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| 2 | + | (In the Senate - Filed February 11, 2025; |
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| 3 | + | February 28, 2025, read first time and referred to Committee on |
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| 4 | + | State Affairs; March 17, 2025, reported favorably by the following |
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| 5 | + | vote: Yeas 11, Nays 0; March 17, 2025, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | + | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 4 | 7 | | |
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| 5 | 8 | | |
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| 6 | 9 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 7 | 10 | | AN ACT |
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| 8 | 11 | | relating to the subject matter jurisdiction of the criminal trial |
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| 9 | 12 | | courts of this state. |
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| 10 | 13 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 14 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 23, Government Code, is |
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| 12 | 15 | | amended by adding Section 23.002 to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 16 | | Sec. 23.002. SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION OF CRIMINAL TRIAL |
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| 14 | 17 | | COURTS NOT CONDITIONED ON EXHAUSTION OF CIVIL REMEDIES. Unless |
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| 15 | 18 | | expressly provided otherwise, the exhaustion of civil, including |
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| 16 | 19 | | administrative, remedies is not a prerequisite to the vesting in a |
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| 17 | 20 | | trial court of subject matter jurisdiction over a criminal action |
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| 18 | 21 | | for which the trial court would otherwise have jurisdiction under |
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| 19 | 22 | | other law. |
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| 20 | 23 | | SECTION 2. This Act applies to a criminal action commenced |
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| 21 | 24 | | before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 22 | 25 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 23 | 26 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 24 | 27 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 25 | 28 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 26 | 29 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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