HBA-LCA S.B. 422 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 422
By: Harris
Juvenile Justice & Family Issues
4/16/1999
Engrossed

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Chapter 58, Family Code, establishes the procedures for sealing juvenile
records.  However, no provisions currently exist to specify the time in
which such records must be sent to a court, or the procedure an agency or
institution must follow if insufficient information exists to seal the
record.  

S.B. 422 requires records to be sealed, and related references in indexes
to be deleted, within 61 days of the request, and requires verification
that those references have been deleted. This bill also requires the court
to notify, within 61 days, an agency or institution of its inability to
seal a record because of insufficient or incorrect information.   

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 58.003, Family Code, by amending Subsection (g)
and adding Subsection (o), as follows: 

(g)  Requires that, on entry of an order for the sealing of a juvenile
record, or records of a public or private institution or agency, all
records ordered sealed (records) be sent to the court issuing the order
within 61 days of the date the order is received.  Requires that all index
references to records be deleted, and that a verification of the deletion
be sent to the court issuing the order with 61 days of the date the order
was issued. 

(o)  Requires an agency or official to notify the court issuing the order
within 61 days of the date  the order was issued if the agency or official
is unable to seal the records because of incorrect or insufficient
information in the order,  Requires the court to notify the person who made
the application, or the person who is the subject of the records, or that
person's attorney, within 61 days of receipt of notice that the records
cannot be sealed because of incorrect or insufficient information in the
order. 

SECTION 2.  (a)  Effective date: September 1, 1999.

(b)  Provides that this Act applies only to an order to seal records under
Section 58.003, Family Code, entered on or after the effective date of this
Act. 

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.