81R3413 JD-D
By: Patrick, Dan S.B. No. 1177
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the suspension of the driver's license of a person
arrested for an offense involving the operation of a motor vehicle
while intoxicated or under the influence of alcohol.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 524, Transportation Code, is repealed.
SECTION 2. Article 55.06, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
Art. 55.06. LICENSE SUSPENSIONS AND REVOCATIONS. Records
relating to the suspension or revocation of a driver's license,
permit, or privilege to operate a motor vehicle may not be expunged
under this chapter except as provided in Section 724.048 [524.015],
Transportation Code[, or Section 724.048 of that code].
SECTION 3. Section 54.042(h), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(h) If a child is adjudicated for conduct that violates
Section 49.04, 49.07, or 49.08, Penal Code, and if any conduct on
which that adjudication is based is a ground for a driver's license
suspension under Chapter [524 or] 724, Transportation Code, each of
the suspensions shall be imposed. The court imposing a driver's
license suspension under this section shall credit a period of
suspension imposed under Chapter [524 or] 724, Transportation Code,
toward the period of suspension required under this section, except
that if the child was previously adjudicated for conduct that
violates Section 49.04, 49.07, or 49.08, Penal Code, credit may not
be given.
SECTION 4. Section 75.014(e), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(e) The County Courts at Law No. 6 and No. 7 of El Paso
County, Texas, are designated as criminal misdemeanor courts.
Courts designated as criminal misdemeanor courts shall give
preference to and have primary responsibility for:
(1) criminal misdemeanor cases;
(2) appeals or petitions under Section 501.052,
521.242, or 521.302[, or 524.041], Transportation Code;
(3) misdemeanor bail bond and personal bond forfeiture
cases; and
(4) appeals de novo from the municipal and justice
courts.
SECTION 5. Sections 521.245(a) and (e), Transportation
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) If the petitioner's license has been suspended under
Chapter [524 or] 724, the court shall require the petitioner to
attend a program approved by the court that is designed to provide
counseling and rehabilitation services to persons for alcohol
dependence. This requirement shall be stated in the order granting
the occupational license.
(e) On receipt of the copy under Subsection (d), the
department shall suspend the person's occupational license for[:
[(1) 60 days, if the original driver's license
suspension was under Chapter 524; or
[(2)] 120 days[, if the original driver's license
suspension was under Chapter 724].
SECTION 6. Sections 521.251(a) and (e), Transportation
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) If a person's license is suspended under Chapter [524
or] 724 and the person has not had a prior suspension arising from
an alcohol-related or drug-related enforcement contact in the five
years preceding the date of the person's arrest, an order under this
subchapter granting the person an occupational license takes effect
immediately. However, the court shall order the person to comply
with the counseling and rehabilitation program required under
Section 521.245.
(e) For the purposes of this section, "alcohol-related or
drug-related enforcement contact" has the meaning assigned by
Section 724.035 [524.001].
SECTION 7. Sections 522.081(b) and (c), Transportation
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) This subsection applies to a violation committed while
operating any motor vehicle, including a commercial motor vehicle,
except as provided by this subsection. A person who holds a
commercial driver's license is disqualified from driving a
commercial motor vehicle for one year:
(1) if convicted of three violations of a law that
regulates the operation of a motor vehicle at a railroad grade
crossing that occur within a three-year period;
(2) on first conviction of:
(A) driving a motor vehicle under the influence
of alcohol or a controlled substance, including a violation of
Section 49.04 or 49.07, Penal Code;
(B) leaving the scene of an accident involving a
motor vehicle driven by the person;
(C) using a motor vehicle in the commission of a
felony, other than a felony described by Subsection (d)(2);
(D) causing the death of another person through
the negligent or criminal operation of a motor vehicle; or
(E) driving a commercial motor vehicle while the
person's commercial driver's license is revoked, suspended, or
canceled, or while the person is disqualified from driving a
commercial motor vehicle, for an action or conduct that occurred
while operating a commercial motor vehicle;
(3) for refusing to submit to a test under Chapter 724
to determine the person's alcohol concentration or the presence in
the person's body of a controlled substance or drug while operating
a motor vehicle in a public place; or
(4) if an analysis of the person's blood, breath, or
urine under this chapter or Chapter [522, 524, or] 724 determines
that the person:
(A) had an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more,
or that a controlled substance or drug was present in the person's
body, while operating a commercial motor vehicle in a public place;
or
(B) had an alcohol concentration of 0.08 or more
while operating a motor vehicle, other than a commercial motor
vehicle, in a public place.
(c) A person who holds a commercial driver's license is
disqualified from operating a commercial motor vehicle for three
years if:
(1) the person:
(A) is convicted of an offense listed in
Subsection (b)(2) and the vehicle being operated by the person was
transporting a hazardous material required to be placarded; or
(B) refuses to submit to a test under Chapter 724
to determine the person's alcohol concentration or the presence in
the person's body of a controlled substance or drug while operating
a motor vehicle in a public place and the vehicle being operated by
the person was transporting a hazardous material required to be
placarded; or
(2) an analysis of the person's blood, breath, or urine
under this chapter or Chapter [522, 524, or] 724 determines that
while transporting a hazardous material required to be placarded
the person:
(A) while operating a commercial motor vehicle in
a public place had an alcohol concentration of 0.04 or more, or a
controlled substance or drug present in the person's body; or
(B) while operating a motor vehicle, other than a
commercial motor vehicle, in a public place had an alcohol
concentration of 0.08 or more.
SECTION 8. Section 522.092, Transportation Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 522.092. SUSPENSION, REVOCATION, CANCELLATION, OR
DENIAL OF DRIVER'S LICENSE UNDER OTHER LAWS. A person subject to
disqualification under this chapter may also have the person's
driver's license suspended, revoked, canceled, or denied under one
or more of the following, if the conduct that is a ground for
disqualification is also a ground for the suspension, revocation,
cancellation, or denial of a driver's license suspension under:
(1) Chapter 521;
(2) [Chapter 524;
[(3)] Chapter 601; or
(3) [(4)] Chapter 724.
SECTION 9. Sections 522.105(b) and (d), Transportation
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), the procedure for
notice and disqualification under this section is that specified by
Subchapters C and D, Chapter 724[, or Chapter 524].
(d) An appeal of a disqualification under this section is
subject to Sections 724.101-724.104 [524.041-524.044].
SECTION 10. Section 724.035, Transportation Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection
(d) to read as follows:
(a) If a person refuses the request of a peace officer to
submit to the taking of a specimen, the department shall:
(1) suspend the person's license to operate a motor
vehicle on a public highway for one year [180 days]; or
(2) if the person is a resident without a license,
issue an order denying the issuance of a license to the person for
one year [180 days].
(b) The period of suspension or denial is two years if the
person's driving record shows one or more alcohol-related or
drug-related enforcement contacts[, as defined by Section
524.001(3),] during the 10 years preceding the date of the person's
arrest.
(d) In this chapter, "alcohol-related or drug-related
enforcement contact" means a driver's license suspension,
disqualification, or prohibition order under the laws of this state
or another state resulting from:
(1) a conviction of an offense prohibiting the
operation of a motor vehicle while:
(A) intoxicated;
(B) under the influence of alcohol; or
(C) under the influence of a controlled
substance;
(2) a refusal to submit to the taking of a breath or
blood specimen following an arrest for an offense prohibiting the
operation of a motor vehicle while:
(A) intoxicated;
(B) under the influence of alcohol; or
(C) under the influence of a controlled
substance; or
(3) an analysis of a breath or blood specimen showing
an alcohol concentration of a level specified by Section 49.01,
Penal Code, following an arrest for an offense prohibiting the
operation of a motor vehicle while intoxicated.
SECTION 11. Section 724.041(g), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(g) An administrative hearing under this section is
governed by Subchapter D [Sections 524.032(b) and (c), 524.035(e),
524.037(a), and 524.040].
SECTION 12. Section 724.047, Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 724.047. APPEAL. Subchapter F [Chapter 524] governs an
appeal from an action of the department, following an
administrative hearing under this subchapter [chapter], in
suspending or denying the issuance of a license.
SECTION 13. Chapter 724, Transportation Code, is amended by
adding Subchapter F to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER F. APPEAL
Sec. 724.101. APPEAL FROM ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING. (a) A
person whose driver's license suspension is sustained may appeal
the decision by filing a petition not later than the 30th day after
the date the administrative law judge's decision is final. The
administrative law judge's final decision is immediately
appealable without the requirement of a motion for rehearing.
(b) A petition under Subsection (a) must be filed in a
county court at law in the county in which the person was arrested
or, if there is not a county court at law in the county, in the
county court. If the county judge is not a licensed attorney, the
county judge shall transfer the case to a district court for the
county on the motion of either party or of the judge.
(c) A person who files an appeal under this section shall
send a copy of the petition by certified mail to the department and
to the State Office of Administrative Hearings at each agency's
headquarters in Austin. The copy must be certified by the clerk of
the court in which the petition is filed.
(d) The department's right to appeal is limited to issues of
law.
(e) A district or county attorney may represent the
department in an appeal.
Sec. 724.102. STAY OF SUSPENSION ON APPEAL. (a) A
suspension of a driver's license under Subchapter C is stayed on the
filing of an appeal petition only if:
(1) the person's driver's license has not been
suspended as a result of an alcohol-related or drug-related
enforcement contact during the five years preceding the date of the
person's arrest; and
(2) the person has not been convicted during the 10
years preceding the date of the person's arrest of an offense under:
(A) Article 6701l-1, Revised Statutes, as that
law existed before September 1, 1994;
(B) Section 19.05(a)(2), Penal Code, as that law
existed before September 1, 1994;
(C) Section 49.04, 49.045, or 49.05, Penal Code;
(D) Section 49.07 or 49.08, Penal Code, if the
offense involved the operation of a motor vehicle; or
(E) Section 106.041, Alcoholic Beverage Code.
(b) A stay under this section is effective for not more than
90 days after the date the appeal petition is filed. On the
expiration of the stay, the department shall impose the suspension.
The department or court may not grant an extension of the stay or an
additional stay.
Sec. 724.103. REVIEW; ADDITIONAL EVIDENCE. (a) Review on
appeal is on the record certified by the State Office of
Administrative Hearings with no additional testimony.
(b) On appeal, a party may apply to the court to present
additional evidence. If the court is satisfied that the additional
evidence is material and that there were good reasons for the
failure to present it in the proceeding before the administrative
law judge, the court may order that the additional evidence be taken
before an administrative law judge on conditions determined by the
court.
(c) There is no right to a jury trial in an appeal under this
section.
(d) An administrative law judge may change a finding or
decision as to whether the person had an alcohol concentration of a
level specified in Section 49.01, Penal Code, or whether a minor had
any detectable amount of alcohol in the minor's system because of
the additional evidence and shall file the additional evidence and
any changes, new findings, or decisions with the reviewing court.
(e) A remand under this section does not stay the suspension
of a driver's license.
Sec. 724.104. TRANSCRIPT OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING. (a)
To obtain a transcript of an administrative hearing, the party who
appeals the administrative law judge's decision must apply to the
State Office of Administrative Hearings.
(b) On payment of a fee not to exceed the actual cost of
preparing the transcript, the State Office of Administrative
Hearings shall promptly furnish both parties with a transcript of
the administrative hearing.
SECTION 14. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to a person arrested for an offense committed on or after the
effective date of this Act. A person arrested for 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 occurred before that date.
SECTION 15. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.