S.B. No. 504
AN ACT
relating to authority of certain county fire marshals to inspect
group homes; authorizing a fee; creating a criminal offense.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 352, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 352.0165 to read as follows:
Sec. 352.0165. INSPECTION OF GROUP HOMES IN CERTAIN
COUNTIES; FEE. (a) In this section:
(1) "Group home" means an establishment:
(A) in which three or more individuals who are
unrelated to the owner or operator of the establishment reside;
(B) that provides residential care services to
residents; and
(C) that receives payment or other compensation
from a local, state, or federal governmental entity for providing
residential care services to a resident.
(2) "Residential care services" means shelter,
protection, meals, health care, mobility assistance, and personal
care services, including bathing, dressing, and eating.
(b) This section applies only to a county with a population
of 3.3 million or more.
(c) This section does not apply to a building owned or
operated by:
(1) a person that is required to be licensed under
Chapter 142, 242, 246, 247, or 252, Health and Safety Code;
(2) a person that is exempt from licensing under
Section 142.003(a)(19), 242.003(3), or 247.004(4), Health and
Safety Code;
(3) a hotel as defined by Section 156.001, Tax Code;
(4) a retirement community;
(5) a monastery or convent;
(6) a child-care facility as defined by Section
42.002, Human Resources Code;
(7) a family violence shelter center as defined by
Section 51.002, Human Resources Code; or
(8) a sorority or fraternity house or other dormitory
associated with an institution of higher education.
(d) On the complaint of any person, the county fire marshal,
at any reasonable time, may enter:
(1) a building in the county in which a group home is
operated; and
(2) the premises of a building described by
Subdivision (1).
(e) The county fire marshal shall order the removal of a
building in which a group home is located, the removal of a
structure located on the premises of a building in which a group
home is located, or other remedial action if the marshal finds that:
(1) the building or structure, because of lack of
repair, age, dilapidated condition, or other reason, is susceptible
to fire and is so located or occupied that fire would endanger
persons or property in the building or structure or on the premises
of the building or structure;
(2) a dangerous condition is created by:
(A) an improper arrangement of stoves, ranges,
furnaces, or other heating appliances, including chimneys, flues,
and pipes with which they are connected, or by their lighting
systems or devices; or
(B) the manner of storage of explosives,
compounds, petroleum, gasoline, kerosene, dangerous chemicals,
vegetable products, ashes, or combustible, flammable, or refuse
materials; or
(3) any other condition exists that is dangerous or is
liable to cause or promote fire or create danger for firefighters,
occupants, or other buildings or structures.
(f) The person to whom an order under Subsection (e) is
directed shall immediately comply with the order. The marshal may,
if necessary, apply to a court of competent jurisdiction for writs
or orders necessary to enforce this section, and the court may grant
appropriate relief. The marshal is not required to give a bond.
(g) The commissioners court of a county may adopt any
appropriate standard developed by a nationally recognized
standards-making association under which the county fire marshal
may enforce this section, except that standards adopted under this
subsection do not apply in a municipality that has adopted fire
protection ordinances.
(h) The commissioners court of a county shall prescribe a
reasonable fee for an inspection performed by the county fire
marshal that may be charged to a property owner or occupant who
requests the inspection, as the commissioners court considers
appropriate. In prescribing the fee, the commissioners court shall
consider the overall cost to the marshal to perform the
inspections, including the approximate amount of time the staff of
the marshal needs to perform an inspection, travel costs, and other
expenses.
SECTION 2. Section 352.022, Local Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 352.022. PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH ORDER. An
owner or occupant who is subject to an order issued under Section
352.016 or 352.0165 commits an offense if that person fails to
comply with the order. Each refusal to comply is a separate
offense. The offense is a Class B misdemeanor unless it is shown on
the trial of the offense that the defendant has been previously
convicted two or more times under this section, in which event the
offense is a state jail felony.
SECTION 3. Section 352.022, Local Government Code, as
amended by this Act, applies only to an offense committed on or
after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before
the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on
the date 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 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 504 passed the Senate on
May 4, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0; and that the
Senate concurred in House amendment on May 29, 2021, by the
following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
I hereby certify that S.B. No. 504 passed the House, with
amendment, on May 26, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 110,
Nays 37, two present not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
Approved:
______________________________
Date
______________________________
Governor