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-- TEXAS ALERT - SB 779 hearing Tuesday 22 Mar (http://forums.ukcdogs.com/showthread.php?threadid=415549)

TEXAS ALERT - SB 779 hearing Tuesday 22 Mar

TEXAS ALERT – SB 779 HEARING SCHEDULED MARCH 22

Dear SAOVA friends,

A hearing for SB 779 Animal Abuser Registry is scheduled in Criminal Justice Committee Tuesday March 22 at 1:30 PM or upon adjournment in Room E1.016.

SYNOPSIS
SB 779 introduced by Senator John Whitmire (D, 15) establishes a central database containing information about persons over 17 who have been convicted of or received a grant of deferred adjudication for one or more animal cruelty felony offenses under Section 42.092 or 42.10, Penal Code. That person must register as required by this chapter until the 10th anniversary of the date the person was last convicted of or received a grant of deferred adjudication for the offense.

The information contained in the database is public information, with the exception of any information regarding the person's social security number, driver's license number, or telephone number, and will be published on the Texas Department of Public Safety Internet website.

The Texas Department of Public Safety, in cooperation with the Board of Pardons and Paroles, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, and the Commission on Jail Standards, are authorized to design and implement a system for the registration and must update the database daily.

Failure to comply with registration requirements creates a Class B misdemeanor offense.

The Texas Department of Public Safety is authorized to establish and implement the database only if funds are available. However the Department may solicit and accept a gift, grant, or donation from any source, including a foundation, private entity, governmental entity, or institution of higher education, for the establishment and maintenance of the computerized central database described by this chapter and the implementation of a related system of registration under this chapter.


REGISTRY FUNDING


A registry bill was introduced in California that failed. The registry bill required specified individuals convicted of felony animal abuse to register for 10 years after the date of conviction; failure to register is punishable as a misdemeanor. The Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal estimated a cost of $750,000 to $2,000,000.

An abuser registry bill was introduced this session in Virginia but failed. The Department of State Police estimated that approximately $986,000 would be needed to design and develop a new registry and website and an additional $126,411 each year for support. The note also stated the cost to local law enforcement agencies was not known at this time. The Virginia bill created a new crime for failure to register. The fiscal note estimated approximately $50,000 would be required for additional correctional facility beds.


A registry bill was recently introduced in Washington . The fiscal note estimates a one-time cost of approximately $27,800 for modifications to the judicial court system. A cost of $823,032 to state agencies to provide legal services to review and defend legal issues, development of the tracking tool and to populate the registry and the main web site, and data entry and quality assurance for accuracy of the data. In addition the fiscal note estimates a cost of approximately $1,200 to local governments for court impacts, including judicial costs, clerk costs, and court fees.


SB 779 allows third parties to fund establishment and implementation of the abuser registry. The animal rights organizations supporting animal abuser registries have an agenda that doesn't include concerns for people and extends far beyond animal welfare. An abuser registry, driven by the animal rights platform that considers all animal use abusive, has no place in Texas law.

Regardless of funding by wealthy animal rights advocates, implementation of this legislation will strain law enforcement officials in the current depressed economy and represents an unfunded mandate to local jurisdictions. Committee members should be well aware of the drastic reductions to all levels of law enforcement proposed in the current state budget. With budget cuts looming for felony probation funds, state police, court system, prison system, and even regional police academies, allocating money for a useless registry should not be approved.

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SKY
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Author of the novel "Follow Jennifer"