88R4641 BEE-F
By: Guillen H.B. No. 2345
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to definitions for purposes of gambling criminal offenses.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 47.01, Penal Code, is amended by adding
Subdivision (2-a) and amending Subdivision (8) to read as follows:
(2-a) "Economic benefit" means direct winnings from a
game of skill or luck. The term does not include a benefit received
before a game commences or after payment of the direct winnings from
the game.
(8) "Private place" means a place to which the public
does not have access without a valid membership, special
invitation, or prior grant of permission[,] and excludes, among
other places, streets, highways, restaurants, taverns, nightclubs,
schools, hospitals, and the common areas of apartment houses,
hotels, motels, office buildings, transportation facilities, and
shops.
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.