Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2279 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R5595 MCF-D
2	2	By: Anchía H.B. No. 2279
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the prosecution of certain offenses involving the
8	8	carrying of weapons at certain locations.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Sections 46.03(a) and (g-2), Penal Code, are
11	11	amended to read as follows:
12	12	(a) A person commits an offense if the person intentionally,
13	13	knowingly, or recklessly possesses or goes with a firearm,
14	14	location-restricted knife, club, or prohibited weapon listed in
15	15	Section 46.05(a):
16	16	(1) on the [physical] premises, campus, or grounds of
17	17	a school or other educational institution, on any grounds or
18	18	building on which an activity sponsored by a school or other
19	19	educational institution is being conducted or is regularly
20	20	conducted, or in a passenger transportation vehicle of a school or
21	21	other educational institution, whether the school or [educational]
22	22	institution is public or private, unless:
23	23	(A) pursuant to written regulations or written
24	24	authorization of the school or institution; or
25	25	(B) the person possesses or goes with a concealed
26	26	handgun that the person is licensed to carry under Subchapter H,
27	27	Chapter 411, Government Code, and no other weapon to which this
28	28	section applies, on the premises, campus, or grounds of an
29	29	institution of higher education or a private or independent
30	30	institution of higher education, on any grounds or building on
31	31	which an activity sponsored by the institution is being conducted
32	32	or is regularly conducted, or in a passenger transportation vehicle
33	33	of the institution;
34	34	(2) on the premises of a polling place on the day of an
35	35	election or while early voting is in progress;
36	36	(3) on the premises of any government court or offices
37	37	utilized by the court, unless pursuant to written regulations or
38	38	written authorization of the court;
39	39	(4) on the premises of a racetrack;
40	40	(5) in or into a secured area of an airport;
41	41	(6) within 1,000 feet of premises the location of
42	42	which is designated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice as a
43	43	place of execution under Article 43.19, Code of Criminal Procedure,
44	44	on a day that a sentence of death is set to be imposed on the
45	45	designated premises and the person received notice that:
46	46	(A) going within 1,000 feet of the premises with
47	47	a weapon listed under this subsection was prohibited; or
48	48	(B) possessing a weapon listed under this
49	49	subsection within 1,000 feet of the premises was prohibited;
50	50	(7) on the premises of a business that has a permit or
51	51	license issued under Chapter 25, 28, 32, 69, or 74, Alcoholic
52	52	Beverage Code, if the business derives 51 percent or more of its
53	53	income from the sale or service of alcoholic beverages for
54	54	on-premises consumption, as determined by the Texas Alcoholic
55	55	Beverage Commission under Section 104.06, Alcoholic Beverage Code;
56	56	(8) on the premises where a high school, collegiate,
57	57	or professional sporting event or interscholastic event is taking
58	58	place, unless the person is a participant in the event and a
59	59	firearm, location-restricted knife, club, or prohibited weapon
60	60	listed in Section 46.05(a) is used in the event;
61	61	(9) on the premises of a correctional facility;
62	62	(10) on the premises of a civil commitment facility;
63	63	(11) on the premises of a hospital licensed under
64	64	Chapter 241, Health and Safety Code, or on the premises of a nursing
65	65	facility licensed under Chapter 242, Health and Safety Code, unless
66	66	the person has written authorization of the hospital or nursing
67	67	facility administration, as appropriate;
68	68	(12) on the premises of a mental hospital, as defined
69	69	by Section 571.003, Health and Safety Code, unless the person has
70	70	written authorization of the mental hospital administration;
71	71	(13) in an amusement park; [or]
72	72	(14) in the room or rooms where a meeting of a
73	73	governmental entity is held, if the meeting is an open meeting
74	74	subject to Chapter 551, Government Code, and if the entity provided
75	75	notice as required by that chapter; or
76	76	(15) regardless of whether the facility is enclosed
77	77	and if the facility is not a premises on which an event is occurring
78	78	as described by Subdivision (8), on the premises or property of an
79	79	indoor or outdoor arena, stadium, golf course, automobile
80	80	racetrack, amphitheater, auditorium, theater, museum, zoo,
81	81	botanical garden, civic center, or convention center, unless the
82	82	person is a participant in an event conducted at the facility and a
83	83	firearm, location-restricted knife, club, or prohibited weapon
84	84	listed in Section 46.05(a) is used in the event.
85	85	(g-2) An offense committed under Subsection (a)(8),
86	86	(a)(10), (a)(11), (a)(13), (a)(15), (a-2), (a-3), or (a-4) is a
87	87	Class A misdemeanor.
88	88	SECTION 2. Section 46.03(c), Penal Code, is amended by
89	89	amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivisions (1-a) and (3-a) to
90	90	read as follows:
91	91	(1) "Amusement park" means a permanent indoor or
92	92	outdoor facility or park where amusement rides are available for
93	93	use by the public that [is located in a county with a population of
94	94	more than one million,] encompasses at least 10 [75] acres in
95	95	surface area, is enclosed with access only through controlled
96	96	entries, [is open for operation more than 120 days in each calendar
97	97	year,] and has security guards on the premises at all times. [The
98	98	term does not include any public or private driveway, street,
99	99	sidewalk or walkway, parking lot, parking garage, or other parking
100	100	area.]
101	101	(1-a) "Educational institution" means:
102	102	(A) a school;
103	103	(B) a postsecondary educational institution; or
104	104	(C) a library, children's nursery, day-care
105	105	facility, or after-school program operated by a public or private
106	106	school or postsecondary educational institution.
107	107	(3-a) "Postsecondary educational institution" means
108	108	any public or private institution that provides courses of
109	109	instruction beyond those offered in secondary schools. The term
110	110	includes:
111	111	(A) a proprietary, vocational, or technical
112	112	school; and
113	113	(B) an institution of higher education or a
114	114	private or independent institution of higher education.
115	115	SECTION 3. Section 46.15(p), Penal Code, is amended to read
116	116	as follows:
117	117	(p) Sections 46.03(a)(7), (11), [and] (13), and (15) do not
118	118	apply if the actor:
119	119	(1) carries a handgun on the premises or other
120	120	property, as applicable;
121	121	(2) holds a license to carry a handgun issued under
122	122	Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code; and
123	123	(3) was not given effective notice under Section 30.06
124	124	or 30.07 of this code or Section 411.204, Government Code, as
125	125	applicable.
126	126	SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only
127	127	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
128	128	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
129	129	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
130	130	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
131	131	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
132	132	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
133	133	before that date.
134	134	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.