HBA-TBM C.S.H.B. 1501 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 1501 By: Hupp Public Safety 33/22/2001 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, a law enforcement officer is not required to return a searched area to the condition it was in prior to a search. Courtesy and respect for the property of others should be encouraged. C.S.H.B. 1501 requires an officer performing a search to make a reasonable effort to return the premises searched as near as possible to its condition prior to the search. 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 C.S.H.B. 1501 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to require an officer performing a search with or without a warrant to make a reasonable effort to return the place searched as near as possible to the condition the place was in immediately before the search. An officer is not prohibited from removing property from the place as permitted by law or required to take an action that would interfere with a subsequent examination of the place conducted for purposes of a criminal investigation or the officer's performance of another law enforcement duty, if exigent circumstances require the officer to immediately perform the duty. An officer who fails to comply with this provision has not by that failure obtained evidence in violation of the laws of this state. EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 1501 differs from the original by only requiring an officer conducting a search to make a reasonable effort rather than having it be an absolute requirement to return the place searched as near as possible to the condition the place was in immediately before the search. The substitute also provides that an officer who fails to comply with this provision has not by that failure obtained evidence in violation of the laws of this state.