HBA-SEB H.B. 3355 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3355
By: Staples
Juvenile Justice and Family Issues
4/7/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law requires a law enforcement officer who takes a child into
custody to transport the child to the appropriate detention facility if the
child is not released.  If the detention facility is located in another
county, however, the sheriff of the county where the child was taken into
custody must transport the child. This transportation requirement may be a
burden for a sheriff's department with few resources and a limited
workforce.  H.B. 3355 removes a sheriff's responsibility to transport a
juvenile to another county's juvenile detention facility.  In this way, the
law enforcement officer who takes the child into custody must transport the
child. 

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 Sections 52.026(b) and (c), Family Code, to delete a
requirement that the sheriff of a county transport a child to an
appropriate juvenile detention facility, if the juvenile facility is
located in another county, unless the child is detained in a secure
detention facility or is released to the parent, guardian, or custodian of
the child.   

SECTION 2.  Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 3.Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.