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Committee reviews changes to civil‑commitment penalties and registration at Texas Civil Commitment Office
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Summary
Senate Bill 1610 (committee substitute) would tighten penalties and registration for civilly committed violent predators at the Texas Civil Commitment Office (TCCO), clarify parole and community‑supervision eligibility, and remove retroactive draconian penalties. Supporters said staff assaults have increased; opponents urged pause until Sunset
Sen. Perry introduced the committee substitute for Senate Bill 1610, which addresses safety, security, registration, and penalties for individuals civilly committed at the Texas Civil Commitment Office (TCCO). The sponsor said the substitute clarifies that clients who commit new felonies at TCCO facilities face stiffer penalties, ensures civilly committed clients are registered where appropriate, and restores parole eligibility and statute‑of‑limitations rules that had been altered in an earlier filed version.
Senate Bill 1610 now removes the filed version’s life‑without‑parole provisions and restores eligibility for parole and community supervision in some cases, the sponsor said. The substitute also removed a provision regarding drones that an author said had been held unconstitutional.
Invited witnesses from TCCO described a 22% increase in assaultive offenses inside the facility over the last year, including assaults on staff; TCCO representatives and facility administrators asked for more tools to manage violent behavior and preserve staffing. The Texas Civil Rights Project and other advocates testified in opposition, urging the Legislature to wait for the agency’s Sunset review and raising due‑process and transparency concerns about indefinite civil commitment.
The committee closed testimony and left the bill pending for later consideration.
