81R5240 PAM-D
By: Leibowitz H.B. No. 1752
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to county regulation of fireworks during severe drought
conditions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 352.051, Local Government Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a), (b), (d)-(g), and (i) and
adding Subsections (c-1) and (i-1) to read as follows:
(a) For the purposes of this section the following
definitions shall apply:
(1) "Restricted fireworks" means only those items
classified under 49 C.F.R. Sec. 173.100(r)(2) (10-1-86 edition),
as "skyrockets with sticks" and "missiles with fins".
(1-a) "Prohibited fireworks" means those devices that:
(A) produce a shower or spray of ignited
materials; or
(B) when ignited, rise above the ground.
(2) "Drought conditions" means the existence
immediately preceding or during the fireworks season of a
Keetch-Byram Drought Index of 575 or greater.
(3) "Severe drought conditions" means the existence
immediately preceding or during the fireworks season of a
Keetch-Byram Drought Index of 600 or greater.
(b)(1) The Texas Forest Service in the ordinary course of
its activities shall determine whether drought conditions, as
defined under Subsection (a)(2), or severe drought conditions, as
defined by Subsection (a)(3), exist on average in any county
requesting such a determination. The Texas Forest Service shall
make available the measurement index guidelines used to determine
whether drought or severe drought conditions exist in a particular
area. Following any determination that [such] drought or severe
drought conditions exist, the Texas Forest Service shall notify the
[said] county or counties when [such] drought or severe drought
conditions no longer exist. The Texas Forest Service shall make
its services available each day during the Cinco de Mayo, Fourth of
July, and December fireworks seasons to respond to the request of
any county for a determination whether drought or severe drought
conditions exist on average in the county.
(2) The Texas Forest Service shall be allowed to take
such donations of equipment or funds as necessary to aid in the
carrying out of this section.
(c-1) Upon a determination under this section that severe
drought conditions exist on average in a specified county, the
commissioners court of the county by order may prohibit or restrict
the sale or use of restricted and prohibited fireworks in the
unincorporated area of the county. In addition, during the
December fireworks season, the commissioners court of a county by
order may restrict or prohibit the sale or use of restricted and
prohibited fireworks in specified areas when conditions on rural
acreage in the county not under cultivation for a period of at least
12 months are determined to be extremely hazardous for the danger of
fire because of high grass or dry vegetation.
(d) To facilitate compliance with an order adopted under
Subsection (c) or (c-1), the order must be adopted before:
(1) April 25 of each year for the Cinco de Mayo
fireworks season;
(2) June 15 of each year for the Fourth of July
fireworks season; and
(3) December 15 of each year for each December
fireworks season.
(e) An order issued under this section shall expire upon
determination as provided under Subsection (b) that [such] drought
or severe drought conditions no longer exist.
(f) When a county issues an order restricting or prohibiting
the sale or use of restricted or prohibited fireworks under this
section, the county may approve a site provided by fireworks
vendors [designate one or more areas] of appropriate size and
accessibility in the county as a safe area [areas] where the use of
restricted fireworks is not prohibited, and the legislature
encourages a county to approve [designate] such an area for that
purpose. [The safe area may be provided by the county, a
municipality within the county, or an individual, business, or
corporation.] A safe area may be approved [designated] in and
provided in the geographic area of the regulatory jurisdiction of a
municipality if the activity conducted in the safe area is
authorized by general law or a municipal regulation or
ordinance. An area is considered safe if adequate public safety
and fire protection services are provided to the area. A county,
municipality, individual, business, or corporation is not liable
for injuries or damages resulting from the approval [designation],
maintenance, or use of the safe area.
(g) A person selling any type of fireworks, including
restricted or prohibited fireworks, in a county that has adopted an
order under Subsection (c) or (c-1) shall, at every location at
which the person sells fireworks in the county, provide reasonable
notice of the order and reasonable notice of any location approved
[designated] under Subsection (f) as a safe area.
(i) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly or
intentionally violates a prohibition established by an order issued
under Subsection (c) [this section]. An offense under this
subsection is a Class C misdemeanor.
(i-1) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly or
intentionally violates a prohibition established by an order issued
under Subsection (c-1). An offense under this subsection is a
misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.