| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to the investigation and prosecution of offenses against |
|
|
public administration, including ethics offenses, and offenses |
|
|
involving insurance fraud or the imposition of the motor fuels tax. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Chapter 402, Government Code, is amended by |
|
|
adding Subchapter D to read as follows: |
|
|
SUBCHAPTER D. PUBLIC INTEGRITY UNIT |
|
|
Sec. 402.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter: |
|
|
(1) "Offense" means a prohibited act for which state |
|
|
law imposes a criminal or civil penalty. |
|
|
(2) "Prosecute" means represent the state to impose a |
|
|
criminal or civil penalty. |
|
|
(3) "Prosecuting attorney" means a district attorney, |
|
|
criminal district attorney, or county attorney. |
|
|
Sec. 402.102. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION. For |
|
|
purposes of this subchapter, the following are offenses against |
|
|
public administration: |
|
|
(1) an offense under Title 8, Penal Code, committed by |
|
|
a state officer or a state employee in connection with the powers |
|
|
and duties of the state office or state employment; |
|
|
(2) an offense under Chapter 301, 302, 305, 571, 572, |
|
|
or 2004; |
|
|
(3) an offense under Chapter 573 committed by a state |
|
|
officer in connection with the powers and duties of the state |
|
|
office; and |
|
|
(4) an offense under Title 15, Election Code, |
|
|
committed in connection with: |
|
|
(A) a campaign for or the holding of state |
|
|
office; or |
|
|
(B) an election on a proposed constitutional |
|
|
amendment. |
|
|
Sec. 402.103. OFFENSES INVOLVING INSURANCE FRAUD. For |
|
|
purposes of this subchapter, the following are offenses involving |
|
|
insurance fraud: |
|
|
(1) an offense under Chapter 35, Penal Code, including |
|
|
an offense under that chapter that involves workers' compensation |
|
|
insurance under Title 5, Labor Code; or |
|
|
(2) a fraudulent insurance act as defined by Section |
|
|
701.001, Insurance Code, including an act that involves workers' |
|
|
compensation insurance under Title 5, Labor Code. |
|
|
Sec. 402.104. OFFENSES INVOLVING MOTOR FUELS TAX. For |
|
|
purposes of this subchapter, an offense involving motor fuels tax |
|
|
means a felony offense under Section 162.403, Tax Code. |
|
|
Sec. 402.105. PUBLIC INTEGRITY UNIT. (a) The office of |
|
|
the attorney general shall establish and support a public integrity |
|
|
unit consisting of: |
|
|
(1) the attorneys and staff employed by the attorney |
|
|
general to investigate and support prosecution of offenses |
|
|
described by this subchapter; and |
|
|
(2) one commissioned officer of the Texas Rangers |
|
|
division of the Department of Public Safety to assist with each |
|
|
investigation by the attorney general and verify the resulting |
|
|
findings. |
|
|
(b) The prosecuting attorney described by Subsection |
|
|
402.107(a) serves as part of the public integrity unit from the |
|
|
date a presiding judge selects that office under this |
|
|
subchapter until: |
|
|
(1) the date that the investigation for an offense |
|
|
under this subchapter officially ceases; or |
|
|
(2) the date any potential prosecution of an offense |
|
|
under this subchapter is fully adjudicated. |
|
|
Sec. 402.106. INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION ASSISTANCE BY |
|
|
PUBLIC INTEGRITY UNIT. (a) Upon receiving a formal or informal |
|
|
complaint for an offense under this subchapter or on request of a |
|
|
county or district attorney, the public integrity unit has the |
|
|
authority to perform an initial investigation into whether a person |
|
|
has committed: |
|
|
(1) an offense against public administration; |
|
|
(2) an offense involving insurance fraud; or |
|
|
(3) an offense involving motor fuels tax. |
|
|
(b) while performing an initial investigation under |
|
|
Subsection (a), one commissioned officer of the Texas Rangers |
|
|
division of the Department of Public Safety shall provide |
|
|
assistance to and verify the findings made by the public integrity |
|
|
unit. |
|
|
(c) If an initial investigation by the public integrity unit |
|
|
demonstrates a reasonable suspicion that: |
|
|
(1) an offense under Subsection (a)(1) occurred, the |
|
|
matter shall be referred to the appropriate presiding judge of the |
|
|
administrative judicial region containing the county where a person |
|
|
accused of that offense resides; or |
|
|
(2) an offense under Subsection (a)(2) or (a)(3) |
|
|
occurred, the matter shall be referred to the appropriate venue |
|
|
described in Chapter 13, Code of Criminal Procedure. |
|
|
(d) the public integrity unit shall, on request of the |
|
|
prosecuting attorney described in Section 402.107(a) of this |
|
|
subchapter, assist in the investigation of an offense under this |
|
|
subchapter. |
|
|
(e) If assisting in a prosecution as provided by Subsection |
|
|
(c)(1), the public integrity unit may exercise the powers as |
|
|
necessary to accomplish the assistance, and the prosecuting |
|
|
attorney described by Subsection 402.107(a) retains the authority |
|
|
to represent the state in the district an inferior courts in the |
|
|
prosecution of the offense. |
|
|
Sec. 402.107. SELECTION OF PROSECUTING ATTORNEY BY |
|
|
PRESIDING JUDGE OF ADMINISTRATIVE JUDICIAL REGION. (a) Upon |
|
|
receipt of an initial investigation under Subsection |
|
|
402.106(c)(1), a presiding judge shall appoint a criminal district |
|
|
attorney, district attorney, or county attorney for counties in |
|
|
which there is not a resident criminal district attorney as |
|
|
provided by Section 21, Article V, Texas Constitution, from any |
|
|
judicial district comprised of a county within the borders of that |
|
|
particular administrative judicial region, unless that county is |
|
|
the county of residence for the person under investigation. |
|
|
(b) Regardless of venue described in Section 402.108, the |
|
|
prosecuting attorney under this subchapter retains the sole |
|
|
authority to represent the state in the district and inferior |
|
|
courts for all offenses under this subchapter and lesser included |
|
|
offenses arising from the same transaction that lead to an initial |
|
|
investigation under Section 402.106(a)(1). |
|
|
(c) Regardless of venue described in Section 402.108, the |
|
|
prosecuting attorney under this subchapter retains the sole |
|
|
discretion to terminate an investigation referred to that office |
|
|
under this subchapter for insufficient evidence or proceed with |
|
|
prosecution. |
|
|
(d) The prosecuting attorney shall notify the public |
|
|
integrity unit of the termination of a case for insufficient |
|
|
evidence or the results of a case's final adjudication. |
|
|
(e) All prosecution arising from the investigation |
|
|
described by Section 402.106(a)(1), including proceedings before a |
|
|
grand jury, shall be at the venue described in Section 402.108. |
|
|
Sec. 402.108. VENUE. Notwithstanding Chapter 13, Code of |
|
|
Criminal Procedure, or other law, if the defendant is a natural |
|
|
person, venue for prosecution of an offense under Subsection |
|
|
402.106(a)(1) is the county in which the defendant resides. |
|
|
Sec. 402.109. RESIDENCE. For the purposes of this |
|
|
subchapter, a person resides in the county where that person: |
|
|
(1) claims a residence homestead under Chapter 41, |
|
|
Property Code, if that person is a member of the Texas Legislature; |
|
|
(2) claimed to be a resident before being subject to |
|
|
residency requirements under Article IV, Texas Constitution, if |
|
|
that person is a member of the Executive Department of the State; |
|
|
(3) claims a residence homestead under Chapter 41, |
|
|
Property Code if that person is a justice on the supreme court or |
|
|
judge on the court of criminal appeals; or |
|
|
(4) otherwise claims residence if no other provision |
|
|
of this subsection applies. |
|
|
Sec. 402.110. COOPERATION OF STATE AGENCIES AND LOCAL LAW |
|
|
ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES. (a) To the extent allowed by law, a state |
|
|
agency or local law enforcement agency shall cooperate with the |
|
|
public integrity unit by providing information requested by the |
|
|
unit as necessary to carry out the purposes of this subchapter. |
|
|
(b) Information disclosed under this section is |
|
|
confidential and not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552. |
|
|
SECTION 2. Section 402.009, Government Code, is amended to |
|
|
read as follows: |
|
|
Sec. 402.009. AUTHORITY TO EMPLOY AND COMMISSION PEACE |
|
|
OFFICERS. The attorney general may employ and commission peace |
|
|
officers as investigators for: |
|
|
(1) the limited purpose of assisting the attorney |
|
|
general in carrying out the duties of that office relating to |
|
|
prosecution assistance and crime prevention; or |
|
|
(2) the purpose of investigating offenses under |
|
|
Subchapter D. |
|
|
SECTION 3. (a) Not later than three months after the |
|
|
effective date of this Act, the attorney general shall establish |
|
|
the public integrity unit under Subchapter D, Chapter 402, |
|
|
Government Code, as added by this Act. |
|
|
(b) Subchapter D, Chapter 402, Government Code, as added by |
|
|
this Act, applies only to the prosecution of an offense under |
|
|
Subchapter D, Chapter 402, Government Code committed on or after |
|
|
the date that the attorney general establishes the public integrity |
|
|
unit. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed if any |
|
|
element of the offense occurs before the date described by this |
|
|
Section. |
|
|
(c) The prosecution of an offense committed before the date |
|
|
described in Subsection (b) of this Section, is covered by the law |
|
|
in effect when the offense was committed, and the former law is |
|
|
continued in effect for that purpose. |
|
|
SECTION 4. 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, 2015. |