HBA-CMT H.B. 2987 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2987
By: Deshotel
Public Safety
3/21/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Sex offender registration has become more expansive over the past few
sessions of the Texas legislature. Since the Sex Offender Registration
Program began, additional offenses continue to be added to the list of
offenses that require registration.  Until the last legislative session,
judges could exempt a defendant from registration after a hearing was held
on the need for registration.  In the last session, the legislature removed
the discretionary power of judges and made all sex offender registration
mandatory.  This approach requires all defendants to register and comply
with the public notice requirements, even youthful adult offenders that
participated in consensual sex that would not be an offense except for the
age of the participants.  Under current Texas law, if a person has sex with
a person younger than 17 years of age that person has committed an offense
that requires registration if convicted.  Cases like this may meet the
requirements for an offense that would require registration,  but it has
been argued that persons involved in consensual sex are not offenders that
should require registration as sex offenders.  House Bill 2987 returns
discretionary power to judges in such cases.   

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 2987 amends the Criminal Procedure and Family codes relating to
exemption from sex offender registration for certain juvenile and adult
offenders.  The bill requires a judge in the trial or disposition of an
offense involving sexual assault, sexual performance by a child, or
indecency with a child to make an affirmative finding of fact and enter the
affirmative finding in the judgement in the case if the judge determines
that at the time of the offense, the defendant was younger than 20 years of
age and the victim was at least 13 years of age and the conviction is based
solely on the ages of the defendant and the victim or intended victim at
the time of the offense.  The bill provides that if a judge places a
defendant on community supervision who is charged with a offense involving
sexual assault, sexual performance by a child, or indecency with a child,
the judge is required to make an affirmative finding of fact and file a
statement of that affirmative finding with the papers in the case if the
sole purpose for the charge was the defendant's and victim's age. 

The bill provides that, if eligible, a person required to register as a sex
offender is authorized to petition the court having jurisdiction over the
case at any time after the person's sentencing or disposition hearing for
an order exempting the person from registration.  The bill sets forth
eligibility requirements for a person to be able to petition to the court
for a sex offender registration exemption and establishes procedures
designed to make application of the exemption to eligible persons
retroactive.   After a hearing on the petition, the court is authorized to
issue an order exempting the person from registration if it appears by a
preponderance of the evidence that the exemption does not threaten public
safety.  An order exempting a person from registration does not expire, but
the court is required to withdraw the order if the person receives a
reportable conviction or adjudication after the order is issued.  

 EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.