Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2229 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R9343 JRR-D
2	2	By: Hernandez H.B. No. 2229
3	3
4	4
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the expunction of arrest records and files by a
10	10	statutory county court.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Article 55A.101, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
13	13	amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (c) to
14	14	read as follows:
15	15	(a) Except as provided by Article 55A.151 and subject to
16	16	Subsections [Subsection] (b) and (c), a district court, a justice
17	17	court, [or] a municipal court of record, or a statutory county court
18	18	may expunge all records and files relating to the arrest of a person
19	19	if:
20	20	(1) the person is:
21	21	(A) tried for the offense for which the person
22	22	was arrested;
23	23	(B) convicted of the offense; and
24	24	(C) acquitted by the court of criminal appeals
25	25	or, if the period for granting a petition for discretionary review
26	26	has expired, by a court of appeals; or
27	27	(2) an office of the attorney representing the state
28	28	authorized by law to prosecute the offense for which the person was
29	29	arrested recommends the expunction to the court before the person
30	30	is tried for the offense, regardless of whether an indictment or
31	31	information has been presented against the person with respect to
32	32	the offense.
33	33	(c) A statutory county court may only expunge records and
34	34	files under Subsection (a) that relate to the arrest of a person for
35	35	an offense that is subject to the jurisdiction of a statutory county
36	36	court.
37	37	SECTION 2. Article 55A.201(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
38	38	is amended to read as follows:
39	39	(a) At the request of the acquitted person and after notice
40	40	to the state, or at the request of the attorney representing the
41	41	state with the consent of the acquitted person, an expunction order
42	42	shall be entered, not later than the 30th day after the date of the
43	43	acquittal, for a person entitled to expunction under Article
44	44	55A.002 by:
45	45	(1) the trial court presiding over the case in which
46	46	the person was acquitted, if the court is:
47	47	(A) a district court;
48	48	(B) a justice court; [or]
49	49	(C) a municipal court of record; or
50	50	(D) a statutory county court; or
51	51	(2) a district court in the county in which the trial
52	52	court is located.
53	53	SECTION 3. Article 55A.202(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
54	54	is amended to read as follows:
55	55	(a) In a case in which a person is entitled to expunction
56	56	under Article 55A.003, an expunction order shall be entered, not
57	57	later than the 30th day after the date the court receives notice of
58	58	the applicable pardon or other grant of relief, for the person by:
59	59	(1) the trial court presiding over the case, if the
60	60	court is:
61	61	(A) a district court;
62	62	(B) a justice court; [or]
63	63	(C) a municipal court of record; or
64	64	(D) a statutory county court; or
65	65	(2) a district court in the county in which the trial
66	66	court is located.
67	67	SECTION 4. Article 55A.251, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
68	68	amended to read as follows:
69	69	Art. 55A.251. FILING OF PETITION. A person who is entitled
70	70	to expunction of records and files under Article 55A.002, 55A.004,
71	71	or 55A.005 or Subchapter B, or a person who is eligible for
72	72	expunction of records and files under Article 55A.101, may, subject
73	73	to Articles [Article] 55A.252 and 55A.2525, file an ex parte
74	74	petition for expunction in a district court for the county in which:
75	75	(1) the petitioner was arrested; or
76	76	(2) the offense was alleged to have occurred.
77	77	SECTION 5. Subchapter F, Chapter 55A, Code of Criminal
78	78	Procedure, is amended by adding Article 55A.2525 to read as
79	79	follows:
80	80	Art. 55A.2525. FILING CERTAIN PETITIONS IN STATUTORY COUNTY
81	81	COURT. If the arrest for which expunction is sought is for an
82	82	offense that is subject to the jurisdiction of a statutory county
83	83	court, a person who is entitled to expunction of records and files
84	84	under Article 55A.002 or a person who is eligible for expunction of
85	85	records and files under Article 55A.101(a) may file an ex parte
86	86	petition for expunction in a statutory county court in the county in
87	87	which:
88	88	(1) the petitioner was arrested; or
89	89	(2) the offense was alleged to have occurred.
90	90	SECTION 6. Article 55A.253, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
91	91	amended to read as follows:
92	92	Art. 55A.253. CONTENTS OF PETITION. An ex parte petition
93	93	filed under Article 55A.251, 55A.252, 55A.2525, or 55A.257 must be
94	94	verified and must include, with respect to the person who is the
95	95	subject of the petition, the following or an explanation for why one
96	96	or more of the following is not included:
97	97	(1) the person's:
98	98	(A) full name;
99	99	(B) sex;
100	100	(C) race;
101	101	(D) date of birth;
102	102	(E) driver's license number;
103	103	(F) social security number; and
104	104	(G) address at the time of the arrest;
105	105	(2) the offense charged;
106	106	(3) the date the offense charged was alleged to have
107	107	been committed;
108	108	(4) the date of arrest;
109	109	(5) the name of the county of arrest and if the arrest
110	110	occurred in a municipality, the name of the municipality;
111	111	(6) the name of the arresting agency;
112	112	(7) the case number and court of offense; and
113	113	(8) together with the applicable physical or e-mail
114	114	addresses, a list of all:
115	115	(A) law enforcement agencies, jails or other
116	116	detention facilities, magistrates, courts, attorneys representing
117	117	the state, correctional facilities, central state depositories of
118	118	criminal records, and other officials or agencies or other entities
119	119	of this state or of any political subdivision of this state;
120	120	(B) central federal depositories of criminal
121	121	records that the person who is the subject of the petition has
122	122	reason to believe have records or files that are subject to
123	123	expunction; and
124	124	(C) private entities that compile and
125	125	disseminate for compensation criminal history record information
126	126	that the person who is the subject of the petition has reason to
127	127	believe have information related to records or files that are
128	128	subject to expunction.
129	129	SECTION 7. Article 55A.255, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
130	130	amended to read as follows:
131	131	Art. 55A.255. ENTRY OF EXPUNCTION ORDER. If the court
132	132	finds that the person who is the subject of an ex parte petition
133	133	filed under Article 55A.251, 55A.252, 55A.2525, or 55A.257 is
134	134	entitled to expunction of any records and files that are the subject
135	135	of the petition, the court shall enter an order directing
136	136	expunction.
137	137	SECTION 8. Article 55A.258(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
138	138	is amended to read as follows:
139	139	(b) A close relative of a deceased person who, if not
140	140	deceased, would be entitled to expunction of records and files
141	141	under Subchapter A, B, or C may file on behalf of the deceased
142	142	person an ex parte petition for expunction under Article 55A.251,
143	143	[or] 55A.252, or 55A.2525 or an application for expunction under
144	144	Article 55A.256, as applicable. If the court finds that the
145	145	deceased person would be entitled to expunction of any record or
146	146	file that is the subject of the petition, the court shall enter an
147	147	order directing expunction.
148	148	SECTION 9. Article 102.006(a-1), Code of Criminal
149	149	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
150	150	(a-1) In addition to any other fees required by other law
151	151	and except as provided by Subsection (b), a petitioner seeking
152	152	expunction of a criminal record in a justice court, [or] a municipal
153	153	court of record, or a statutory county court under Chapter 55A shall
154	154	pay a fee of $100 for filing an ex parte petition for expunction to
155	155	defray the cost of notifying state agencies of orders of expunction
156	156	under that chapter.
157	157	SECTION 10. Section 25.0003, Government Code, is amended by
158	158	adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
159	159	(g) A statutory county court has concurrent jurisdiction
160	160	with a district court over expunction proceedings relating to the
161	161	arrest of a person for an offense that is subject to the
162	162	jurisdiction of a statutory county court.
163	163	SECTION 11. The change in law made by this Act applies to
164	164	the expunction of arrest records and files for any criminal offense
165	165	that occurred before, on, or after the effective date of this Act.
166	166	SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.