Relating to the prosecution of the criminal offense of invasive visual recording and the applicability of sex offender registration requirements to that offense.
ModeratePlan for compliance
Low Cost
Effective:2025-05-29
Enforcing Agencies
Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) • Local Law Enforcement Agencies • District Attorneys
01
Compliance Analysis
Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation
Implementation Timeline
Effective Date:May 29, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Compliance Deadline:Immediate. There is no grace period. Any recording device currently operating in a prohibited area constitutes an active felony offense as of today.
Agency Rulemaking: None required for the statute to take effect. The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) will integrate this offense into the existing Sex Offender Registration database immediately.
Immediate Action Plan
1.Conduct an Immediate Audit: Physically inspect all security camera feeds today to ensure no field of view encroaches on bedrooms or private areas.
2.Update Insurance: Contact your broker to determine if "Sex Offender" classification of privacy torts impacts your liability coverage exclusions.
3.Issue a Memo to Staff: Explicitly warn employees that unauthorized recording is now a registerable sex offense in Texas.
4.Revise Vendor Protocols: Require outside contractors (HVAC, plumbing) to sign an acknowledgment regarding privacy and recording devices before entering private units/rooms.
Operational Changes Required
Contracts
Security Vendor MSAs: Amend Master Service Agreements with security integrators immediately. Require indemnification for any installation that violates Penal Code 21.15.
Commercial & Residential Leases: Update lease terms to strictly prohibit tenants from installing "smart home" or surveillance devices that capture images of neighboring units, common areas with privacy expectations, or bedrooms.
Employment Agreements: Revise "Termination for Cause" definitions to explicitly include possession of unauthorized recording devices, noting that such actions will be reported as sexual offenses.
Hiring/Training
Background Checks: While this is a new trigger for registration, ensure background check criteria flag *any* prior history of invasion of privacy, as these individuals now pose a catastrophic liability risk.
Staff Training: Retrain housekeeping, maintenance, and security staff. They must understand that placing a phone or camera in a locker room or guest room is no longer just a firing offense—it is a sex crime that will put them on a public registry.
Device Detection: Hospitality housekeeping protocols must now include visual sweeps for hidden devices (e.g., in smoke detectors, alarm clocks, or USB chargers) as part of room turnover procedures.
Reporting & Record-Keeping
Surveillance Mapping: Create and maintain a schematic of all institutional cameras. You must be prepared to demonstrate to law enforcement that your fixed cameras do not view areas where individuals disrobe or sleep.
Incident Reporting: If a hidden device is found, the incident report must treat the object as evidence of a sex crime. Establish a strict Chain of Custody log; do not handle the device more than necessary before law enforcement arrival.
Coverage Gaps: Review your General Liability policies immediately. Many policies exclude coverage for "sexual molestation/abuse" or "criminal acts." With this offense now tied to sex offender registration, carriers may deny defense costs for civil suits resulting from an employee's recording.
Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations
"Reasonable Expectation of Privacy": The law expands beyond bathrooms/dressing rooms to *any* place a person expects privacy.
*Risk:* This creates a gray zone for semi-private areas such as hospital bays separated by curtains, lactation pods, or open-plan locker areas.
*Guidance:* Adopt a conservative definition. If a person disrobes there, no matter the physical barriers, it is a no-record zone.
"Broadcast or Transmit": The statute penalizes transmission.
*Risk:* Live-streaming apps (TikTok, Instagram Live) used by employees in back-of-house areas could technically violate this statute if they capture a colleague changing.
*Guidance:* Strictly enforce "No Cell Phone" zones in locker rooms and restrooms.
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Actions constituting the offense of invasive visual recording, which is a state jail felony under current law, violate an individual's privacy and expectation of privacy. The bill author has informed the committee that this crime is a crime of sexual nature and should be treated as such; however, individuals convicted of this crime currently are not required to register as a sex offender. C.S.H.B. 1465 aims to provide further protections for victims of this crime by broadening the locations at which certain conduct constitutes the offense of invasive visual recording to include places in which a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy and requiring an individual convicted of this offense to register as a sex offender.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
C.S.H.B. 1465 amends the Penal Code to broaden the conduct that constitutes the offense of invasive visual recording by changing from a bathroom or changing room to a place in which a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy the location in which photographing or by videotape or other electronic means recording, broadcasting, or transmitting a visual image of another person without that person's consent and with intent to invade their privacy constitutes the offense. The bill defines "place in which a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy" as a place, including a bathroom, bedroom, or changing room, in which a reasonable person would believe that the person could disrobe in privacy, without being concerned that the act of undressing would be photographed or visually recorded by another or that a visual image of the person undressing would be broadcasted or transmitted by another.
C.S.H.B. 1465 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to make a conviction or adjudication of invasive visual recording, including an adjudication of delinquent conduct or a deferred adjudication and regardless of the pendency of an appeal, a reportable conviction or adjudication for which a person is required to register under the sex offender registration program.
C.S.H.B. 1465 applies only to an offense committed on or after the bill's effective date. An offense committed before the bill's effective date is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For these purposes, an offense was committed before the bill's effective date if any element of the offense was committed before that date.
EFFECTIVE DATE
September 1, 2025.
COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE
While C.S.H.B. 1465 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.
While both the introduced and the substitute specify that the term "place in which a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy" includes a bathroom and a changing room, the substitute additionally specifies that the term includes a bedroom, whereas the introduced did not.
Honorable John T. Smithee, Chair, House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB1465 by Hickland (Relating to the prosecution of the criminal offense of invasive visual recording and the applicability of sex offender registration requirements to that offense.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
The bill would amend the state jail felony offense of invasive visual recording by expanding the venue of bathroom or changing room to any place in which a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy. The bill would also add the offense of invasive visual recording to the list of reportable convictions or adjudications applicable to required sex offender registration.
It is assumed that any impact on state correctional populations or on the demand for state correctional resources would not be significant.
Local Government Impact
It is assumed that any fiscal impact to units of local government associated with enforcement, prosecution, supervision, or confinement would not be significant.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts, 405 Department of Public Safety
LBB Staff:
JMc, MGol, DGI
Related Legislation
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Effective immediately, HB1465 reclassifies the crime of "Invasive Visual Recording" from a standard privacy felony to a sexual offense requiring mandatory Sex Offender Registration. The law expands the prohibited zones to explicitly include bedrooms and any area with a "reasonable expectation of privacy," significantly increasing liability for hospitality, property management, and healthcare sectors where employees or contractors have access to private spaces. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: May 29, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Q
Who authored HB1465?
HB1465 was authored by Texas Representative Hillary Hickland during the Regular Session.
Q
When was HB1465 signed into law?
HB1465 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 29, 2025.
Q
Which agencies enforce HB1465?
HB1465 is enforced by Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), Local Law Enforcement Agencies and District Attorneys.
Q
How urgent is compliance with HB1465?
The compliance urgency for HB1465 is rated as "moderate". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.
Q
What is the cost impact of HB1465?
The cost impact of HB1465 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.
Q
What topics does HB1465 address?
HB1465 addresses topics including crimes, crimes--against persons, crimes--against persons--general, crimes--against persons--sexual and sexual offenders.
Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025
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