	76	and 42A.703, cumulated with the amount of the original community
77	77	supervision period the defendant has completed, allow or require
78	78	the court to conduct a review of the defendant's community
79	79	supervision under Article 42A.701. On receipt of the notice from
80	80	the supervision officer, the court shall conduct the review of the
81	81	defendant's community supervision to determine if the defendant is
82	82	eligible for a reduction or termination of community supervision
83	83	under Article 42A.701, taking into account any time credits to
84	84	which the defendant is entitled under Articles 42A.702 and 42A.703
85	85	in determining if the defendant has completed, as applicable:
86	86	(1) the lesser of one-third of the original community
87	87	supervision period or two years of community supervision; or
88	88	(2) the greater of one-half of the original community
89	89	supervision period or two years of community supervision.
90	90	SECTION 3. Subchapter E, Chapter 508, Government Code, is
91	91	amended by adding Section 508.1559 to read as follows:
92	92	Sec. 508.1559. WORK-FOR-TIME CREDIT. (a) In this section:
93	93	(1) "Business day" means a day other than Saturday,
94	94	Sunday, or a state or federal holiday.
95	95	(2) "Supporting documentation" means documentation
96	96	verifying a releasee's employment, including an employment record,
97	97	letter, or contract or pay stubs.
98	98	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), a releasee is
99	99	entitled to receive time credits toward the completion of the
100	100	releasee's period of parole or mandatory supervision in an amount
101	101	equal to five days for each 30-day period in which the releasee was
102	102	employed not less than 130 hours, as verified under Subsection (e).
103	103	(c) A releasee may not receive time credits under this
104	104	section during the 60-day period preceding the expiration of the
105	105	releasee's period of parole or mandatory supervision, taking into
106	106	account any time credits to which the releasee is entitled under
107	107	this section.
108	108	(d) A releasee shall, for each 30-day period described by
109	109	Subsection (b), submit to the releasee's parole officer supporting
110	110	documentation not later than the fifth business day after the
111	111	expiration of the 30-day period.
112	112	(e) A parole officer to whom supporting documentation is
113	113	submitted under Subsection (d) shall:
114	114	(1) verify the releasee was employed not less than 130
115	115	hours during the 30-day period; and
116	116	(2) enter the supporting documentation and record the
117	117	time credits received in the system developed under Subsection (g)
118	118	not later than the fifth business day after receiving the
119	119	supporting documentation.
120	120	(f) If a parole officer is not able to verify the releasee's
121	121	employment according to the received supporting documentation, the
122	122	officer shall:
123	123	(1) deny the time credits; and
124	124	(2) record the denial in the system developed under
125	125	Subsection (g).
126	126	(g) The division shall:
127	127	(1) establish a system to record and track time
128	128	credits received or denied under this section; and
129	129	(2) require each parole officer to use the system.
130	130	(h) If a releasee's parole or mandatory supervision is
131	131	revoked, all of the time credits to which the releasee is entitled
132	132	under this section are forfeited and may not be credited toward the
133	133	remaining portion of the releasee's sentence.
134	134	SECTION 4. Article 42A.702(f), Code of Criminal Procedure,
135	135	is repealed.
136	136	SECTION 5. Not later than January 1, 2024:
137	137	(1) the community justice assistance division of the
138	138	Texas Department of Criminal Justice shall establish the system to
139	139	record and track time credits required under Article 42A.703, Code
140	140	of Criminal Procedure, as added by this Act; and
141	141	(2) the pardons and paroles division of the Texas
142	142	Department of Criminal Justice shall establish the system to record
143	143	and track time credits required under Section 508.1559, Government
144	144	Code, as added by this Act.
145	145	SECTION 6. The change in law made by this Act applies only
146	146	to a person who is placed on community supervision or released on
147	147	parole or to mandatory supervision for an offense committed on or
148	148	after the effective date of this Act. A person who is placed on
149	149	community supervision or released on parole or to mandatory
150	150	supervision for an offense committed before the effective date of
151	151	this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was
152	152	committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
153	153	purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed
154	154	before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense
155	155	occurred before that date.
156	156	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.