89R3130 JRR-D
By: Johnson S.B. No. 1515
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the expunction of all records and files related to
arrests for certain decriminalized misdemeanor offenses.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 55A, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended by adding Article 55A.007 to read as follows:
Art. 55A.007. CERTAIN DECRIMINALIZED MISDEMEANOR OFFENSES.
A person to whom this subchapter applies is entitled to the
expunction of all records and files related to the arrest,
including, as applicable, any records and files related to a
conviction of the offense, if:
(1) the person is convicted of or placed on deferred
adjudication community supervision under Subchapter C, Chapter
42A, for the offense for which the person was arrested;
(2) the offense for which the person was arrested was a
misdemeanor offense and the conduct that was the subject of the
offense as applied to the person has been statutorily
decriminalized subsequent to the date of the commission of the
offense; and
(3) as applicable:
(A) the person's sentence, including any term of
confinement or period of community supervision imposed and payment
of all fines and costs imposed, is finally discharged; or
(B) the person received a dismissal and discharge
under Article 42A.111 for the offense.
SECTION 2. Article 55A.251, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 55A.251. FILING OF PETITION. (a) A person who is
entitled to expunction of records and files under Article 55A.002,
55A.004, or 55A.005 or Subchapter B, or a person who is eligible for
expunction of records and files under Article 55A.101, may, subject
to Article 55A.252, file an ex parte petition for expunction in a
district court for the county in which:
(1) the petitioner was arrested; or
(2) the offense was alleged to have occurred.
(b) A person who is entitled to expunction of records and
files under Article 55A.007 may file an ex parte petition for
expunction in the court that convicted the person or placed the
person on deferred adjudication community supervision.
SECTION 3. Subchapter F, Chapter 55A, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended by adding Article 55A.2545 to read as
follows:
Art. 55A.2545. PETITIONER DEMONSTRATION AT HEARING FOR
EXPUNCTION OF DECRIMINALIZED MISDEMEANOR OFFENSE. At a hearing
held on a petition for expunction on the basis of an entitlement
under Article 55A.007, the court may require the petitioner to
demonstrate that the offense that is the subject of the petition
qualifies as a statutorily decriminalized offense under current
law. The demonstration may include an affidavit signed by the
petitioner attesting to the fact that the offense that is the
subject of the petition qualifies as a statutorily decriminalized
offense under current law.
SECTION 4. Article 55A.257, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 55A.257. DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY MAY FILE PETITION
ON PERSON'S BEHALF. The director of the Department of Public Safety
or the director's authorized representative may file on behalf of a
person described by Article 55A.251(a) [55A.251] or 55A.256 an ex
parte petition for expunction in a district court for the county in
which:
(1) the person was arrested; or
(2) the offense was alleged to have occurred.
SECTION 5. Subchapter H, Chapter 55A, Code of Criminal
Procedure, is amended by adding Article 55A.3565 to read as
follows:
Art. 55A.3565. RETENTION AND INSPECTION OF CERTAIN RECORDS
AFTER EXPUNCTION OF DECRIMINALIZED MISDEMEANOR OFFENSE. (a) This
article applies only to records and files for which an expunction
order has been issued on the basis of an entitlement under Article
55A.007.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, the law enforcement
agency, the prosecuting attorney responsible for investigating the
offense for which the expunction order was issued, and the clerk of
the applicable court may retain the records and files relating to
the arrest for the offense, including any records and files related
to a conviction of the offense, to be used only:
(1) for the investigation or prosecution of another
offense arising out of the same transaction for which the person who
is the subject of the order was arrested; or
(2) by the office of the governor in determining
whether to issue a pardon or commute a sentence.
(c) The records and files for which the expunction order was
issued are not open for inspection by anyone, except that the
records and files are open for inspection by the person who is the
subject of the order or for the purposes described by Subsection
(b).
SECTION 6. Article 102.006(b), Code of Criminal Procedure,
is amended to read as follows:
(b) The fees under Subsection (a) or the fee under
Subsection (a-1), as applicable, shall be waived if:
(1) the petitioner seeks expunction of a criminal
record that relates to an arrest for an offense of which the person
was acquitted, other than an acquittal for an offense described by
Article 55A.151, and the petition for expunction is filed not later
than the 30th day after the date of the acquittal; or
(2) the petitioner is entitled to expunction under
Article 55A.007.
SECTION 7. This Act applies to an expunction of arrest
records and files relating to any misdemeanor offense that was
committed before, on, or after the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.