Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1946 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R14217 MZM-F
2	2	By: Zaffirini S.B. No. 1946
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the creation of a family violence criminal homicide
10	10	prevention task force.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 772, Government Code, is
13	13	amended by adding Section 772.0065 to read as follows:
14	14	Sec. 772.0065. FAMILY VIOLENCE CRIMINAL HOMICIDE
15	15	PREVENTION TASK FORCE. (a) In this section:
16	16	(1) "Criminal homicide" means an offense under Chapter
17	17	19, Penal Code.
18	18	(2) "Family violence" has the meaning assigned by
19	19	Section 71.004, Family Code.
20	20	(3) "Steering committee" means the steering committee
21	21	of the Family Violence Criminal Homicide Prevention Task Force
22	22	established by Subsection (c).
23	23	(4) "Task force" means the Family Violence Criminal
24	24	Homicide Prevention Task Force established by this section.
25	25	(b) The governor shall establish the Family Violence
26	26	Criminal Homicide Prevention Task Force within the criminal justice
27	27	division established under Section 772.006.
28	28	(c) The task force shall include a steering committee
29	29	composed of the following members:
30	30	(1) the governor or the governor's designee; and
31	31	(2) the chief executive officer of a statewide family
32	32	violence advocacy organization or the chief executive officer's
33	33	designee.
34	34	(d) The task force is composed of the following members
35	35	appointed by the steering committee:
36	36	(1) four representatives who are employees or
37	37	contractors of a family violence center, as defined by Section
38	38	51.002, Human Resources Code, from different regions across the
39	39	state, representing both rural and urban areas;
40	40	(2) two representatives of a statewide family violence
41	41	advocacy organization;
42	42	(3) one representative from an organization that
43	43	operates statewide and provides legal services to victims of family
44	44	violence;
45	45	(4) one representative from each state agency that has
46	46	duties relating to the prevention, investigation, or prosecution of
47	47	family violence or that provides services to survivors of family
48	48	violence, including:
49	49	(A) the office of the attorney general;
50	50	(B) the Health and Human Services Commission;
51	51	(C) the Office of Court Administration;
52	52	(D) the Department of State Health Services; and
53	53	(E) the Department of Family and Protective
54	54	Services;
55	55	(5) one representative from the family violence
56	56	program operated by the Health and Human Services Commission;
57	57	(6) one representative from the Center for Violence
58	58	Prevention at The University of Texas Health Science Center at
59	59	Houston;
60	60	(7) the president of the Texas District and County
61	61	Attorneys Association or the president's designee;
62	62	(8) the executive director of the Texas Municipal
63	63	Police Association or the executive director's designee;
64	64	(9) the executive director of the Texas Commission on
65	65	Law Enforcement or the executive director's designee;
66	66	(10) one representative of the Texas Violent Death
67	67	Reporting System;
68	68	(11) one representative from a domestic violence high
69	69	risk team described by Section 402.039;
70	70	(12) two survivors of family violence; and
71	71	(13) additional members as considered appropriate by
72	72	the steering committee.
73	73	(e) An appointed member serves at the pleasure of the
74	74	steering committee.
75	75	(f) The governor shall designate one member of the task
76	76	force to serve as the presiding officer.
77	77	(g) The task force shall meet at the call of the presiding
78	78	officer.
79	79	(h) The task force shall use any available federal or state
80	80	funding for the purposes of this section.
81	81	(i) The steering committee may establish one or more working
82	82	groups, composed of members of the task force, to focus on specific
83	83	issues regarding the prevention, investigation, and prosecution of
84	84	family violence criminal homicide.
85	85	(j) The task force shall:
86	86	(1) analyze the top risk factors that may lead to
87	87	family violence criminal homicide;
88	88	(2) advise and provide resources to state agencies and
89	89	nonprofit organizations to develop and improve training for
90	90	professionals who interact with survivors of family violence;
91	91	(3) collect, analyze, and make publicly available
92	92	information, organized by region, regarding:
93	93	(A) the prevention, investigation, and
94	94	prosecution of family violence criminal homicide and other family
95	95	violence offenses; and
96	96	(B) services provided to family violence
97	97	survivors, including a list of family violence advocacy
98	98	organizations; and
99	99	(4) develop policy recommendations to assist the state
100	100	in:
101	101	(A) effectively coordinating services to family
102	102	violence survivors and funding to organizations that provide
103	103	services to survivors; and
104	104	(B) more effectively preventing, investigating,
105	105	and prosecuting incidents of family violence criminal homicide.
106	106	(k) Chapter 2110, Government Code, does not apply to the
107	107	task force.
108	108	(l) A task force member who is not employed by a state agency
109	109	or an individual invited by the presiding officer to participate in
110	110	a scheduled task force meeting is entitled to:
111	111	(1) a per diem in the amount provided by the General
112	112	Appropriations Act for each day the member performs duties as a task
113	113	force member or the individual attends a task force meeting; and
114	114	(2) reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses
115	115	incurred in performing duties as a member or participant of the task
116	116	force, as applicable.
117	117	(m) Not later than December 1, 2026, the task force shall
118	118	submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the speaker of
119	119	the house of representatives a written report containing the task
120	120	force's findings and recommendations for legislative or other
121	121	action.
122	122	(n) The task force is abolished and this section expires
123	123	January 1, 2028.
124	124	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.