Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB231 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R64 TSS-D
2	2	By: Ortega H.B. No. 231
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to prohibiting the transfer of an assault weapon to
8	8	certain recipients; creating a criminal offense; increasing a
9	9	criminal penalty.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 46.06, Penal Code, is amended to read as
12	12	follows:
13	13	Sec. 46.06. UNLAWFUL TRANSFER OF CERTAIN WEAPONS. (a) A
14	14	person commits an offense if the person:
15	15	(1) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to
16	16	any person knowing that the person to whom the handgun is to be
17	17	delivered intends to use it unlawfully or in the commission of an
18	18	unlawful act;
19	19	(2) intentionally or knowingly sells, rents, leases,
20	20	or gives or offers to sell, rent, lease, or give:
21	21	(A) a [to any child younger than 18 years of age
22	22	any firearm,] club, [or] location-restricted knife, or firearm
23	23	other than an assault weapon to a child younger than 18 years of
24	24	age; or
25	25	(B) an assault weapon to a person younger than 21
26	26	years of age;
27	27	(3) intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly sells a
28	28	firearm or ammunition for a firearm to any person who is
29	29	intoxicated;
30	30	(4) knowingly sells a firearm or ammunition for a
31	31	firearm to any person who has been convicted of a felony before the
32	32	fifth anniversary of the later of the following dates:
33	33	(A) the person's release from confinement
34	34	following conviction of the felony; or
35	35	(B) the person's release from supervision under
36	36	community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision following
37	37	conviction of the felony;
38	38	(5) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to
39	39	any person knowing that an active protective order is directed to
40	40	the person to whom the handgun is to be delivered; or
41	41	(6) knowingly purchases, rents, leases, or receives as
42	42	a loan or gift from another a handgun while an active protective
43	43	order is directed to the actor.
44	44	(b) In this section:
45	45	(1) "Intoxicated" means substantial impairment of
46	46	mental or physical capacity resulting from introduction of any
47	47	substance into the body.
48	48	(2) "Active protective order" means a protective order
49	49	issued under Title 4, Family Code, that is in effect. The term does
50	50	not include a temporary protective order issued before the court
51	51	holds a hearing on the matter.
52	52	(3) "Assault weapon" means:
53	53	(A) a semiautomatic centerfire rifle that has the
54	54	capacity to accept a detachable magazine and has:
55	55	(i) a pistol grip that protrudes
56	56	conspicuously beneath the action of the firearm;
57	57	(ii) a folding or telescoping stock;
58	58	(iii) a thumbhole stock;
59	59	(iv) a second handgrip or a protruding grip
60	60	that can be held by the non-trigger hand;
61	61	(v) a flash suppressor; or
62	62	(vi) a grenade launcher or flare launcher;
63	63	(B) a semiautomatic centerfire rifle that has a
64	64	fixed magazine that holds more than 10 rounds of ammunition;
65	65	(C) a semiautomatic centerfire rifle that has an
66	66	overall length of less than 30 inches;
67	67	(D) a semiautomatic shotgun that has the capacity
68	68	to accept a detachable magazine;
69	69	(E) a semiautomatic shotgun that has a folding or
70	70	telescoping stock and has:
71	71	(i) a thumbhole stock; or
72	72	(ii) a second handgrip or a protruding grip
73	73	that can be held by the non-trigger hand;
74	74	(F) a semiautomatic pistol that has the capacity
75	75	to accept a detachable magazine and has:
76	76	(i) a second handgrip or a protruding grip
77	77	that can be held by the non-trigger hand;
78	78	(ii) an ammunition magazine that attaches
79	79	to the pistol outside of the pistol grip;
80	80	(iii) a threaded barrel capable of
81	81	accepting a flash suppressor, forward handgrip, or silencer; or
82	82	(iv) a shroud that is attached to or
83	83	partially or completely encircles the barrel and that permits the
84	84	shooter to hold the firearm with the non-trigger hand without being
85	85	burned;
86	86	(G) a semiautomatic pistol that has a fixed
87	87	magazine that holds more than 10 rounds of ammunition;
88	88	(H) a revolving cylinder shotgun; or
89	89	(I) a conversion kit, part, or combination of
90	90	parts from which an assault weapon can be assembled or with which a
91	91	firearm may be converted into a weapon described by Paragraph (A),
92	92	(B), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), or (H).
93	93	(c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
94	94	Subsection (a)(2)(A) [(a)(2)] that the transfer was to a minor
95	95	whose parent or the person having legal custody of the minor had
96	96	given written permission for the sale or, if the transfer was other
97	97	than a sale, the parent or person having legal custody had given
98	98	effective consent.
99	99	(c-1) It is an exception to the application of Subsection
100	100	(a)(2)(B) that the transfer of the assault weapon is necessary for
101	101	the actual discharge of the recipient's official duties as a member
102	102	of the armed forces or state military forces, as defined by Section
103	103	437.001, Government Code.
104	104	(d) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor,
105	105	except that:
106	106	(1) an offense under Subsection (a)(2)(A) [(a)(2)] is
107	107	a state jail felony if the weapon that is the subject of the offense
108	108	is a handgun; and
109	109	(2) an offense under Subsection (a)(2)(B) is a state
110	110	jail felony.
111	111	SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
112	112	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
113	113	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
114	114	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
115	115	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
116	116	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
117	117	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
118	118	before that date.
119	119	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.