| 1 | 1 | | H.B. No. 55 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | AN ACT |
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| 5 | 5 | | relating to the punishment for the criminal offense of indecent |
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| 6 | 6 | | assault; increasing a criminal penalty. |
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| 7 | 7 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 8 | 8 | | SECTION 1. Section 22.012, Penal Code, is amended by |
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| 9 | 9 | | amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (d) to read as |
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| 10 | 10 | | follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | (b) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor, |
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| 12 | 12 | | except that the offense is: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (1) a state jail felony if it is shown on the trial of |
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| 14 | 14 | | the offense that: |
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| 15 | 15 | | (A) the defendant has been previously convicted |
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| 16 | 16 | | of an offense under this section, other than an offense punishable |
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| 17 | 17 | | under Paragraph (B); or |
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| 18 | 18 | | (B) the defendant is a health care services |
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| 19 | 19 | | provider or a mental health services provider and the act is: |
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| 20 | 20 | | (i) committed during the course of |
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| 21 | 21 | | providing a treatment or service to the victim; and |
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| 22 | 22 | | (ii) beyond the scope of generally accepted |
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| 23 | 23 | | practices for the treatment or service; or |
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| 24 | 24 | | (2) a felony of the third degree if it is shown on the |
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| 25 | 25 | | trial of the offense that the defendant has been previously |
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| 26 | 26 | | convicted of an offense under this section that is punishable under |
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| 27 | 27 | | Subdivision (1)(B). |
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| 28 | 28 | | (d) In this section, "health care services provider" and |
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| 29 | 29 | | "mental health services provider" have the meanings assigned by |
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| 30 | 30 | | Section 22.011. |
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| 31 | 31 | | SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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| 32 | 32 | | an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An |
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| 33 | 33 | | offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed |
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| 34 | 34 | | by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the |
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| 35 | 35 | | former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of |
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| 36 | 36 | | this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of |
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| 37 | 37 | | this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date. |
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| 38 | 38 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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| 39 | 39 | | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
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| 40 | 40 | | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
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| 41 | 41 | | I certify that H.B. No. 55 was passed by the House on April |
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| 42 | 42 | | 27, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 147, Nays 0, 1 present, not |
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| 43 | 43 | | voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. |
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| 44 | 44 | | No. 55 on May 26, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 0, 1 |
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| 45 | 45 | | present, not voting. |
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| 46 | 46 | | ______________________________ |
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| 47 | 47 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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| 48 | 48 | | I certify that H.B. No. 55 was passed by the Senate, with |
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| 49 | 49 | | amendments, on May 24, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays |
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| 50 | 50 | | 0. |
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| 51 | 51 | | ______________________________ |
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| 52 | 52 | | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 53 | 53 | | APPROVED: __________________ |
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| 54 | 54 | | Date |
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| 55 | 55 | | __________________ |
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| 56 | 56 | | Governor |
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