bill making prisons check whether inmates are veterans

The text as introduced · 1,644 words

89R5382 BCH-D

By: Romero
H.B. No. 3644

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the verification of the veteran status of inmates and

prisoners.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 8(a), Article 42.09, Code of Criminal

Procedure, is amended to read as follows:

(a) A county that transfers a defendant to the Texas

Department of Criminal Justice under this article shall deliver to

an officer designated by the department:

(1) a copy of the judgment entered pursuant to Article

42.01, completed on a standardized felony judgment form described

by Section 4 of that article;

(2) a copy of any order revoking community supervision

and imposing sentence pursuant to Article 42A.755, including:

(A) any amounts owed for restitution, fines, and

court costs, completed on a standardized felony judgment form

described by Section 4, Article 42.01; and

(B) a copy of the client supervision plan

prepared for the defendant by the community supervision and

corrections department supervising the defendant, if such a plan

was prepared;

(3) a written report that states the nature and the

seriousness of each offense and that states the citation to the

provision or provisions of the Penal Code or other law under which

the defendant was convicted;

(4) a copy of the victim impact statement, if one has

been prepared in the case under Subchapter D, Chapter 56A;

(5) a statement as to whether there was a change in

venue in the case and, if so, the names of the county prosecuting

the offense and the county in which the case was tried;

(6) if requested, information regarding the criminal

history of the defendant, including the defendant's state

identification number if the number has been issued;

(7) a copy of the indictment or information for each

offense;

(8) a checklist sent by the department to the county

and completed by the county in a manner indicating that the

documents required by this subsection and Subsection (c) accompany

the defendant;

(9) if prepared, a copy of a presentence or

postsentence report prepared under Subchapter F, Chapter 42A;

(10) a copy of any detainer, issued by an agency of the

federal government, that is in the possession of the county and that

has been placed on the defendant;

(11) if prepared, a copy of the defendant's Texas

Uniform Health Status Update Form;

(12) a written description of a hold or warrant,

issued by any other jurisdiction, that the county is aware of and

that has been placed on or issued for the defendant; [ and ]

(13) a copy of any mental health records, mental

health screening reports, or similar information regarding the

mental health of the defendant ; and

(14) the veteran status of the defendant as determined

by an investigation conducted in accordance with Section

511.009(a)(17)(A), Government Code .

SECTION 2. Section 501.024(b), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(b) The department shall:

(1) in consultation with the Texas Veterans

Commission, investigate and verify the veteran status of each

inmate by using the best available federal data; and

(2) use the data described by Subdivision (1) to

assist inmates who are veterans in applying for federal benefits or

compensation for which the inmates may be eligible under a program

administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs ,

including mailing any related paperwork, application, or other

correspondence on behalf of and at no charge to the inmate .

SECTION 3. Section 511.009(a), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(a) The commission shall:

(1) adopt reasonable rules and procedures

establishing minimum standards for the construction, equipment,

maintenance, and operation of county jails;

(2) adopt reasonable rules and procedures

establishing minimum standards for the custody, care, and treatment

of prisoners;

(3) adopt reasonable rules establishing minimum

standards for the number of jail supervisory personnel and for

programs and services to meet the needs of prisoners;

(4) adopt reasonable rules and procedures

establishing minimum requirements for programs of rehabilitation,

education, and recreation in county jails;

(5) regularly review the commission's rules and

procedures and revise, amend, or change the rules and procedures if

necessary;

(6) provide to local government officials

consultation on and technical assistance for county jails;

(7) review and comment on plans for the construction

and major modification or renovation of county jails;

(8) require that the sheriff and commissioners of each

county submit to the commission, on a form prescribed by the

commission, an annual report on the conditions in each county jail

within their jurisdiction, including all information necessary to

determine compliance with state law, commission orders, and the

rules adopted under this chapter;

(9) review the reports submitted under Subdivision (8)

and require commission employees to inspect county jails regularly

to ensure compliance with state law, commission orders, and rules

and procedures adopted under this chapter;

(10) adopt a classification system to assist sheriffs

and judges in determining which defendants are low-risk and

consequently suitable participants in a county jail work release

program under Article 42.034, Code of Criminal Procedure;

(11) adopt rules relating to requirements for

segregation of classes of inmates and to capacities for county

jails;

(12) adopt a policy for gathering and distributing to

jails under the commission's jurisdiction information regarding:

(A) common issues concerning jail

administration;

(B) examples of successful strategies for

maintaining compliance with state law and the rules, standards, and

procedures of the commission; and

(C) solutions to operational challenges for

jails;

(13) report to the Texas Correctional Office on

Offenders with Medical or Mental Impairments on a jail's compliance

with Article 16.22, Code of Criminal Procedure;

(14) adopt reasonable rules and procedures

establishing minimum requirements for a county jail to:

(A) determine if a prisoner is pregnant;

(B) ensure that the jail's health services plan

addresses medical care, including obstetrical and gynecological

care, mental health care, nutritional requirements, and any special

housing or work assignment needs for prisoners who are known or

determined to be pregnant; and

(C) identify when a pregnant prisoner is in labor

and provide appropriate care to the prisoner, including promptly

transporting the prisoner to a local hospital;

(15) provide guidelines to sheriffs regarding

contracts between a sheriff and another entity for the provision of

food services to or the operation of a commissary in a jail under

the commission's jurisdiction, including specific provisions

regarding conflicts of interest and avoiding the appearance of

impropriety;

(16) adopt reasonable rules and procedures

establishing minimum standards for prisoner visitation that

provide each prisoner at a county jail with a minimum of two

in-person, noncontact visitation periods per week of at least 20

minutes duration each;

(17) require the sheriff of each county to:

(A) investigate and verify the veteran status of

each prisoner during the intake process by using data made

available from the Veterans Reentry Search Service (VRSS) operated

by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or a similar

service; [ and ]

(B) use the data described by Paragraph (A) to

assist prisoners who are veterans in applying for federal benefits

or compensation for which the prisoners may be eligible under a

program administered by the United States Department of Veterans

Affairs , including providing the prisoner on verification of the

prisoner's veteran status with a prepaid postcard that is supplied

by the Texas Veterans Commission for purposes of requesting

assistance in applying for veterans benefits ;

(C) submit a daily report identifying each

prisoner whose veteran status was verified under Paragraph (A)

during the previous day to the Texas Veterans Commission and, as

applicable, the veterans county service officer for the county and

each court in which charges against a prisoner identified in the

report are pending; and

(D) allow for a prisoner whose veteran status has

been verified under Paragraph (A) to have in-person or video

visitation with the veterans county service officer for the county

or a peer service coordinator at no cost to the prisoner;

(18) adopt reasonable rules and procedures regarding

visitation of a prisoner at a county jail by a guardian, as defined

by Section 1002.012, Estates Code, that:

(A) allow visitation by a guardian to the same

extent as the prisoner's next of kin, including placing the

guardian on the prisoner's approved visitors list on the guardian's

request and providing the guardian access to the prisoner during a

facility's standard visitation hours if the prisoner is otherwise

eligible to receive visitors; and

(B) require the guardian to provide the sheriff

with letters of guardianship issued as provided by Section

1106.001, Estates Code, before being allowed to visit the prisoner;

(19) adopt reasonable rules and procedures to ensure

the safety of prisoners, including rules and procedures that

require a county jail to:

(A) give prisoners the ability to access a mental

health professional at the jail or through a telemental health

service 24 hours a day or, if a mental health professional is not at

the county jail at the time, then require the jail to use all

reasonable efforts to arrange for the inmate to have access to a

mental health professional within a reasonable time;

(B) give prisoners the ability to access a health

professional at the jail or through a telehealth service 24 hours a

day or, if a health professional is unavailable at the jail or

through a telehealth service, provide for a prisoner to be

transported to access a health professional; and

(C) if funding is available under Section

511.019, install automated electronic sensors or cameras to ensure

accurate and timely in-person checks of cells or groups of cells

confining at-risk individuals; and

(20) adopt reasonable rules and procedures

establishing minimum standards for the quantity and quality of

feminine hygiene products, including tampons in regular and large

sizes and menstrual pads with wings in regular and large sizes,

provided to a female prisoner.

SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.