85R26694 SRS-F By: Capriglione, Romero, Jr. H.B. No. 3785 Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3785: By: Murr C.S.H.B. No. 3785 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to associate judges and court reporters for certain family law cases and proceedings. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 201.009, Family Code, is amended to read as follows: Sec. 201.009. COURT REPORTER; RECORD. In [(a) A court reporter may be provided during] a hearing held by an associate judge appointed under this chapter, a court reporter must be provided or the proceedings must be recorded with a good quality electronic audio recording device. A court reporter is required to be provided when the associate judge presides over a jury trial or child custody and parental termination matters [a contested final termination hearing]. [(b) A party, the associate judge, or the referring court may provide for a reporter during the hearing, if one is not otherwise provided. [(c) Except as provided by Subsection (a), in the absence of a court reporter or on agreement of the parties, the record may be preserved by any means approved by the associate judge. [(d) The referring court or associate judge may tax the expense of preserving the record under Subsection (c) as costs. [(e) On a request for a de novo hearing, the referring court may consider testimony or other evidence in the record in addition to witnesses or other matters presented under Section 201.015.] SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.