81R13743 PAM-D
By: Wentworth S.B. No. 2101
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the regulation of fireworks by counties; providing a
criminal penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 352, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 352.052 to read as follows:
Sec. 352.052. ADDITIONAL COUNTY REGULATION OF
FIREWORKS. (a) In this section, "fireworks" means any
composition or device designed for entertainment to produce a
visible or audible effect by combustion, explosion, deflagration,
or detonation.
(b) This section does not apply to:
(1) toy pistols, toy canes, toy guns, or other devices
that use paper or plastic caps in sheets, strips, rolls, or
individual caps containing not more than an average of 25/100 of a
grain of explosive composition for each cap and that are packed and
shipped according to 49 C.F.R. Part 173 (1996);
(2) model rockets and model rocket motors designed,
sold, and used for the purpose of propelling recoverable aero
models;
(3) propelling or expelling charges consisting of a
mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate;
(4) novelties and trick noisemakers;
(5) the sale, at wholesale, of any type of fireworks by
a resident manufacturer, distributor, importer, or jobber if the
fireworks are intended for shipment directly out of state in
accordance with the regulations of the United States Department of
Transportation;
(6) the sale, and use in emergency situations, of
pyrotechnic signaling devices or distress signals for marine,
aviation, or highway use;
(7) the use of fusee and railway torpedoes by
railroads;
(8) the sale of blank cartridges for use in radio,
television, film, or theater productions, for signal or ceremonial
purposes in athletic events, or for industrial purposes;
(9) the use of any pyrotechnic device by military
organizations; or
(10) a public fireworks display conducted by a
licensed pyrotechnic operator.
(c) To protect the public health or safety, the
commissioners court of a county may order an election held in any
defined unincorporated area of the county on the question of
whether to prohibit the sale, possession, and use of fireworks in
that area.
(d) The ballot for the election shall be printed to provide
for voting for or against the proposition: "Prohibiting the sale,
possession, and use of fireworks in the (describe the defined
unincorporated area) in the unincorporated area of (name of)
County."
(e) If a majority of the votes cast at the election approve
the proposition, the commissioners court by order shall, as soon as
feasible after the election, prohibit the sale, possession, and use
of fireworks in the defined unincorporated area of the county that
approved the proposition.
(f) The commissioners court shall provide, at various
locations in the area where the sale, possession, and use of
fireworks is prohibited, reasonable notice of the prohibition.
(g) The commissioners court shall send a copy of the order
to the state fire marshal not later than the 30th day after the date
the order is adopted.
(h) The state fire marshal shall send a copy of each order
received under Subsection (g) to each licensed manufacturer,
distributor, and jobber in the affected county not later than the
30th day after the date the fire marshal receives the order.
(i) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly
violates a prohibition established by an order adopted under this
section. An offense under this subsection is a Class B misdemeanor.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2009.