HBA-MSH H.B. 2113 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2113
By: Allen
Public Safety
3/14/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, a person who is convicted or receives an order of
deferred adjudication for a sex offense in another state with which Texas
has a reciprocal registration agreement is required to register in Texas as
a sex offender.  The statute fails to address a person who may be required
to register under federal law or the Uniform Code of Military Justice, such
as a member of the armed services who has committed a sex offense, been
convicted under military law, and resides in Texas upon discharge.  House
Bill 2113 requires a person required to register as a sex offender under
federal or military law to register in Texas. 

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. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2113 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to apply statutes
relating to the registration of sex offenders to those persons required to
register as a sex offender under federal law or the Uniform Code of
Military Justice.  The bill provides that for the purposes of existing law
governing the time periods during which a person subject to registration as
a sex offender for two or more convictions or deferred adjudications of a
sexual offense is required to verify registration information with a local
law enforcement authority,  a person receives multiple convictions or
orders of deferred adjudication regardless of whether the judgments or
orders are entered on different dates or the offenses for which the person
was convicted or placed on deferred adjudication arose out of different
criminal transactions.  The bill provides that the Texas Department of
Public Safety is responsible for determining for the purposes of the sex
offender registration program whether an offense under the laws of another
state, federal law or the Uniform Code of Military Justice contains
elements that are substantially similar to the elements of an offense under
the law of this state. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2001.