SB 1440

bill making prosecutors report declined cases to the attorney general

Died in committee

Verdict: No flags

No flagsInitial review

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 required reporting of certain discretionary prosecutorial decisions of prosecuting attorneys.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

Refuse a sworn probable cause affidavit, explain yourself in writing.

When a peace officer gives a local prosecutor a sworn affidavit claiming probable cause for certain violent, family-related, or robbery offenses and the prosecutor refuses to prosecute, the prosecutor must send the attorney general a report. That report must explain the decision, list any evidence problems, and include the accused person's criminal history. The attorney general must post monthly online summaries showing the county and type of offense for each refusal, with no names of offenders or victims, starting September 1, 2025.

Labels

Labels: ZOMBIE BILL. Died 2 times: 88R SB 1968 (Died in committee) and this bill (Died in committee). Checked against 88R only.BACK FROM THE DEAD. Same text as a bill filed before that died: 88R SB 1968 (Died in committee). Filed in 2 sessions, counting this one. Checked against 88R only.TRY NO. 2. Filed in 2 sessions: 88R and 89R. Checked against 88R only.NEVER GOT A HEARING. Filed Feb 19, 2025 and referred to the Senate Criminal Justice committee. No public hearing. The bill died.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-SB1440 · 2025-02-19

SOLD BY

Sen. Paul BettencourtRSenate 7

ITEM

relating to required reporting of certain discretionary prosecutorial decisions of prosecuting attorneys.

WHAT IT DOES

Refuse a sworn probable cause affidavit, explain yourself in writing.

CHARGES

[ ] NONE FOUND

TOTAL

No fiscal note in the loaded record.

HISTORY

Feb 19, 2025Received by the Secretary of the Senate
Feb 19, 2025Filed
Mar 6, 2025Read first time
Mar 6, 2025Referred to Criminal Justice

FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

No flags

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Paul Bettencourt

Donors

Donors report through Friends of Paul Bettencourt.

Not tied to this bill.

Sources

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

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

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

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.

FILED BEFORE

Filed 2 times: 88R and 89R. Checked against 88R only.

88R SB 1968

by Sen. Bettencourt, same lead author · Died in committee · same text

Introduced text

Last action, Mar 21, 2023: Referred to Criminal Justice

Relating to required reporting of certain discretionary prosecutorial decisions of prosecuting attorneys.

Caption, 88R bill history

Sources

Texas Senate · Filed Feb 19, 2025

03/06/2025 S Referred to Criminal Justice

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced

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

Senate committee · Criminal Justice · Final status: Died in committee

Subjects

Courts--Prosecuting Attorneys

Crimes--Against Persons--Sexual

Criminal Procedure--General

Protection of Personal Information

INTERNET

PEACE OFFICERS

ATTORNEY GENERAL

Text

The text as introduced · 296 words

89R7685 MZM-F

By: Bettencourt
S.B. No. 1440

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to required reporting of certain discretionary

prosecutorial decisions of prosecuting attorneys.

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

SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 41, Government Code, is

amended by adding Section 41.0065 to read as follows:

Sec. 41.0065. REPORT TO ATTORNEY GENERAL REGARDING REFUSAL

TO PROSECUTE. (a) In this section:

(1) "Peace officer" means an individual described by

Article 2A.001, Code of Criminal Procedure.

(2) "Prosecuting attorney" has the meaning assigned by

Section 41.101.

(b) If, after being presented with an affidavit sworn to by

a peace officer alleging that probable cause exists to believe a

person committed a criminal offense under Title 5 or 6, Penal Code,

or under Chapter 29, Penal Code, a prosecuting attorney refuses to

prosecute the alleged criminal offense, the prosecuting attorney

must submit a report to the attorney general that includes:

(1) any information the prosecuting attorney has

regarding the alleged criminal offense;

(2) a detailed explanation of the prosecuting

attorney's decision not to prosecute the alleged offense, including

any perceived evidentiary deficiencies in the case; and

(3) the alleged offender's criminal history.

(c) Subject to Subsection (d), at least once a month the

office of the attorney general shall post on the office's publicly

accessible Internet website information regarding each prosecuting

attorney's decision not to prosecute an offense described by

Subsection (b). The post must include:

(1) the county in which the alleged offense occurred;

and

(2) the type of offense alleged to have been

committed.

(d) Information included on the attorney general's Internet

website under Subsection (c) may not include any personally

identifying information of an alleged offender or victim.

SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.