Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB902 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R639 CAE-D
2	2	By: Dutton H.B. No. 902
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the penalties for possession of two ounces or less of
8	8	marihuana and to the issuance of an occupational driver's license.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 481.121, Health and Safety Code, is
11	11	amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (c) and
12	12	(d) to read as follows:
13	13	(b) An offense under Subsection (a) is:
14	14	(1) a Class C misdemeanor if the amount of marihuana
15	15	possessed is one ounce or less, except as provided by Subsection
16	16	(c);
17	17	(2) a Class B misdemeanor if the amount of marihuana
18	18	possessed is two ounces or less but more than one ounce;
19	19	(3) [(2)] a Class A misdemeanor if the amount of
20	20	marihuana possessed is four ounces or less but more than two ounces;
21	21	(4) [(3)] a state jail felony if the amount of
22	22	marihuana possessed is five pounds or less but more than four
23	23	ounces;
24	24	(5) [(4)] a felony of the third degree if the amount of
25	25	marihuana possessed is 50 pounds or less but more than 5 pounds;
26	26	(6) [(5)] a felony of the second degree if the amount
27	27	of marihuana possessed is 2,000 pounds or less but more than 50
28	28	pounds; and
29	29	(7) [(6)] punishable by imprisonment in the
30	30	institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
31	31	for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 5
32	32	years, and a fine not to exceed $50,000, if the amount of marihuana
33	33	possessed is more than 2,000 pounds.
34	34	(c) An offense under Subsection (b)(1) is a Class B
35	35	misdemeanor if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the
36	36	defendant has been before convicted under that section three times
37	37	and each prior offense was committed in the 24 months preceding the
38	38	date of commission of the instant offense.
39	39	(d) A defendant convicted of an offense punishable under
40	40	Subsection (c) is not eligible for community supervision under
41	41	Article 42.12, Code of Criminal Procedure.
42	42	SECTION 2. Article 45.051, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
43	43	amended by adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
44	44	(g) This subsection applies only to a defendant charged with
45	45	an offense under Section 481.121, Health and Safety Code, who is
46	46	granted a deferral under Subsection (a) of this article. In
47	47	addition to any other requirement, the judge shall, during the
48	48	deferral period, require that the defendant successfully complete a
49	49	drug abuse awareness and education program approved by the
50	50	Department of State Health Services.
51	51	SECTION 3. Sections 521.242(a), (b), and (e),
52	52	Transportation Code, are amended to read as follows:
53	53	(a) A person whose license has been suspended for a cause
54	54	other than a physical or mental disability or impairment or a
55	55	conviction under Section 49.04, Penal Code, may apply for an
56	56	occupational license by filing a verified petition with the clerk
57	57	of a justice, municipal, [the] county, [court] or district court
58	58	with jurisdiction that includes [in] the precinct or municipality
59	59	[county] in which:
60	60	(1) the person resides; or
61	61	(2) the offense occurred for which the license was
62	62	suspended.
63	63	(b) A person may apply for an occupational license by filing
64	64	a verified petition only with the clerk of the [county court or
65	65	district] court in which the person was convicted if:
66	66	(1) the person's license has been automatically
67	67	suspended or canceled under this chapter for a conviction of an
68	68	offense under the laws of this state; and
69	69	(2) the person has not been issued, in the 10 years
70	70	preceding the date of the filing of the petition, more than one
71	71	occupational license after a conviction under the laws of this
72	72	state.
73	73	(e) The clerk of the court shall file the petition as in any
74	74	other [civil] matter.
75	75	SECTION 4. (a) The change in law made by Sections 1 and 2 of
76	76	this Act applies only to an offense committed on or after September
77	77	1, 2009. An offense committed before September 1, 2009, is covered
78	78	by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the former
79	79	law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this
80	80	subsection, an offense was committed before September 1, 2009, if
81	81	any element of the offense was committed before that date.
82	82	(b) The change in law made by Section 3 of this Act applies
83	83	only to an occupational driver's license that is applied for on or
84	84	after September 1, 2009. An occupational driver's license applied
85	85	for before September 1, 2009, is covered by the law in effect on the
86	86	date the application was filed, and the former law is continued in
87	87	effect for that purpose.
88	88	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.