Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB743 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R3414 MEW-F
2	2	By: Bernal H.B. No. 743
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to a justice or municipal court's authority to order a
10	10	defendant confined in jail for failure to pay a fine or cost or for
11	11	contempt and to the authority of a municipality to enforce the
12	12	collection of certain fines by imprisonment of the defendant.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Article 45A.251(d), Code of Criminal Procedure,
15	15	is amended to read as follows:
16	16	(d) The justice or judge shall credit the defendant for time
17	17	served in jail as provided by Article 42.03. The credit under this
18	18	subsection shall be applied to the amount of the fine and costs at
19	19	the rate of not less than $150 for each period served that is not
20	20	less than eight hours or more than 24 hours, as specified by the
21	21	justice or judge [provided by Article 45A.262].
22	22	SECTION 2. The heading to Article 45A.261, Code of Criminal
23	23	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
24	24	Art. 45A.261. HEARING ON DEFAULT [COMMITMENT].
25	25	SECTION 3. Article 45A.261(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
26	26	is amended to read as follows:
27	27	(a) If a judgment and sentence have been entered against a
28	28	defendant and the defendant defaults in the discharge of the
29	29	judgment, the judge may order the defendant to appear [confined in
30	30	jail until discharged by law if the judge] at a hearing and show
31	31	cause as to why the defendant defaulted in discharging the judgment
32	32	[makes a written determination that:
33	33	[(1) the defendant is not indigent and has failed to
34	34	make a good faith effort to discharge the fines or costs; or
35	35	[(2) the defendant is indigent and:
36	36	[(A) has failed to make a good faith effort to
37	37	discharge the fines or costs under Article 45A.254; and
38	38	[(B) could have discharged the fines or costs
39	39	under Article 45A.254 without experiencing any undue hardship].
40	40	SECTION 4. Subchapter F, Chapter 45A, Code of Criminal
41	41	Procedure, is amended by adding Article 45A.2615 to read as
42	42	follows:
43	43	Art. 45A.2615. CONFINEMENT FOR FAILURE TO SATISFY JUDGMENT
44	44	OR FOR CONTEMPT PROHIBITED. A justice or municipal court may not
45	45	order the confinement of a person, including a child as defined by
46	46	Article 45A.453(a), for:
47	47	(1) the failure to pay all or part of a fine or cost
48	48	imposed for the conviction of an offense punishable by fine only; or
49	49	(2) contempt of a judgment entered for the conviction
50	50	of an offense punishable by fine only.
51	51	SECTION 5. Article 45A.262(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
52	52	is amended to read as follows:
53	53	(a) A defendant confined [placed] in jail [due to failure to
54	54	pay the fine and costs] shall be discharged on habeas corpus by
55	55	showing that the defendant was confined in jail:
56	56	(1) in violation of Article 45A.2615 or 45A.461(b) [is
57	57	indigent and cannot pay the fine and costs]; or
58	58	(2) as a result of:
59	59	(A) failure to pay the applicable fine or cost
60	60	imposed by a judgment entered for the conviction of an offense
61	61	punishable by fine only; or
62	62	(B) contempt of a judgment described by Paragraph
63	63	(A) or, if the defendant is a child, contempt of an order of a
64	64	justice or municipal court [has remained in jail for a cumulative
65	65	period that is sufficient to satisfy the fine and costs, at the rate
66	66	of not less than $150 for each separate period served, as specified
67	67	by the convicting court in the judgment in the case].
68	68	SECTION 6. Article 45A.264, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
69	69	amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to
70	70	read as follows:
71	71	(b) In addition to any other method of enforcement
72	72	authorized by law, the municipality may enforce the collection of
73	73	fines by[:
74	74	[(1)] execution against the property of the defendant.
75	75	(b-1) A municipality may not enforce the collection of fines
76	76	by[; or
77	77	[(2)] confinement of the defendant.
78	78	SECTION 7. The heading to Article 45A.461, Code of Criminal
79	79	Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
80	80	Art. 45A.461. FAILURE TO [PAY FINE OR] APPEAR.
81	81	SECTION 8. Article 45A.461(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
82	82	is amended to read as follows:
83	83	(b) A justice or municipal court may not order the
84	84	confinement of a child for:
85	85	(1) [the failure to pay all or part of a fine or cost
86	86	imposed for the conviction of an offense punishable by fine only;
87	87	[(2)] the failure to appear for an offense committed by
88	88	the child; or
89	89	(2) [(3)] contempt of an [another] order of a justice
90	90	or municipal court.
91	91	SECTION 9. Section 21.002(c), Government Code, is amended
92	92	to read as follows:
93	93	(c) Subject to Articles 45A.2615 and 45A.461(b), Code of
94	94	Criminal Procedure, the [The] punishment for contempt of a justice
95	95	court or municipal court is a fine of not more than $100 or
96	96	confinement in the county or municipal [city] jail for not more than
97	97	three days, or both such a fine and confinement in jail.
98	98	SECTION 10. The following provisions of the Code of
99	99	Criminal Procedure are repealed:
100	100	(1) Article 45A.261(b); and
101	101	(2) Article 45A.262(b).
102	102	SECTION 11. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
103	103	section, the changes in law made by this Act apply only to a
104	104	judgment that has not been discharged before the effective date of
105	105	this Act and a judgment entered on or after the effective date of
106	106	this Act.
107	107	(b) Article 45A.461(b), Code of Criminal Procedure, as
108	108	amended by this Act, applies only to an order entered on or after
109	109	the effective date of this Act.
110	110	(c) Not later than September 2, 2025, a county or municipal
111	111	jail shall release each person who, on the effective date of this
112	112	Act, is confined in the county or municipal jail for:
113	113	(1) the failure to pay all or part of a fine or cost
114	114	imposed for the conviction of an offense punishable by fine only,
115	115	including confinement ordered under Article 45A.261, Code of
116	116	Criminal Procedure, as that article existed before the effective
117	117	date of this Act;
118	118	(2) contempt of a judgment entered for the conviction
119	119	of an offense punishable by fine only; or
120	120	(3) contempt of an order of a justice or municipal
121	121	court, if the person is a child as defined by Article 45A.453(a),
122	122	Code of Criminal Procedure.
123	123	SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.