SB860

Regular Session

Relating to abolishing the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee.

LowStandard timeline

Low Cost

Effective:2025-09-01

Compliance Analysis

Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation

Implementation Timeline

Effective Date: September 1, 2025
Compliance Deadline: N/A for private sector; State agencies must redirect reports immediately upon the effective date.
Agency Rulemaking: None. The bill is a statutory repeal and does not require agency interpretation.

Immediate Action Plan

1. Government Affairs: Update internal legislative directories to remove the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee by Q3 2025.
2. Legal/Contracts: Scan active government contracts for references to the abolished committee and flag for revision during the next renewal cycle.
3. No Further Action: For general commercial entities, file this analysis and close the matter.

Operational Changes Required

Contracts

Review Required for Government Contractors: If your organization holds contracts with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) or the Board of Pardons and Paroles, review the "Oversight" and "Reporting" clauses.

Action: Remove references to the "Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee" in future renewals.
Replacement Language: Replace with "Legislative standing committees with primary jurisdiction over the Department."

Hiring/Training

No changes required.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

Government Affairs Adjustment:

The Annual Report on Parole Guidelines and the Annual Report on TDCJ Employee Meetings will no longer be filed with the Oversight Committee.
If your legal team tracks these metrics for compliance or advocacy, you must now request these documents from the Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker of the House, or the Senate/House committees on criminal justice/corrections.

Fees & Costs

No new fees or fiscal impacts.

Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations

Dilution of Oversight:

While the text is explicit, the abolition of a dedicated oversight body suggests a shift in legislative priority. The monitoring of TDCJ recruitment, retention, and parole guidelines will now fall to broader standing committees (e.g., Senate Criminal Justice, House Corrections).

Watch For: A potential decrease in the granularity of public data regarding prison staffing and parole consistency, as these reports will now compete for attention on broader committee agendas.

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Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.

Legislative Timeline

This bill's path through the Texas Legislature

TopicsCorrections Corrections--jails & Prisons Criminal Procedure Criminal Procedure--general Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee

Official Analysis

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BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 860
89R8224 BCH-D	By: Flores
	Criminal Justice
	3/21/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

The Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee (CJLOC) was created on June 15, 2007, by the 80th Legislature with the passage of S.B. 909. In Chapter 328 of the Texas Government Code, the committee is established along with other governing rules. This bill, S.B. 860, abolishes the oversight committee since there has been no need for the committee in almost two decades.

S.B. 860 will remove other traces of the committee in Sections 493.027(b) and 508.114 of the Government Code. Chapter 493 contains management of employment rules for the director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Section 493.027(b) states that the director must submit a report to the oversight committee. Since the bill will abolish the committee, there is no longer a need for this language within the section. Chapter 508 of the Government Code consists of management and rules for the Board of Pardons and Parole. Section 508.1445(a) contains the rule for the board to submit a report to the legislature and lists the CJLOC as one of the required recipients. S.B. 860 will remove the CJLOC from the list.

The Senate and House have standing committees on Criminal Justice, Corrections, and Jurisprudence. These committees have jurisdiction for all criminal justice-related agencies.

As proposed, S.B. 860 amends current law relating to abolishing the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Repealer: Chapter 328 (Criminal Justice Legislative Committee), Government Code.

SECTION 2. Amends Section 493.027(b), Government Code, to require the director of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) annually to submit a report to each standing committee of the legislature with primary jurisdiction over TDCJ, rather than to the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee (committee), on the outcome of any meetings held under Section 493.027 (Management-Employee Meetings).

SECTION 3. Amends Section 508.1445(a), Government Code, to delete existing text requiring the Board of Pardons and Paroles annually to submit a report to the committee.

SECTION 4. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2025.

Senate Authors

Sen. Peter FloresRepublican · Primary Author

House Sponsor

Rep. Ryan GuillenRepublican · Primary Sponsor

Bill Text(with markup)

S.B. No. 860

View bill text in multiple formats on Texas Legislature website

Fiscal NoteView Original

	AN ACT
	relating to abolishing the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight
	Committee.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Chapter 328, Government Code, is repealed.
	SECTION 2. Section 493.027(b), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(b) The director annually shall submit a report to each
	standing committee of the legislature with primary jurisdiction
	over the department [~~the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight~~
	~~Committee~~] on the outcome of any meetings held under this section.
	The report must:
	(1) be signed by the director and each representative
	of an employee organization described by Subsection (a) that
	participates in the meetings; and
	(2) include a statement from each party regarding the
	impact of the meetings on the recruitment and retention of
	department employees and on employee morale.
	SECTION 3. Section 508.1445(a), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(a) The board annually shall submit a report to [~~the~~
	~~Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee,~~] the lieutenant
	governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and the
	presiding officers of the standing committees in the senate and
	house of representatives primarily responsible for criminal
	justice regarding the board's application of the parole guidelines
	adopted under Section 508.144.
	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 23, 2025

TO:	Honorable Pete Flores, Chair, Senate Committee on Criminal Justice

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB860 by Flores (Relating to abolishing the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee.), As Introduced

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

It is assumed that any costs and savings associated with the bill would be insignificant.

Local Government Impact

No fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.

Source Agencies:

LBB Staff:

JMc, MGol, CMA, MMF

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SB860

What does Texas SB860 do?

SB860 abolishes the Criminal Justice Legislative Oversight Committee and redirects its oversight duties to existing legislative standing committees. This is a structural government reorganization that imposes no new mandates on private sector operations; however, organizations engaged in government relations or corrections contracting must update their stakeholder maps and reporting distribution lists. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: September 1, 2025 Compliance Deadline: N/A for private sector; State agencies must redirect reports immediately upon the effective date.

Who authored SB860?

SB860 was authored by Texas Senator Peter Flores during the Regular Session.

When was SB860 signed into law?

SB860 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 20, 2025.

How urgent is compliance with SB860?

The compliance urgency for SB860 is rated as "low". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.

What is the cost impact of SB860?

The cost impact of SB860 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.

What topics does SB860 address?

SB860 addresses topics including corrections, corrections--jails & prisons, criminal procedure, criminal procedure--general and criminal justice legislative oversight committee.

Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025

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