The Resolutions adopted by the members of the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas (CJCAT) at the Annual Conference originate among members of Commissioners Courts and serve as the CJCAT Legislative Platform. The CJCAT has adopted a resolution addressing limitations on registered sex offenders in counties.
Cities in the State of Texas have the authority to adopt ordinances limiting registered sex offenders from nearing established child safety zones; Texas counties do not have this same authority.
Johnson County, a suburban county near the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, has more than 600 registered sex offenders living in the unincorporated area of the county, reported Commissioner Larry Woolley.
“This requires two full-time deputies just to maintain contact and ensure that these residents are in compliance with registrations,” he continued.
In 2016, Woolley was approached by several constituents in his precinct who received a letter stating that a “high-risk sex offender” had established residence with a number of other sex offenders in what could best be described as a “group home.” This home was located less than 400 feet from a school facility in the unincorporated area of the county.
“A public outcry prompted a meeting with our county attorney, sheriff, and state representative,” Woolley said. The meeting led to the development of a resolution Woolley presented to the North & East Texas County Judges and Commissioners Association and the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas. The resolution was then used as a springboard to proposed legislation that has been presented at every legislative session since, asking that counties be granted the same authorities as cities, Woolley said; to date, no legislation has advanced.
“We restructured the bill this session to exempt the lowest-level offenders from this restriction, garnering the support of numerous law enforcement groups including the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas and the Sheriffs’ Association of Texas,” Woolley summarized. “The bill was heard in committee and ultimately voted out of committee, but this was late in the session, and it never made it any further.”
The resolution reads as follows:
Limitations on Registered Sex Offenders in Counties
WHEREAS, home rule municipalities have the authority by ordinance to provide for the public safety of their citizens to restrict a registered sex offender from going in, on, or within a specified distance of a child safety zone in the municipality; and
WHEREAS, general law municipalities have the authority with the passage of HB 1111 enacted by the 85th Texas Legislature, effective September 1, 2017, to provide for the public safety of their citizens to restrict a registered sex offender from going in, on, or within a specified distance of a child safety zone in the municipality; and
WHEREAS, Texas counties should also be able to provide for the public safety of their citizens living outside the boundaries of any municipality by restricting a registered sex offender from going in, on, or within a specified distance of a child safety zone in the county; and
WHEREAS, no current statute authorizes a Texas county to enact an ordinance or order establishing a “Child Safety Zone” and restricting a registered sex offender from going in, on, or within a specified distance of a child safety zone in the county; and
WHEREAS, legislation is necessary to authorize counties to enact an ordinance or order to provide public safety for its citizens by placing limitations on registered sex offenders in the county;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas respectfully requests that the Texas Legislature pass legislation providing Texas counties the authority to enact an ordinance or order regarding limitations on registered sex offenders in counties.
