81R9661 GCB-D
By: Vaught H.B. No. 2370
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to exempting United States attorneys from certain
requirements for obtaining or renewing a concealed handgun license
and to the authority of United States attorneys to carry certain
weapons.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 411.201(h), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(h) The department shall issue a license to carry a
concealed handgun under the authority of this subchapter to a
United States attorney or to an elected attorney representing the
state in the prosecution of felony cases who meets the requirements
of this section for an active judicial officer. The department
shall waive any fee required for the issuance of an original,
duplicate, or renewed license under this subchapter for an
applicant who is a United States attorney or who is an attorney
elected or employed to represent the state in the prosecution of
felony cases.
SECTION 2. Section 46.15(a), Penal Code, as amended by
Chapters 1214 (H.B. 1889) and 1222 (H.B. 2300), Acts of the 80th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2007, is reenacted and amended to
read as follows:
(a) Sections 46.02 and 46.03 do not apply to:
(1) peace officers or special investigators under
Article 2.122, Code of Criminal Procedure, and neither section
prohibits a peace officer or special investigator from carrying a
weapon in this state, including in an establishment in this state
serving the public, regardless of whether the peace officer or
special investigator is engaged in the actual discharge of the
officer's or investigator's duties while carrying the weapon;
(2) parole officers and neither section prohibits an
officer from carrying a weapon in this state if the officer is:
(A) engaged in the actual discharge of the
officer's duties while carrying the weapon; and
(B) in compliance with policies and procedures
adopted by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice regarding the
possession of a weapon by an officer while on duty;
(3) community supervision and corrections department
officers appointed or employed under Section 76.004, Government
Code, and neither section prohibits an officer from carrying a
weapon in this state if the officer is:
(A) engaged in the actual discharge of the
officer's duties while carrying the weapon; and
(B) authorized to carry a weapon under Section
76.0051, Government Code;
(4) a judge or justice of a federal court, the supreme
court, the court of criminal appeals, a court of appeals, a district
court, a criminal district court, a constitutional county court, a
statutory county court, a justice court, or a municipal court who is
licensed to carry a concealed handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter
411, Government Code;
(5) an honorably retired peace officer or federal
criminal investigator who holds a certificate of proficiency issued
under Section 1701.357, Occupations Code, and is carrying a photo
identification that:
(A) verifies that the officer honorably retired
after not less than 15 years of service as a commissioned officer;
and
(B) is issued by a state or local law enforcement
agency;
(6) a United States attorney, district attorney,
criminal district attorney, county attorney, or municipal attorney
who is licensed to carry a concealed handgun under Subchapter H,
Chapter 411, Government Code; [or]
(7) an assistant district attorney, assistant
criminal district attorney, or assistant county attorney who is
licensed to carry a concealed handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter
411, Government Code; or
(8) [(7)] a bailiff designated by an active judicial
officer as defined by Section 411.201, Government Code, who is:
(A) licensed to carry a concealed handgun under
Chapter 411, Government Code; and
(B) engaged in escorting the judicial officer.
SECTION 3. (a) To the extent of any conflict, this Act
prevails over another Act of the 81st Legislature, Regular Session,
2009, relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in
enacted codes.
(b) The change in law made by this Act in amending Section
46.15(a), Penal Code, applies only to an offense committed on or
after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before
the effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect when
the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect
for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was
committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of
the offense was committed before that date.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.