Relating to the consolidated municipal court security and technology fund in certain municipalities.
ModeratePlan for compliance
Low Cost
Effective:2025-05-29
Enforcing Agencies
Municipal Governing Bodies (City Councils) • Municipal Treasurers
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. Municipalities must apply the new fund allocation logic to all fees collected on or after May 29, 2025.
Agency Rulemaking: No state-level rulemaking is required; however, local City Councils must formally establish the new fund via ordinance or resolution if not automatically triggered by charter.
Immediate Action Plan
1.Municipal Treasurers: Create the new General Ledger code for the Consolidated Fund immediately. Configure software to route collections starting May 29, 2025, to this new code.
2.City Attorneys: Draft a "Notice of Fund Consolidation" for the City Council to ratify, formally closing the old funds to new deposits.
3.Vendors: Audit all active contracts with Texas municipalities under 100k population. Issue contract amendments for any agreement citing a specific, now-defunct fund source.
4.Sales Directors: Instruct teams to pitch "holistic court modernization" packages, as clients can now use a single budget source for both physical security (cameras, metal detectors) and software (case management).
Operational Changes Required
Contracts
Source of Funds Clauses: Vendors and City Attorneys must review existing Multi-Year Service Agreements (MSAs) for security or software. If a contract explicitly states payment is derived from the "Municipal Court Technology Fund" (Art. 102.0172), it requires an amendment. The amendment must authorize payment from the new "Consolidated Municipal Court Building Security and Technology Fund" to ensure valid payment processing.
Hiring/Training
Sales Teams (Vendors): Train sales staff targeting Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities (<100k pop). Leads previously stalled due to a lack of specific "Technology" or "Security" funds should be reopened; the client now has a single, flexible pool of capital.
Finance Staff (Cities): Treasurers must stop allocating the 35% (Security) and 28.57% (Technology) splits of the Local Consolidated Fee into separate ledgers.
Reporting & Record-Keeping
Bifurcated Accounting: You must maintain a strict "Before and After" delineation.
Pre-May 29, 2025 Collections: Must remain in original, segregated funds and be spent according to pre-HB1950 restrictions.
Post-May 29, 2025 Collections: Must be deposited into the new Consolidated Fund.
Audit Trail: Commingling "old" restricted funds with "new" consolidated funds will trigger audit findings. Ensure your ERP/Accounting software timestamps collections to route them to the correct GL code automatically.
Fees & Costs
Internal Allocation: The total fee amount collected from defendants does not change. However, the internal distribution of the Local Government Code 134.103 fee changes. The aggregate 63.57% of the fee previously split between two accounts now flows to the single Consolidated Fund.
Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations
Population Definition: The statute applies to cities with a population of "less than 100,000" but does not define the data source (e.g., 2020 Decennial Census vs. current estimates). Cities near the 100,000 threshold (95k–105k) face legal risk if they consolidate funds while technically over the limit based on updated estimates. Guidance: Adhere to the 2020 Federal Census until the State Comptroller issues clarification.
Shift in Spending Authority: Previous statutes gave Municipal Judges significant autonomy over Technology Funds. HB1950 places administration of the Consolidated Fund under the "governing body" (City Council). Vendors must now secure City Council buy-in for expenditures, as the Municipal Judge may lose unilateral purchasing authority.
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The bill author has informed the committee that Texas municipal courts play a critical role in ensuring public safety and administration of justice; to support these functions, municipalities have established dedicated funds for court security and technology improvements. However, the bill author has also informed the committee that inconsistencies in the allocation and use of these funds have led to concerns about whether these resources for essential court operations are adequate or being used transparently and efficiently. In addition, under current law, certain municipalities must maintain separate funds for court security and technology, which can create logistical challenges and reduce the ability to allocate resources where they are most needed. H.B. 1950 seeks to streamline and improve the management of municipal court security and technology funds by establishing consolidated funds in certain municipalities.
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
H.B. 1950 amends the Code of Criminal Procedure to establish the consolidated municipal court building security and technology fund as a fund in the municipal court treasury of a municipality with a population of less than 100,000 consisting of money allocated to that fund from the court costs of those convicted of a nonjailable misdemeanor offense. The bill restricts use of money deposited in such a fund to the following authorized purposes:
·specified security personnel, services, and items related to buildings that house the operations of municipal courts; or
·financing the purchase of or maintaining technological enhancements for a municipal court or municipal court of record.
The bill requires the consolidated municipal court building security and technology fund to be administered by or under the direction of the governing body of the applicable municipality.
H.B. 1950 accordingly excludes a municipality with a population of less than 100,000 fromthe applicability of statutory provisions relating to the courthouse security fund, municipal court building security fund, justice court building security fund, and municipal court technology fund.
H.B. 1950 amends the Local Government Code to include the consolidated municipal court building security and technology fund among the funds to which the county or municipal treasurer must allocate not less than 35 percent or 28.5714 percent of the court costs received from the convictions of nonjailable misdemeanor offenses, as appropriate.
H.B. 1950 applies only to a fee on conviction collected on or after the bill's effective date. A fee on conviction collected before the bill's effective date is governed by the law in effect when the fee was collected, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2025.
Effective May 29, 2025, HB1950 mandates that Texas municipalities with a population of less than 100,000 must consolidate previously segregated court security and technology revenue into a single "Consolidated Municipal Court Building Security and Technology Fund. " This legislation creates immediate budgetary fungibility for cities, allowing funds to be shifted between physical security and IT infrastructure, but requires immediate accounting restructuring to avoid audit exceptions. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: May 29, 2025 (Immediate effect due to supermajority vote).
Q
Who authored HB1950?
HB1950 was authored by Texas Representative Giovanni Capriglione during the Regular Session.
Q
When was HB1950 signed into law?
HB1950 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 29, 2025.
Q
Which agencies enforce HB1950?
HB1950 is enforced by Municipal Governing Bodies (City Councils) and Municipal Treasurers.
Q
How urgent is compliance with HB1950?
The compliance urgency for HB1950 is rated as "moderate". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.
Q
What is the cost impact of HB1950?
The cost impact of HB1950 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.
Q
What topics does HB1950 address?
HB1950 addresses topics including city government, city government--finance, courts and courts--municipal.
Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025
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