| 1 | 1 | | 84R1574 PEP-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Creighton S.B. No. 229 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the unlawful seizure of a firearm by a governmental |
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| 8 | 8 | | officer or employee; providing penalties. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Chapter 46, Penal Code, is amended by adding |
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| 11 | 11 | | Section 46.16 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 46.16. UNLAWFUL SEIZURE OF FIREARM. (a) A person who |
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| 13 | 13 | | is an officer or employee of the United States, this state, or a |
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| 14 | 14 | | political subdivision of this state commits an offense if the |
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| 15 | 15 | | person, while acting under color of the person's office or |
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| 16 | 16 | | employment, intentionally or knowingly seizes a firearm as |
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| 17 | 17 | | permitted or required by a federal statute, order, rule, or |
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| 18 | 18 | | regulation that imposes a prohibition, restriction, or other |
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| 19 | 19 | | regulation on firearms that does not exist under the laws of this |
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| 20 | 20 | | state. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (b) For purposes of this section, a person acts under color |
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| 22 | 22 | | of the person's office or employment if the person acts or purports |
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| 23 | 23 | | to act in an official capacity or takes advantage of such actual or |
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| 24 | 24 | | purported capacity. |
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| 25 | 25 | | (c) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor. |
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| 26 | 26 | | (d) It is an exception to the application of this section |
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| 27 | 27 | | that the person's seizure of a firearm was consistent with an |
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| 28 | 28 | | explicit and applicable grant of federal statutory authority that |
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| 29 | 29 | | is consistent with the United States Constitution. |
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| 30 | 30 | | (e) The prosecution may negate the existence of the |
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| 31 | 31 | | exception provided by Subsection (d) only by proving beyond a |
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| 32 | 32 | | reasonable doubt that, based on a decision entered by the United |
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| 33 | 33 | | States Supreme Court on or after September 1, 2015, the federal |
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| 34 | 34 | | statute, order, rule, or regulation described by Subsection (a) is |
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| 35 | 35 | | not within the scope of federal powers conferred by the United |
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| 36 | 36 | | States Constitution. |
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| 37 | 37 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 38 | 38 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 39 | 39 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 40 | 40 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 41 | 41 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |
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