Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2018 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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1	1	By: Flores, Creighton S.B. No. 2018
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to prohibitions on camping in a public place.
7	7	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
8	8	SECTION 1. Section 364.002(a), Local Government Code, is
9	9	amended to read as follows:
10	10	(a) A local entity may not adopt or enforce a policy under
11	11	which the entity prohibits or discourages the enforcement of any
12	12	public camping ban, including prohibiting or discouraging the
13	13	investigation or enforcement of a violation of a public camping
14	14	ban.
15	15	SECTION 2. Chapter 364, Local Government Code, is amended
16	16	by adding Sections 364.0021, 364.0022, 364.0023, and 364.0024 to
17	17	read as follows:
18	18	Sec. 364.0021. USE OF PROPERTY FOR CAMPING PURPOSE. A local
19	19	entity may not permit camping by homeless individuals on a property
20	20	designated for that purpose until the Texas Department of Housing
21	21	and Community Affairs has approved a plan for the property under
22	22	Section 2306.1122, Government Code.
23	23	Sec. 364.0022. COMPLAINTS AND REPORTING. (a) A local
24	24	entity shall develop and implement a process that allows a person to
25	25	file a complaint with the local entity regarding a violation of a
26	26	public camping ban.
27	27	(b) Each year, a local entity shall report to the attorney
28	28	general, in the form and manner prescribed by the attorney general,
29	29	the following information:
30	30	(1) the number of complaints received as part of the
31	31	local entity's complaint process implemented under Subsection (a);
32	32	(2) the disposition of each complaint, including
33	33	court-ordered diversion programs;
34	34	(3) the number of arrests made or citations in lieu of
35	35	arrest issued for a violation of a public camping ban; and
36	36	(4) any other information related to public camping
37	37	bans as required by the attorney general.
38	38	Sec. 364.0023. ENFORCEMENT REQUIRED BY LOCAL ENTITY;
39	39	DECLARATION AS "VIOLATING LOCAL ENTITY." (a) For each complaint
40	40	received by a local entity under Section 364.0022(a), the local
41	41	entity shall take an action to resolve the complaint not later than
42	42	the 90th day after the date the complaint is received.
43	43	(b) If the local entity does not take the required action
44	44	before the end of the period prescribed by Subsection (a), the
45	45	attorney general shall issue a written declaration that the local
46	46	entity is a "violating local entity" for the state fiscal year in
47	47	which the end of the period prescribed by Subsection (a) occurs.
48	48	The attorney general shall send a copy of the written declaration to
49	49	the local entity and the comptroller.
50	50	Sec. 364.0024. ENFORCEMENT BY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
51	51	AND ATTORNEY GENERAL; RECOVERY OF COSTS. (a) The attorney general
52	52	or the Department of Public Safety may enforce Section 48.05, Penal
53	53	Code.
54	54	(b) For each enforcement action described by Subsection (a)
55	55	that occurs within the boundaries of a local entity that is a
56	56	"violating local entity," the attorney general or Department of
57	57	Public Safety may recover any costs associated with the enforcement
58	58	action from the local entity in accordance with Section 321.5026 or
59	59	323.5026, Tax Code, as applicable.
60	60	SECTION 3. Section 48.05, Penal Code, is amended by
61	61	amending Subsection (i) and adding Subsection (i-1) to read as
62	62	follows:
63	63	(i) Subject to Subsection (i-1), if [If] the person is
64	64	arrested or detained solely for an offense under this section, a
65	65	peace officer enforcing this section shall ensure that all of the
66	66	person's personal property not designated as contraband under other
67	67	law is preserved by:
68	68	(1) permitting the person to remove all the property
69	69	from the public place at the time of the person's departure; or
70	70	(2) taking custody of the person's nonhazardous
71	71	personal property and allowing the person to retrieve the property
72	72	after the person is released from custody.
73	73	(i-1) Subsection (i) does not apply to personal property
74	74	that is a permanent or semipermanent structure unless the structure
75	75	is a camping tent.
76	76	SECTION 4. Subchapter F, Chapter 321, Tax Code, is amended
77	77	by adding Section 321.5026 to read as follows:
78	78	Sec. 321.5026. DISTRIBUTION OF TRUST FUNDS TO MUNICIPALITY
79	79	THAT FAILS TO ACT ON PUBLIC CAMPING BAN COMPLAINT. (a) In this
80	80	section, "violating local entity" means a municipality declared by
81	81	the attorney general to be a violating local entity for a state
82	82	fiscal year under Section 364.0023, Local Government Code.
83	83	(b) Notwithstanding Section 321.502, the comptroller may
84	84	not, after the date the comptroller receives notice that a
85	85	municipality is a violating local entity for a state fiscal year,
86	86	send to the municipality its share of the taxes collected by the
87	87	comptroller under this chapter during the state fiscal year until
88	88	the comptroller makes any deduction required by Subsection (c).
89	89	(c) Before sending a violating local entity its share of the
90	90	taxes collected by the comptroller under this chapter during a
91	91	state fiscal year, the comptroller shall deduct the amount reported
92	92	to the comptroller for the violating local entity under Subsection
93	93	(d) and credit that deducted amount to the general revenue fund.
94	94	Money credited to the general revenue fund under this subsection
95	95	may be appropriated only to the attorney general or the Department
96	96	of Public Safety, as applicable.
97	97	(d) Not later than August 1 of each state fiscal year, the
98	98	attorney general and the Department of Public Safety shall report
99	99	to the comptroller the amount of money the attorney general or
100	100	department spent in that state fiscal year taking enforcement
101	101	actions described by Section 364.0024, Local Government Code, in
102	102	each violating local entity. The attorney general and the
103	103	department shall make a reasonable estimate of the amount spent
104	104	after the date the report is made until the end of the state fiscal
105	105	year based on amounts spent before the date the report is made.
106	106	SECTION 5. Subchapter F, Chapter 323, Tax Code, is amended
107	107	by adding Section 323.5026 to read as follows:
108	108	Sec. 323.5026. DISTRIBUTION OF TRUST FUNDS TO COUNTY THAT
109	109	FAILS TO ACT ON PUBLIC CAMPING BAN COMPLAINT. (a) In this section,
110	110	"violating local entity" means a county declared by the attorney
111	111	general to be a violating local entity for a state fiscal year under
112	112	Section 364.0023, Local Government Code.
113	113	(b) Notwithstanding Section 323.502, the comptroller may
114	114	not, after the date the comptroller receives notice that a county is
115	115	a violating local entity for a state fiscal year, send to the county
116	116	its share of the taxes collected by the comptroller under this
117	117	chapter during the state fiscal year until the comptroller makes
118	118	any deduction required by Subsection (c).
119	119	(c) Before sending a violating local entity its share of the
120	120	taxes collected by the comptroller under this chapter during a
121	121	state fiscal year, the comptroller shall deduct the amount reported
122	122	to the comptroller for the violating local entity under Subsection
123	123	(d) and credit that deducted amount to the general revenue fund.
124	124	Money credited to the general revenue fund under this subsection
125	125	may be appropriated only to the attorney general or the Department
126	126	of Public Safety, as applicable.
127	127	(d) Not later than August 1 of each state fiscal year, the
128	128	attorney general and the Department of Public Safety shall report
129	129	to the comptroller the amount of money the attorney general or
130	130	department spent in that state fiscal year taking enforcement
131	131	actions described by Section 364.0024, Local Government Code, in
132	132	each violating local entity. The attorney general and the
133	133	department shall make a reasonable estimate of the amount spent
134	134	after the date the report is made until the end of the state fiscal
135	135	year based on amounts spent before the date the report is made.
136	136	SECTION 6. Section 48.05, Penal Code, as amended by this
137	137	Act, applies only to an offense committed on or after the effective
138	138	date of this Act. An offense committed before the effective date of
139	139	this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was
140	140	committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
141	141	purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed
142	142	before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense
143	143	occurred before that date.
144	144	SECTION 7. Sections 321.5026 and 323.5026, Tax Code, as
145	145	added by this Act, apply only to a distribution of sales and use tax
146	146	revenue to a municipality or county in a state fiscal year that
147	147	begins on or after the effective date of this Act.
148	148	SECTION 8. Not later than December 1, 2023, each local
149	149	entity, as defined by Section 364.001, Local Government Code, shall
150	150	develop and implement the complaint process required by Section
151	151	364.0022, Local Government Code, as added by this Act.
152	152	SECTION 9. Not later than January 1, 2024, the attorney
153	153	general by rule shall prescribe the form and manner for reporting as
154	154	required by Section 364.0022, Local Government Code.
155	155	SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.