| 1 | 1 | | 81R1899 SLB-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Menendez H.B. No. 1236 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the penalty for failure to yield the right-of-way to a |
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| 8 | 8 | | disabled or visually impaired pedestrian. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 552.003, Transportation Code, is amended |
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| 11 | 11 | | by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (d) If it is shown on the trial of an offense under |
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| 13 | 13 | | Subsection (a) that as a result of the commission of the offense a |
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| 14 | 14 | | collision occurred causing serious bodily injury or death to a |
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| 15 | 15 | | disabled or visually impaired person, the offense is a misdemeanor |
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| 16 | 16 | | punishable by: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) a fine of not more than $4,000; and |
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| 18 | 18 | | (2) not less than 100 hours and not more than 200 hours |
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| 19 | 19 | | of community service to an organization or agency that primarily |
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| 20 | 20 | | serves disabled or visually impaired persons, to be completed in |
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| 21 | 21 | | not less than six months and not more than one year. |
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| 22 | 22 | | SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 542, Transportation Code, |
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| 23 | 23 | | is amended by adding Section 542.407 to read as follows: |
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| 24 | 24 | | Sec. 542.407. DISPOSITION OF FINES FOR OFFENSE CAUSING |
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| 25 | 25 | | INJURY TO CERTAIN PEDESTRIANS. (a) Before depositing money from a |
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| 26 | 26 | | fine collected for an offense under Section 552.003(d) with the |
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| 27 | 27 | | appropriate treasury, the officer collecting the fine shall keep |
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| 28 | 28 | | separate records of the money collected. Each calendar quarter, |
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| 29 | 29 | | the officer collecting a fine for an offense under Section |
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| 30 | 30 | | 552.003(d) shall submit a report to the comptroller. The report |
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| 31 | 31 | | must comply with Articles 103.005(c) and (d), Code of Criminal |
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| 32 | 32 | | Procedure. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (b) The custodian of money in a treasury to which money |
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| 34 | 34 | | described by Subsection (a) is deposited shall: |
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| 35 | 35 | | (1) keep records of the amount of money collected |
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| 36 | 36 | | under Subsection (a) that is on deposit in the treasury; and |
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| 37 | 37 | | (2) until notified otherwise by the comptroller as |
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| 38 | 38 | | provided by Subsection (d), not later than the last day of the month |
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| 39 | 39 | | following each calendar quarter, remit to the comptroller an amount |
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| 40 | 40 | | equal to 10 percent of the money described by Subsection (a) that |
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| 41 | 41 | | was deposited in the treasury during the previous calendar quarter, |
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| 42 | 42 | | as required by the comptroller. |
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| 43 | 43 | | (c) The comptroller shall deposit money received under |
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| 44 | 44 | | Subsection (b) to the credit of a special account in the general |
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| 45 | 45 | | revenue fund to be known as the visually impaired safety services |
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| 46 | 46 | | account. Money in the account may be appropriated only to the |
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| 47 | 47 | | Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services to provide the |
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| 48 | 48 | | following to visually impaired persons: |
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| 49 | 49 | | (1) adjustment to blindness counseling and guidance; |
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| 50 | 50 | | (2) coordination of eye medical treatment; |
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| 51 | 51 | | (3) service to maximize residual vision; |
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| 52 | 52 | | (4) independent living skills training; |
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| 53 | 53 | | (5) assistance in accessing community resources; and |
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| 54 | 54 | | (6) training and self-management education for |
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| 55 | 55 | | secondary disabilities. |
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| 56 | 56 | | (d) In any state fiscal year, once the amount deposited in |
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| 57 | 57 | | the special account under Subsection (c) during the fiscal year |
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| 58 | 58 | | exceeds $500,000, the comptroller shall notify any custodian making |
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| 59 | 59 | | a remittance under Subsection (b) that further remittances for the |
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| 60 | 60 | | fiscal year are not required. The comptroller shall refund any |
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| 61 | 61 | | remittance received after the account exceeds that amount. |
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| 62 | 62 | | SECTION 3. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies |
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| 63 | 63 | | only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this |
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| 64 | 64 | | Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before |
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| 65 | 65 | | the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs |
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| 66 | 66 | | before that date. |
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| 67 | 67 | | (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this |
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| 68 | 68 | | Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, |
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| 69 | 69 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 70 | 70 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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