HB+1736+Texas+Legislature+81st+Session

[|HB 1736] - Relating to compensation of and services to persons wrongfully imprisoned.

This bill was filed on 2/24/2009. It was authored by Anchia (primary author), Yvonne, Branch, Hodge, Isett. Coauthored by Gonzales, Guillen, Jones, Kent, King, Marquez, Menendez, Naishtat, Ortiz, Rodriquez, Strama, Turner and Veasey. The bill was sponsored by Duncan and west.

Companion Bill(s) - [|SB 2014] -

Authored by Duncan and Ellis. Coauthored by Shapiro, Van De Putte and West.

This bill is intended to increase the lump-sum compensation for persons wrongfully convicted from $50,000 to $80,000 per year of incarceration. The bill also sets the lump-sum compensation for persons wrongfully placed on probation or registered as sex offenders at $25,000 per year.


 * __Bill Stages:__** [|**Time Line**]

Stage 1: 2/24/2009 - Bill filed by Anchia. Stage 2: 4/9/2009 - Bill reported out of House committee on Criminal Jurisprudence with vote of 8 Ayes, 2 Nays, 0 Present Not Voting, 1 Absent. Stage 3: 4/27/2009 - Bill passed the House. Stage 4: 5/6/2009 - Bill reported out of Senate committee on State Affairs with vote of 9 Ayes, 0 Nays, 0 Present Not Voting, 0 Absent. Stage 5: 5/11/2009 - Bill passed the Senate. Stage 6: 5/27/2009 - Bill sent to the governor. Stage 7: Effective on 9/1/09, Bill becomes law.


 * __Witness List:__**

__House Committee Report:__ [|House Committee Report - Witness List] __For:__ __Against:__ __//Registering, but not testifying:// For__: __Senate Committee Report:__ [|Senate Committee Report - Witness List] __Registering, but not testifying: For:__
 * Casto, Larry
 * Chatman, Charles
 * Glasheen, Kevin
 * Karage, Ente
 * Mahsler, Kristina
 * Session, Cory
 * Smith, Billy
 * Waller, James
 * Heimlich, Ed
 * Colfax, Edwin
 * Dieter, Alison
 * Martin, Laura
 * Shelton, Emily
 * Yanez-Correa, Ana
 * Gunter, Samuel
 * Wolfe, Jared


 * __Bill Analysis:__**

HB 1736, also known as the Time Cole Act, was filed into the House of Representatives by Anchia on 2/24/09. This bill went through congress in three months and arrived on the governors desk on 5/27/09. It was then passed and goes into effect on 9/1/09.

HB 1736 amends the civil practice and remedies code to entitle the heirs, legal representatives, and estate of a deceased person who would normally be entitles to compensation for wronful imprisonment, only if the person recieved a full pardon on the basis of innocence or was granted relief because of actual innocence for the crime the person was sentenced for. This bill changes the lump-sum compensation from $50,000 to $80,000 per year of incarceration and also compensates those released on parol or registered as a sex offender to $25,000 per year of served parole or registered as a sex offender.

A person who is entitles to compensation is entitled to participate in the group benefits program under the Texas Employees Group Benefits Act if the claimant so wishes. The board of trustees of the Employee Retirement System of Texas provides that the claimant is automatically covered by the basic coverage for annuities. The bill also states that a person entitled to compensation is entitled to annuity payments for that compensation. These annuity payments are payable in equal monthly installments, for the life of the claimant. However, the acceleration, deferment, increase, or decrease of the annuity payments and prohibits the applicant for compensation from selling, mortgaging, or otherwise encumbering or anticipating the payments, wholly or partly, by assignment or otherwise.

This bill repeals the authorization for a person to bring a suit against the state for compensation. The comptroller is to begin making payments to a claiment no later then the 30th day after the date in which the claiment is determined eligible for compensation. A claiment is required to file with the comptroller's judiciary section a statement provided by a county or municipality that incarcerated the person of whose imprisonment the claim is based in connection with the relevant sentence verifying the length of the sentence served.

Lets just hope this bill never applies to me or anyone that I know.