Bill > HB2045

This bill modifies the process for automatically expunging (legally erasing) arrest records for individuals who have been acquitted of criminal charges. Under the new law, expunction orders will be entered automatically within 30 days of an acquittal, without requiring a specific request from the acquitted person. The bill changes the previous requirement that the acquitted person or the state attorney must request the expunction. If the trial court is not a district, justice, or municipal court of record, it must forward the proposed expunction order and related information to a district court in the same county. The bill applies retroactively to arrest records of people who were acquitted before, on, or after the law's effective date, and provides a mechanism for courts to enter expunction orders for past acquittals even after the standard 30-day window. For cases of acquittal that occurred before the law takes effect, courts can enter expunction orders after receiving written notice about the person's eligibility. The law is set to take effect on September 1, 2025, and aims to streamline the process of clearing arrest records for individuals who have been found not guilty, thereby reducing potential long-term consequences of an arrest that did not result in a conviction.

Justice

https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=89R&Bill=HB2045