| 1 | 1 | | 85R12797 JRR-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Rose H.B. No. 3858 |
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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 prosecution of the offense of obstruction or |
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| 8 | 8 | | retaliation. |
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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. Sections 36.06(a-1) and (d), Penal Code, are |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (a-1) A person commits an offense if the person : |
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| 13 | 13 | | (1) posts on a publicly accessible website: |
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| 14 | 14 | | (A) the residence address or telephone number of |
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| 15 | 15 | | an individual the actor knows is a public servant; or |
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| 16 | 16 | | (B) the name, residence address, or telephone |
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| 17 | 17 | | number of a member of a public servant's family or household; and |
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| 18 | 18 | | (2) engages in the conduct described by Subdivision |
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| 19 | 19 | | (1) with the intent to cause harm or a threat of harm to the |
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| 20 | 20 | | individual or a member of the individual's family or household in |
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| 21 | 21 | | retaliation for or on account of the service or status of the |
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| 22 | 22 | | individual as a public servant. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (d) For purposes of Subsection (a-1), it is prima facie |
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| 24 | 24 | | evidence of the intent to cause harm or a threat of harm to an |
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| 25 | 25 | | individual the person knows is a public servant or a member of the |
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| 26 | 26 | | individual's [a public servant's] family or household if the actor: |
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| 27 | 27 | | (1) receives a written demand from the individual or |
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| 28 | 28 | | an official representative of the individual's employer to not |
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| 29 | 29 | | disclose the name, address, or telephone number for reasons of |
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| 30 | 30 | | safety; and |
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| 31 | 31 | | (2) either: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (A) fails to remove the name, address, or |
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| 33 | 33 | | telephone number from the publicly accessible website within a |
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| 34 | 34 | | period of 48 hours after receiving the demand; or |
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| 35 | 35 | | (B) reposts the name, address, or telephone |
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| 36 | 36 | | number on the same or a different publicly accessible website, or |
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| 37 | 37 | | makes the information publicly available through another medium, |
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| 38 | 38 | | within a period of four years after receiving the demand, |
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| 39 | 39 | | regardless of whether the individual is no longer a public servant. |
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| 40 | 40 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 41 | 41 | | to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 42 | 42 | | An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 43 | 43 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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| 44 | 44 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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| 45 | 45 | | purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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| 46 | 46 | | effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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| 47 | 47 | | before that date. |
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| 48 | 48 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |
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