Monitoring the Session

SB 1537

bill rewriting the rule for interpreters in criminal cases

Became law

Verdict: No flags

No flagsInitial review
Sen. Judith ZaffiriniDSenate 21

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 appointment of an interpreter in a criminal proceeding.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

Appointed under the Government Code’s interpreter rules.

The bill rewrites the rule for court interpreters in criminal cases so that, when a party or the court moves for one and the court finds a defendant or witness does not understand and speak English, the interpreter must be appointed under the Government Code's interpreter rules. It touches defendants, witnesses, judges and people who can be subpoenaed to serve as interpreters in criminal cases. On the ground, criminal courts must use the Government Code's standards for appointing interpreters, and anyone forced to serve as an interpreter is also subject to those standards.

Labels

Labels: INSTANT LAW. Took effect immediately, on May 30, 2025. 833 of the 1,185 graded 89R laws took effect Sep 1, 2025 (derived from the bill histories, snapshot Oct 19, 2026).CROSS-PARTY HANDOFF. Lead author Judith Zaffirini (D) in the Senate. Lead sponsor John T. Smithee (R) in the House. Party as the Legislative Reference Library lists it for the 89th Legislature.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-SB1537 · 2025-02-21

SOLD BY

Sen. Judith ZaffiriniDSenate 21

+ 1 coauthor

ITEM

relating to the appointment of an interpreter in a criminal proceeding.

WHAT IT DOES

Appointed under the Government Code’s interpreter rules.

The bill rewrites the rule for court interpreters in criminal cases so that, when a party or the court moves for one and the court finds a defendant or witness does not understand and speak English, the interpreter must be appointed under the Government Code's interpreter rules. It touches defendants, witnesses, judges and people who can be subpoenaed to serve as interpreters in criminal cases. On the ground, criminal courts must use the Government Code's standards for appointing interpreters, and anyone forced to serve as an interpreter is also subject to those standards.

CHARGES

[ ] NONE FOUND

TOTAL

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version S · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version S · March 26, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

HISTORY

  1. Received by the Secretary of the Senate
  2. Filed
  3. Read first time
  4. Referred to Criminal Justice
  5. Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
  6. Considered in public hearing
  7. Vote taken in committee
  8. Reported favorably as substituted
  9. Recommended for local & uncontested calendar
  10. Committee report printed and distributed
  11. Placed on intent calendar
  12. Co-author authorized
  13. Placed on local & uncontested calendar
  14. Not again placed on intent calendar
  15. Laid before the Senate
  16. Read 2nd time & passed to engrossment
  17. Vote recorded in Journal
  18. Three day rule suspended
  19. Record vote
  20. Read 3rd time
  21. Passed
  22. Record vote
  23. Reported engrossed
  24. Received from the Senate
  25. Read first time
  26. Referred to Criminal Jurisprudence
  27. Scheduled for public hearing on . . .
  28. Considered in public hearing
  29. Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
  30. Reported favorably w/o amendment(s)
  31. Comte report filed with Committee Coordinator
  32. Committee report distributed
  33. Committee report sent to Calendars
  34. Considered in Calendars
  35. Placed on General State Calendar
  36. Read 2nd time
  37. Passed to 3rd reading
  38. Record vote RV#2970
  39. Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
  40. Read 3rd time
  41. Passed
  42. Record vote RV#3041
  43. Statement(s) of vote recorded in Journal
  44. House passage reported
  45. Reported enrolled
  46. Signed in the Senate
  47. Signed in the House
  48. Sent to the Governor
  49. Signed by the Governor
  50. Effective immediately
FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

SIGNED FOR BY

House · 105 yea · 39 nay

Senate · 27 yea · 3 nay

Sources

House: Final passage · May 20, 2025. Journal. Published stock for this vote. Snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Senate: Final passage · Apr 10, 2025. Journal. Published stock for this vote. Snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

All floor motions and other positions below.

No flags

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Judith Zaffirini

Donors

Carlos M. Zaffirini Jr$110,000Killam Development Ltd.$73KTexas Trial Lawyers Association PAC$60K

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 · Jul 1, 2024 to Oct 23, 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.

Carlos M. Zaffirini Jr$110,000.00
Killam Development Ltd.$72,700.00

Killam Development Ltd.

$72,700.00

Cash
$10,000.00
Paid by others
$62,700.00
Total
$72,700.00
advertising $33,000.00media $29,700.00

Also funds 3 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Dec 9, 2024 to Sep 28, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Name match, not a verified identity: normalized filed name and state.

Sources

Derived itemized flow · Dec 16, 2025 to Aug 20, 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.

Report IDs: 101011018, 101057658.

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC$60,000.00

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC

$60,000.00

Cash
$60,000.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$60,000.00

Also funds 137 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 24, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Nov 11, 2024 to Aug 31, 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.

Report IDs: 100959783, 100987492, 101011018, 101035338, 101057658.

Money

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

×

Killam Development Ltd.

$72,700.00

Cash
$10,000.00
Paid by others
$62,700.00
Total
$72,700.00
advertising $33,000.00media $29,700.00

Also funds 3 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Dec 9, 2024 to Sep 28, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Name match, not a verified identity: normalized filed name and state.

Sources

Derived itemized flow · Dec 16, 2025 to Aug 20, 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.

Report IDs: 101011018, 101057658.

×

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC

$60,000.00

Cash
$60,000.00
Paid by others
$0.00
Total
$60,000.00

Also funds 137 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 24, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team
Sources

Derived itemized flow · Nov 11, 2024 to Aug 31, 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.

Report IDs: 100959783, 100987492, 101011018, 101035338, 101057658.

Votes5

House May 20, 2025

Yea
105
Nay
39
Present, not voting
2
Absent
3
Excused
1
Names

Named positions matched to lawmakers. See the journal for unmatched names.

House journal

Sources

Record 3041

SB 1537 was passed by (Record 3041): 105 Yeas, 39 Nays, 2 Present, not voting.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 105 (published)
  • Nay: 39 (published)
  • Present, not voting: 2 (published)
  • Absent: 3 (derived from named list)
  • Excused: 1 (derived from named list)

House journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

House May 19, 2025

Yea
109
Nay
33
Present, not voting
3
Absent
1
Excused
4
Names

Named positions matched to lawmakers. See the journal for unmatched names.

House journal

Sources

Record 2970

SB 1537 was passed to third reading by (Record 2970): 109 Yeas, 33 Nays, 3 Present, not voting.

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 109 (published)
  • Nay: 33 (published)
  • Present, not voting: 3 (published)
  • Absent: 1 (derived from named list)
  • Excused: 4 (derived from named list)

House journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Senate Apr 10, 2025

Final passage

Yea
27
Nay
3
Present, not voting
Not printed
Absent
Not printed
Excused
Not printed
Names

Named positions matched to lawmakers. See the journal for unmatched names.

Senate journal

Names were not printed for yea. Only the named positions are included in member records.

The journal row lists three votes in order: passage to engrossment, suspension of the three-day rule, and final passage. This entry records final passage. Repeated tallies belong to separate votes.

Sources

CSSB 1537 (Zaffirini) Relating to the appointment of an interpreter in a criminal proceeding. (viva voce vote) (27-3) "Nays" Campbell, Middleton, Sparks (27-3) "Nays" Campbell, Middleton, Sparks

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 27 (published)
  • Nay: 3 (published)
  • Present, not voting: Not printed
  • Absent: Not printed
  • Excused: Not printed

Senate journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Senate Apr 10, 2025

Suspension of the three-day rule

Yea
27
Nay
3
Present, not voting
Not printed
Absent
Not printed
Excused
Not printed
Names

Named positions matched to lawmakers. See the journal for unmatched names.

Senate journal

Names were not printed for yea. Only the named positions are included in member records.

The journal row lists three votes in order: passage to engrossment, suspension of the three-day rule, and final passage. This entry records suspension of the three-day rule. Repeated tallies belong to separate votes.

Sources

CSSB 1537 (Zaffirini) Relating to the appointment of an interpreter in a criminal proceeding. (viva voce vote) (27-3) "Nays" Campbell, Middleton, Sparks (27-3) "Nays" Campbell, Middleton, Sparks

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: 27 (published)
  • Nay: 3 (published)
  • Present, not voting: Not printed
  • Absent: Not printed
  • Excused: Not printed

Senate journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Senate Apr 10, 2025

Passage to engrossment

Yea
Not printed
Nay
Not printed
Present, not voting
Not printed
Absent
Not printed
Excused
Not printed
Names

Senate journal

Names were not printed. No individual positions are inferred.

The journal row lists three votes in order: passage to engrossment, suspension of the three-day rule, and final passage. This entry records passage to engrossment. Repeated tallies belong to separate votes.

Voice vote. No numeric tally or individual yeas are inferred.

Sources

CSSB 1537 (Zaffirini) Relating to the appointment of an interpreter in a criminal proceeding. (viva voce vote) (27-3) "Nays" Campbell, Middleton, Sparks (27-3) "Nays" Campbell, Middleton, Sparks

Published stock of positions for this vote, except where marked derived.

  • Yea: Not printed
  • Nay: Not printed
  • Present, not voting: Not printed
  • Absent: Not printed
  • Excused: Not printed

Senate journal. Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

Witnesses9
For
9
Against
0
On
0
Names

For

  • City of Fort Worth1 registration
  • Dallas Criminal District Attorney John Creuzot2 registrations
  • Self1 registration
  • Self; Texas Access to Justice Commission1 registration
  • TCRP1 registration
  • Texas Access to Justice Commission1 registration
  • Texas criminal defense lawyers association1 registration
  • Tezas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association1 registration
Sources

9 parsed registrations across the loaded witness lists.

Derived stock of witness registrations. Repeated appearances count separately. Organizations and self-representation appear as printed.

House witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Senate witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Fiscal

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version S · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version S · March 26, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

How this was graded

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

Sources

Texas Senate · Filed Feb 21, 2025

05/30/2025 E Effective immediately

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced · Senate Committee Report · Engrossed · House Committee Report · Enrolled

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

Coauthors
Royce WestDSenate 23
Sponsors
John T. SmitheeRHouse 86

House committee · Criminal Jurisprudence · Committee vote 9 aye, 0 nay, 2 absent · Out of committee

Senate committee · Criminal Justice · Committee vote 7 aye, 0 nay · Out of committee

Subjects

Courts--Personnel

Criminal Procedure--General

Text

The text as introduced · 296 words

By: Zaffirini
S.B. No. 1537

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the appointment of an interpreter in a criminal

proceeding.

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

SECTION 1. Article 38.30 (a), Code of Criminal Procedure,

is amended to read as follows:

(a) In any criminal proceeding, when [ When ] a motion for

appointment of an interpreter is filed by any party or on motion of

the court [ , in any criminal proceeding, ] and if the court

determines [ it is determined ] that a person charged or a witness

does not understand and speak the English language, an interpreter

must be appointed as provided by Section 57.002, Government Code,

and sworn to interpret for the person charged or the witness.

Subject to Section 57.002, Governemt Code, any [ Any ] person may be

subpoenaed, attached , or recognized in any criminal action or

proceeding [ , ] to appear before the proper judge or court to act as

interpreter [ therein, ] under the same rules and penalties as are

provided for witnesses. In the event that the only available

interpreter is not considered to possess adequate interpreting

skills for the particular situation or the interpreter is not

familiar with use of slang, the person charged or witness may be

permitted by the court to nominate another person to act as

intermediary between the person charged or witness and the

appointed interpreter during the proceedings.

SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.