HBA-RBT C.S.H.B. 82 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 82
By: Solomons
Judicial Affairs
4/19/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND and PURPOSE 

Some citizens of a county are called upon several times within a year to
serve on a jury.  Others are not called upon for several years.  C.S.H.B.
82 removes a person who appears for jury service in a county with a
population of 250,000 or more from the jury wheel for three years unless
the jury wheel has been reconstituted after the person served as a petit
juror. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 62.001, Government Code, by amending Subsection
(i) and adding Subsection (j), to delete language limiting the application
of Subsection (i) to a county with a population of less than 105,000 in
which the municipality with the largest population is located in more than
one county.  Provides that a person who is summoned and appears for jury
service in a county with a population of 250,000 or more must be removed
from the jury wheel for three years unless the jury wheel is reconstituted.
Provides that this provision applies whether or not the person actually
served on a jury. 

SECTION 2.  Amends Section 62.106, Government Code, by adding Subsection
(8), to authorize a person to establish an exemption from jury service if
the person is summoned for service in a county with a population of at
least 250,000 and the person has served as a petit juror in the county in
the last three years unless the jury wheel is reconstituted after the
person served as a petit juror. 

SECTION 3.  Effective date:  September 1, 1999.

SECTION 4.  Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 5.  Emergency clause.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

The substitute differs from the original in SECTION 1 by deleting language
limiting the application of Subsection (i) to a county with a population of
less than 105,000 in which the municipality with the largest population is
located in more than one county.  The original bill did not address
Subsection (i). 

The substitute differs from the original in SECTION 1 by adding a provision
that if the jury wheel is reconstituted a person is once again placed on
the jury wheel even if the person has served as a petit juror within the
last three years. 

The substitute makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes in SECTION 2.