Texas Government Code 411.0845 – Criminal History Clearinghouse
(a) The department shall establish an electronic clearinghouse and subscription service to provide criminal history record information to a particular person entitled to receive criminal history record information and updates to a particular record to which the person has subscribed under this subchapter.
(b) On receiving a request for criminal history record information from a person entitled to such information under this subchapter, the department shall provide through the electronic clearinghouse:
(1) the criminal history record information reported to the department or the Federal Bureau of Investigation relating to the individual who is the subject of the request; or
(2) a statement that the individual who is the subject of the request does not have any criminal history record information reported to the department or the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Terms Used In Texas Government Code 411.0845
- Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005
- United States: includes a department, bureau, or other agency of the United States of America. See Texas Government Code 311.005
(c) If the department provides information received from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the department must include with the information the date the department received information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(d) The department shall ensure that the information described by Subsection (b) is provided only to a person otherwise entitled to obtain criminal history record information under this subchapter. Information collected under this section is confidential and is not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552.
(e) A person entitled to receive criminal history record information under this section must provide the department with the following information regarding the person who is the subject of the criminal history record information requested:
(1) the person’s full name, date of birth, sex, and social security number, and the number assigned to any form of unexpired identification card issued by this state or another state, the District of Columbia, or a territory of the United States that includes the person’s photograph;
(2) a recent electronic digital image photograph of the person and a complete set of the person’s fingerprints as required by the department; and
(3) any other information required by the department.
(f) The department shall maintain an Internet website for the administration of the clearinghouse and an electronic subscription service to provide notice of updates to a particular criminal history record to each person entitled under this subchapter to receive criminal history record information updates to that particular record. The department shall update clearinghouse records as a result of any change in information discovered by the department. Within 48 hours after the department becomes aware that a person’s criminal history record information in a clearinghouse record has changed, the department shall provide notice of the updated information only to each subscriber to that specific record.
(g) As soon as practicable, a subscriber who is no longer entitled to receive criminal history record information relating to a particular person shall notify the department. The department shall cancel the person’s subscription to that record and may not notify the former subscriber of any updated information to that record.
(h) A person who is the subject of the criminal history record information requested under this section must consent to the release of the information.
(i) The release under this section of any criminal history record information maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including the computerized information submitted to the federal database maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as described by § 411.042(b)(9)(B), is subject to federal law and regulations, federal executive orders, and federal policy.
(j) The department may charge a fee for subscription services to cover the costs of administering this section.
(k) A governmental agency may coordinate with the department regarding the use of the fingerprinting fee collection process to collect a fee for the criminal history record information and any other fees associated with obtaining a person’s fingerprints as required by the department.