| 1 | 1 | | By: Naishtat H.B. No. 4551 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to requiring child passenger safety seat systems for |
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| 7 | 7 | | children receiving medical assistance. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Section 545.412, Transportation Code, is amended |
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| 10 | 10 | | to read as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 545.412. CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY SEAT SYSTEMS; |
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| 12 | 12 | | OFFENSE. (a) A person commits an offense if the person operates a |
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| 13 | 13 | | passenger vehicle, transports a child who is younger than five |
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| 14 | 14 | | years of age and less than 36 inches in height, and does not keep the |
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| 15 | 15 | | child secured during the operation of the vehicle in a child |
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| 16 | 16 | | passenger safety seat system according to the instructions of the |
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| 17 | 17 | | manufacturer of the safety seat system. |
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| 18 | 18 | | (b) An offense under this section is a misdemeanor |
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| 19 | 19 | | punishable by a fine of not less than $100 or more than $200. |
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| 20 | 20 | | (c) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that |
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| 21 | 21 | | the person was operating the vehicle in an emergency or for a law |
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| 22 | 22 | | enforcement purpose. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (d) Repealed by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 204, Sec. 8.01. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (e) This section does not apply to a person: |
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| 25 | 25 | | (1) operating a vehicle transporting passengers for |
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| 26 | 26 | | hire, excluding [including] third-party transport service |
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| 27 | 27 | | providers when transporting clients pursuant to a contract to |
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| 28 | 28 | | provide nonemergency Medicaid transportation; or |
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| 29 | 29 | | (2) transporting a child in a vehicle in which all |
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| 30 | 30 | | seating positions equipped with child passenger safety seat systems |
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| 31 | 31 | | or safety belts are occupied. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (f) In this section: |
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| 33 | 33 | | (1) "Child passenger safety seat system" means an |
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| 34 | 34 | | infant or child passenger restraint system that meets the federal |
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| 35 | 35 | | standards for crash-tested restraint systems as set by the National |
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| 36 | 36 | | Highway Traffic Safety Administration. |
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| 37 | 37 | | (2) "Passenger vehicle" means a passenger car, light |
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| 38 | 38 | | truck, sport utility vehicle, truck, or truck tractor. |
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| 39 | 39 | | (3) "Safety belt" means a lap belt and any shoulder |
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| 40 | 40 | | straps included as original equipment on or added to a vehicle. |
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| 41 | 41 | | (4) "Secured," in connection with use of a safety |
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| 42 | 42 | | belt, means using the lap belt and any shoulder straps according to |
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| 43 | 43 | | the instructions of: |
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| 44 | 44 | | (A) the manufacturer of the vehicle, if the |
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| 45 | 45 | | safety belt is original equipment; or |
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| 46 | 46 | | (B) the manufacturer of the safety belt, if the |
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| 47 | 47 | | safety belt has been added to the vehicle. |
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| 48 | 48 | | (g) A judge, acting under Article 45.0511, Code of Criminal |
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| 49 | 49 | | Procedure, who elects to defer further proceedings and to place a |
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| 50 | 50 | | defendant accused of a violation of this section on probation under |
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| 51 | 51 | | that article, in lieu of requiring the defendant to complete a |
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| 52 | 52 | | driving safety course approved by the Texas Education Agency, shall |
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| 53 | 53 | | require the defendant to attend and present proof that the |
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| 54 | 54 | | defendant has successfully completed a specialized driving safety |
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| 55 | 55 | | course approved by the Texas Education Agency under the Texas |
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| 56 | 56 | | Driver and Traffic Safety Education Act (Article 4413(29c), |
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| 57 | 57 | | Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) that includes four hours of |
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| 58 | 58 | | instruction that encourages the use of child passenger safety seat |
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| 59 | 59 | | systems and the wearing of seat belts and emphasizes: |
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| 60 | 60 | | (1) the effectiveness of child passenger safety seat |
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| 61 | 61 | | systems and seat belts in reducing the harm to children being |
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| 62 | 62 | | transported in motor vehicles; and |
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| 63 | 63 | | (2) the requirements of this section and the penalty |
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| 64 | 64 | | for noncompliance. |
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| 65 | 65 | | (h) Notwithstanding Section 542.402(a), a municipality or |
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| 66 | 66 | | county, at the end of the municipality's or county's fiscal year, |
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| 67 | 67 | | shall send to the comptroller an amount equal to 50 percent of the |
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| 68 | 68 | | fines collected by the municipality or the county for violations of |
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| 69 | 69 | | this section. The comptroller shall deposit the amount received to |
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| 70 | 70 | | the credit of the tertiary care fund for use by trauma centers. |
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| 71 | 71 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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