| 1 | 1 | | 89R1203 JDK-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Johnson H.B. No. 3119 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | |
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| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
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| 9 | 9 | | relating to the preservation of evidence collected from a forensic |
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| 10 | 10 | | medical examination for certain sexual assaults. |
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| 11 | 11 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 12 | 12 | | SECTION 1. Section 56A.306(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, |
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| 13 | 13 | | is amended to read as follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (b) Subject to Subsection (c), an entity receiving evidence |
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| 15 | 15 | | collected during a forensic medical examination as described by |
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| 16 | 16 | | this subchapter shall preserve the evidence until the earlier of: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) the 20th [fifth] anniversary of the date on which |
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| 18 | 18 | | the evidence was collected or, if the victim was younger than 17 |
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| 19 | 19 | | years of age at the time of the alleged sexual assault, when the |
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| 20 | 20 | | victim reaches the age of 40; or |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) the date on which written consent to release the |
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| 22 | 22 | | evidence is obtained as provided by Section 420.0735, Government |
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| 23 | 23 | | Code. |
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| 24 | 24 | | SECTION 2. Section 323.0052(a), Health and Safety Code, is |
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| 25 | 25 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (a) The commission shall develop a standard information |
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| 27 | 27 | | form that, as described by Subsection (b), is to be provided to |
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| 28 | 28 | | sexual assault survivors who have not given signed, written consent |
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| 29 | 29 | | to a health care facility to release the evidence as provided by |
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| 30 | 30 | | Section 420.0735, Government Code. The form must include the |
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| 31 | 31 | | following information: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (1) the Department of Public Safety's policy regarding |
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| 33 | 33 | | storage of evidence of a sexual assault or other sex offense that is |
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| 34 | 34 | | collected under Subchapter G, Chapter 56A, Code of Criminal |
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| 35 | 35 | | Procedure, including: |
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| 36 | 36 | | (A) a statement that the evidence will be stored |
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| 37 | 37 | | until the 20th [fifth] anniversary of the date on which the evidence |
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| 38 | 38 | | was collected or, if the survivor was younger than 17 years of age |
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| 39 | 39 | | at the time of the alleged sexual assault or other sex offense, |
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| 40 | 40 | | until the survivor reaches the age of 40 before the evidence becomes |
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| 41 | 41 | | eligible for destruction; and |
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| 42 | 42 | | (B) the department's procedures regarding the |
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| 43 | 43 | | notification of the survivor through the statewide electronic |
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| 44 | 44 | | tracking system before a planned destruction of the evidence; |
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| 45 | 45 | | (2) a statement that the survivor may request the |
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| 46 | 46 | | release of the evidence to a law enforcement agency and report a |
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| 47 | 47 | | sexual assault or other sex offense to the agency at any time; |
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| 48 | 48 | | (3) the name, phone number, and e-mail address of the |
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| 49 | 49 | | law enforcement agency with jurisdiction over the offense; and |
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| 50 | 50 | | (4) the name and phone number of a local sexual assault |
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| 51 | 51 | | crisis center. |
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| 52 | 52 | | SECTION 3. Article 56A.306(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, |
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| 53 | 53 | | as amended by this Act, applies only to sexual assault evidence |
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| 54 | 54 | | collected on or after the effective date of this Act. Evidence |
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| 55 | 55 | | collected before the effective date of this Act is governed by the |
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| 56 | 56 | | law in effect on the date the evidence was collected, and the former |
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| 57 | 57 | | law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 58 | 58 | | SECTION 4. Not later than December 1, 2025, the Health and |
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| 59 | 59 | | Human Services Commission shall revise the information form |
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| 60 | 60 | | developed under Section 323.0052(a), Health and Safety Code, as |
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| 61 | 61 | | necessary to conform to the changes in law made by this Act to that |
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| 62 | 62 | | section. |
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| 63 | 63 | | SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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