CLEAT Bills Pass Senate and Progress Through House

CLEAT continues to push legislation to combat rogue District Attorneys, such as Travis County DA Jose Garza, who misuse their office. We are addressing this issue through bail reform bills, as well as legislation that would amend statutes that have been misused against law enforcement.

CLEAT priority bills SB 781/HB 2486, related to confidentiality of law enforcement personnel files, and SB 1637/HB 2436, related to the deadly conduct statute, are both progressing through each chamber, and our public affairs team continues to push these items forward at every stage of the process. We thank Senator Phil King and Chairman Cole Hefner for their work on these bills. We believe that the confidentiality of law enforcement files should be uniform for all peace officers across the state, and we have been working to achieve this for the past couple of years. The deadly conduct bill stems from the misuse of the statute by rogue District Attorneys across Texas, who have secured convictions on officers simply doing their job. The statute, as written, is overly broad if applied to law enforcement in the course and scope of their duties. 

CLEAT has also been heavily involved in the dues check-off matter put forth by Senator Tan Parker (SB 2330). We have worked with his office and stakeholders to ensure ALL law enforcement retain their ability to engage in dues check-off with their political subdivision, and they are committed to ensuring this occurs. 

CLEAT continues to work on the language for HB 4029, which pertains to our campus police officers and their retirement. This bill derives from a study bill from last session that CLEAT worked to pass. We’ve been working with stakeholders and are happy to announce the bill will be heard on Wednesday, April 23rd at 8 am in the House Committee on Pensions, Investments, and Financial Services.

CLEAT is working/tracking hundreds of bills and is pushing a package of over 20 bills to bolster working conditions and professional standards.

Please contact your representatives regarding these bills, as they will be heading to a House vote in the coming weeks.