HBA-SEP H.B. 156 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 156
By: Homer
Criminal Jurisprudence
4/8/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

There is concern that some adults recruit minors to sell drugs to
school-age children.  Increasing the penalty for adults who use children to
commit or assist in the commission of an offense relating to the
manufacture or delivery of certain controlled substances may mitigate this
practice.  House Bill 156 provides this increase.    

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 156 amends the Health and Safety Code to provide that a
punishment may be increased by one degree if the defendant used or
attempted to use a child younger than 18 years of age to commit or assist
in the commission of an offense that is shown at the punishment phase of
the trial to be an offense punishable as a state jail felony, felony of the
third degree, or felony of the second degree relating to the manufacture or
delivery of certain controlled substances.  The bill provides that the
punishment for the offense is a first degree felony if the defendant used
or threatened to use force against the child or another to gain the child's
assistance.  The bill prohibits the court from ordering the sentence for
the offense to run concurrently, notwithstanding certain cumulative or
concurrent sentencing provision, with any other sentence the court imposes
on the defendant if punishment for a defendant is increased.   

H.B. 156 also amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to provide that certain
provisions regarding judge ordered community supervision do not apply to a
punishment increased under a provision relating to the use of a child in
the commission of an offense.  In addition, H.B. 156 amends the Government
Code to prohibit the release to mandatory supervision of an inmate if the
inmate is serving a sentence for or has been previously convicted of a
felony relating to the use of a child in the commission of an offense for
which the punishment is increased.  

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.