Texas lawmakers already passed an omnibus bill this year making routine changes to the state's judicial system 鈥� but two special sessions later, it's finally one step closer to actually becoming law.
The Texas Senate passed a version of the Legislature鈥檚 bipartisan judicial omnibus bill Tuesday. It鈥檚 a compilation of several bills passed every year that create new courts, edit judicial districts and make other changes to state court administration as needed.
Abbott vetoed the original legislation at the end of this year鈥檚 regular session 鈥� by Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola 鈥� and put it on the agenda for the special session. Abbott said the bill didn鈥檛 receive adequate consideration during the regular session, and according to his , he specifically cited a provision in the bill that would make it mandatory for a court to expunge certain criminal charges if a person completes a pretrial intervention program.
at issue allows 鈥� but does not require 鈥� a trial court to expunge a criminal charge from a person鈥檚 record in certain cases if they complete a veterans treatment court program or a mental health court program. The person must apply for expunction with the county's prosecuting attorney, and a judge can still deny the application.
by Rep. Rafael Anch铆a, D-Dallas, would have explicitly required the dismissal of a case if the defendant completed those programs and included other state-approved pretrial intervention programs.
The measure came from another bill Anch铆a authored, Anch铆a, an attorney, said people who graduate from pretrial intervention programs may qualify for an expunction, but they are left to navigate finalizing the expunction on their own in an 鈥渋ncredibly bureaucratic鈥� process.
鈥淭his requires an application, at least $290 in fees, a mandated return to court and, most often times, the costs related to hiring an attorney,鈥� Anch铆a told House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee members in April. 鈥淪o, this leads many of the graduates to never receive the expunction that they actually earned.鈥�
Anch铆a lauded the Dallas County District Attorney's Office, which oversees pretrial intervention programs within the county, for its work with veteran and mental health courts. Representatives from the DA's office supported the bill, as did civil rights groups.
The Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas registered against it, but no one testified. The measure earned bipartisan support as an amendment to the omnibus bill with mostly Republicans voting against it.
In a statement, Anch铆a said his legislation was an attempt to make the criminal justice system more accessible by closing the , or the disparity between the number of people who are eligible for expunction and those who actually get it.
"Despite previously receiving overwhelming support in both chambers, Governor Abbott vetoed the bill, but I remain committed to pursuing this policy as a reality for those who have earned it," Anch铆a wrote.
Abbott鈥檚 office did not respond to a request for comment on what specific issue he had with the bill鈥檚 mandatory expunction provision. The Dallas County District Attorney's Office did not respond to a request for comment.
The Senate passed Hughes鈥� new version of the omnibus bill in the first special session, which removed the expunction provision and other parts of the bill that had already passed in standalone bills. But that bill and others went nowhere while House Democrats stayed out of state to break quorum and stall Republicans鈥� congressional redistricting plans.
Hughes once again led the filing of the Senate legislation in the second special session, and Rep. Jeff Leach, R-Allen, filed a version of the bill in the House. waives certain fees in expunction proceedings if a person completes veterans treatment or mental health court programs but doesn鈥檛 extend that allowance to other types of pretrial diversion programs.
Other measures in HB 16 include:
- Creating new judicial districts in Rockwall, Fort Bend, Ellis, Harris, Williamson and other counties.
- Adding two more seats to the statewide Fifteenth Court of Appeals over the course of four years.
- Raising the criminal penalty for harassing court employees or judges.
- Expanding and clarifying requirements for judicial training on issues like family violence and sexual assault.
- Requiring juvenile boards to prioritize diversion and make detention a last resort for children younger than 12 or who live in a general residential operation
This story has been updated with comment from Rep. Rafael Anch铆a.
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