88R7048 MZM-D
By: Vasut H.B. No. 1335
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a defense to prosecution for the offense of cruelty to
nonlivestock animals under certain circumstances.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 42.092, Penal Code, is amended by adding
Subsection (e-1) to read as follows:
(e-1) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (b)(4)
that the actor abandoned a stray or feral cat after spaying or
neutering the cat as part of a municipal or county
trap-neuter-release program.
SECTION 2. The change in law made 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 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.