H.B. No. 2398 was passed during the 84th legislative session. It requires each court to submit an order to the Department to expunge all Failure to Attend School convictions or Failure to Appear/Failure to Pay/Contempt (Truancy) cases prior to September 1, 2015.
Truancy is defined as an offense committed under the former Section 25.094 of the Education Code. The expunction applies to an individual who has been convicted of a truancy offense or has had a complaint for a truancy offense dismissed. They are entitled to have the conviction or complaint and records relating to the conviction or complaint expunged.
Furthermore, the law states that regardless of whether the individual has filed a petition for expunction, the court in which the individual was convicted or a complaint for a truancy offense was filed shall order the conviction, complaints, verdicts, sentences, and other documents relating to the offense, including any documents in the possession of a school district or law enforcement agency, to be expunged from the individual's record. After entry of the order, the individual is released from all disabilities resulting from the conviction or complaint, and the conviction or complaint may not be shown or made known for any purpose.
HB2398 became effective September 1, 2015. The Department will process 'Truant Conduct' convictions for students 12-19 years of age with an offense date of 09/01/2015 or greater. Truant conduct will provide for a license suspension effective until the later of: up to 180 days or until the end of the current school year.