Monitoring the Session

HB 5401

bill ties sex offender registration to the original charge

Died in committee

Verdict: No flags

No flagsInitial review
Rep. Nate SchatzlineRHouse 93

Initial review · graded Oct 20, 2026 · Headline, summary and grade are analysis of the bill text, not a finding about any person · How we grade

Caption

relating to the applicability of sex offender registration requirements to certain felonies based on the offense initially charged in the case.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

Any felony conviction counts if the first charge required registration.

The bill makes people register as sex offenders when they are convicted of any felony in a case that was first filed as a charge that would have required registration. It touches defendants who plead down or are convicted of a different felony after being first charged with a listed sex offense, plus the prosecutors, courts and police who run the registry. On the ground, a plea deal to an unrelated felony no longer avoids the registry, and the registration period lasts as long as it would have for the original charge, for offenses committed on or after September 1, 2025.

Labels

Labels: NEVER GOT A HEARING. Filed Mar 14, 2025 and referred to the House Criminal Jurisprudence committee. No public hearing. The bill died.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-HB5401 · 2025-03-14

SOLD BY

ITEM

relating to the applicability of sex offender registration requirements to certain felonies based on the offense initially charged in the case.

WHAT IT DOES

Any felony conviction counts if the first charge required registration.

The bill makes people register as sex offenders when they are convicted of any felony in a case that was first filed as a charge that would have required registration. It touches defendants who plead down or are convicted of a different felony after being first charged with a listed sex offense, plus the prosecutors, courts and police who run the registry. On the ground, a plea deal to an unrelated felony no longer avoids the registry, and the registration period lasts as long as it would have for the original charge, for offenses committed on or after September 1, 2025.

CHARGES

[ ] NONE FOUND

TOTAL

No fiscal note in the loaded record.

HISTORY

  1. Filed
  2. Read first time
  3. Referred to Criminal Jurisprudence
FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

No flags

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Donors

Texans for Lawsuit Reform PAC Austin TX$55,000
Texans United for a Conservative Majority Victoria TX$10,000
Dan Patrick Campaign Austin TX$5,000

Derived from itemized gifts, Oct 27, 2024 to Jun 30, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Not tied to this bill.

Sources

The author's campaign account only. Own money and internal transfers are separate on the member page.

$113,206 raised in 4 of 4 reports since Oct 27, 2024. Derived sum of published report totals. Flow, Oct 27, 2024 through Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026. 4 of 4 filed reports carry a published figure. Partial total. Regular reports do not cover Jul 9, 2025 to Aug 15, 2025, Aug 15, 2025 to Sep 4, 2025.

$220,212 spent since Oct 27, 2024. Derived sum of published report totals. Flow, Oct 27, 2024 through Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026. 4 of 4 filed reports carry a published figure.

$54,238 cash on hand. Published report total. Stock, as of Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026.

$0 loans outstanding. Published report total. Stock, as of Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived sum of itemized contributions in regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Unitemized contributions are not included. Flow, Oct 27, 2024 through Jun 30, 2026. State filing data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Money

Missing data does not establish zero giving. Display amounts are rounded.

Votes

No floor vote loaded for this bill.

Fiscal

No fiscal note in the loaded record.

How this was graded

Analysis of text version I by claude-opus-5-5, Oct 20, 2026, against the published rubric.

Sources

Texas House · Filed Mar 14, 2025

04/07/2025 H Referred to Criminal Jurisprudence: Apr 7 2025 5:28PM

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced

Data snapshot Oct 26, 2026 at 4:20 AM CDT. Grades, charges, quotes and corrections follow the published record.

House committee · Criminal Jurisprudence · Final status: Died in committee

Subjects

Crimes--Against Persons--Sexual

Criminal Procedure--General

SEXUAL OFFENDERS

Text

The text as introduced · 787 words

89R14613 EAS-D

By: Schatzline
H.B. No. 5401

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the applicability of sex offender registration

requirements to certain felonies based on the offense initially

charged in the case.

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

SECTION 1. Article 62.001(5), Code of Criminal Procedure,

is amended to read as follows:

(5) "Reportable conviction or adjudication" means a

conviction or adjudication, including an adjudication of

delinquent conduct or a deferred adjudication, that, regardless of

the pendency of an appeal, is a conviction for or an adjudication

for or based on:

(A) a violation of Section 21.02 (Continuous

sexual abuse of young child or disabled individual), 21.09

(Bestiality), 21.11 (Indecency with a child), 22.011 (Sexual

assault), 22.021 (Aggravated sexual assault), or 25.02 (Prohibited

sexual conduct), Penal Code;

(B) a violation of Section 43.04 (Aggravated

promotion of prostitution), 43.05 (Compelling prostitution), 43.25

(Sexual performance by a child), or 43.26 (Possession or promotion

of child pornography), Penal Code;

(B-1) a violation of Section 43.021

(Solicitation of Prostitution), Penal Code, if the offense is

punishable as a felony of the second degree;

(C) a violation of Section 20.04(a)(4)

(Aggravated kidnapping), Penal Code, if the actor committed the

offense or engaged in the conduct with intent to violate or abuse

the victim sexually;

(D) a violation of Section 30.02 (Burglary),

Penal Code, if the offense or conduct is punishable under

Subsection (d) of that section and the actor committed the offense

or engaged in the conduct with intent to commit a felony listed in

Paragraph (A) or (C);

(E) a violation of Section 20.02 (Unlawful

restraint), 20.03 (Kidnapping), or 20.04 (Aggravated kidnapping),

Penal Code, if, as applicable:

(i) the judgment in the case contains an

affirmative finding under Article 42.015; or

(ii) the order in the hearing or the papers

in the case contain an affirmative finding that the victim or

intended victim was younger than 17 years of age;

(F) the second violation of Section 21.08

(Indecent exposure), Penal Code, but not if the second violation

results in a deferred adjudication;

(G) an attempt, conspiracy, or solicitation, as

defined by Chapter 15, Penal Code, to commit an offense or engage in

conduct listed in Paragraph (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), (K), or (L);

(H) a violation of the laws of another state,

federal law, the laws of a foreign country, or the Uniform Code of

Military Justice for or based on the violation of an offense

containing elements that are substantially similar to the elements

of an offense listed under Paragraph (A), (B), (B-1), (C), (D), (E),

(G), (J), (K), or (L), but not if the violation results in a

deferred adjudication;

(I) the second violation of the laws of another

state, federal law, the laws of a foreign country, or the Uniform

Code of Military Justice for or based on the violation of an offense

containing elements that are substantially similar to the elements

of the offense of indecent exposure, but not if the second violation

results in a deferred adjudication;

(J) a violation of Section 33.021 (Online

solicitation of a minor), Penal Code;

(K) a violation of Section 20A.02(a)(3), (4),

(7), or (8) (Trafficking of persons), Penal Code; [ or ]

(L) a violation of Section 20A.03 (Continuous

trafficking of persons), Penal Code, if the offense is based partly

or wholly on conduct that constitutes an offense under Section

20A.02(a)(3), (4), (7), or (8) of that code ; or

(M) a violation of any other offense punishable

as a felony, if a conviction or adjudication for the conduct

described in the initial filed charge in the case would have caused

the person to become subject to the registration requirements of

this chapter .

SECTION 2. Article 62.101, Code of Criminal Procedure, is

amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this article,

the duty to register for a person with a reportable conviction or

adjudication described by Article 62.001(5)(M) ends on the date

that a duty to register based on a conviction or adjudication

occurring with respect to the initial filed charge in the case would

have ended.

SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only

to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.

An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is

governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,

and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For

purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the

effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred

before that date.

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