Bill Text: TX SB303 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to providing free access to telephone services for persons confined in county jail pending trial.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-02-07 - Referred to Criminal Justice [SB303 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-SB303-Introduced.html
86R3229 JRR-F | ||
By: Miles | S.B. No. 303 |
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relating to providing free access to telephone services for persons | ||
confined in county jail pending trial. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 351, Local Government | ||
Code, is amended by adding Section 351.0135 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 351.0135. ACCESS TO TELEPHONE SERVICES FOR PERSONS | ||
CONFINED PENDING TRIAL. (a) A county jail must provide each | ||
arrested person who is confined in the county jail pending trial | ||
with access to domestic telephone services at no cost to the person | ||
or the party receiving the telephone call. | ||
(b) The sheriff of each county jail shall adopt a policy | ||
governing the use of telephone services under this section. The | ||
policy may not unduly restrict calling patterns or volume and must | ||
allow for an average monthly call usage rate of eight calls, with | ||
each call having an average duration of not less than 10 minutes, | ||
per arrested person. | ||
SECTION 2. Not later than December 1, 2019, the sheriff of | ||
each county jail shall adopt the policy required by Section | ||
351.0135, Local Government Code, as added by this Act. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |