Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB761 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R1107 TSS-D
2	2	By: Reynolds H.B. No. 761
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to prohibiting the transfer of an assault weapon to
8	8	certain recipients; creating a criminal offense; increasing a
9	9	criminal penalty.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 46.06, Penal Code, is amended to read as
12	12	follows:
13	13	Sec. 46.06. UNLAWFUL TRANSFER OF CERTAIN WEAPONS. (a) A
14	14	person commits an offense if the person:
15	15	(1) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to
16	16	any person knowing that the person to whom the handgun is to be
17	17	delivered intends to use it unlawfully or in the commission of an
18	18	unlawful act;
19	19	(2) intentionally or knowingly sells, rents, leases,
20	20	or gives or offers to sell, rent, lease, or give:
21	21	(A) a [to any child younger than 18 years of age
22	22	any firearm,] club, [or] location-restricted knife, or firearm
23	23	other than an assault weapon to a child younger than 18 years of
24	24	age; or
25	25	(B) an assault weapon to a person younger than 21
26	26	years of age;
27	27	(3) intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly sells a
28	28	firearm or ammunition for a firearm to any person who is
29	29	intoxicated;
30	30	(4) knowingly sells a firearm or ammunition for a
31	31	firearm to any person who has been convicted of a felony before the
32	32	fifth anniversary of the later of the following dates:
33	33	(A) the person's release from confinement
34	34	following conviction of the felony; or
35	35	(B) the person's release from supervision under
36	36	community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision following
37	37	conviction of the felony;
38	38	(5) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to
39	39	any person knowing that an active protective order is directed to
40	40	the person to whom the handgun is to be delivered;
41	41	(6) knowingly purchases, rents, leases, or receives as
42	42	a loan or gift from another a handgun while an active protective
43	43	order is directed to the actor; or
44	44	(7) while prohibited from possessing a firearm under
45	45	state or federal law, knowingly makes a material false statement on
46	46	a form that is:
47	47	(A) required by state or federal law for the
48	48	purchase, sale, or other transfer of a firearm; and
49	49	(B) submitted to a licensed firearms dealer, as
50	50	defined by 18 U.S.C. Section 923.
51	51	(b) In this section:
52	52	(1) "Intoxicated" means substantial impairment of
53	53	mental or physical capacity resulting from introduction of any
54	54	substance into the body.
55	55	(2) "Active protective order" means a protective order
56	56	issued under Title 4, Family Code, that is in effect. The term does
57	57	not include a temporary protective order issued before the court
58	58	holds a hearing on the matter.
59	59	(3) "Assault weapon" means:
60	60	(A) a semiautomatic centerfire rifle that has the
61	61	capacity to accept a detachable magazine and has:
62	62	(i) a pistol grip that protrudes
63	63	conspicuously beneath the action of the firearm;
64	64	(ii) a folding or telescoping stock;
65	65	(iii) a thumbhole stock;
66	66	(iv) a second handgrip or a protruding grip
67	67	that can be held by the non-trigger hand;
68	68	(v) a flash suppressor; or
69	69	(vi) a grenade launcher or flare launcher;
70	70	(B) a semiautomatic centerfire rifle that has a
71	71	fixed magazine that holds more than 10 rounds of ammunition;
72	72	(C) a semiautomatic centerfire rifle that has an
73	73	overall length of less than 30 inches;
74	74	(D) a semiautomatic shotgun that has the capacity
75	75	to accept a detachable magazine;
76	76	(E) a semiautomatic shotgun that has a folding or
77	77	telescoping stock and has:
78	78	(i) a thumbhole stock; or
79	79	(ii) a second handgrip or a protruding grip
80	80	that can be held by the non-trigger hand;
81	81	(F) a semiautomatic pistol that has the capacity
82	82	to accept a detachable magazine and has:
83	83	(i) a second handgrip or a protruding grip
84	84	that can be held by the non-trigger hand;
85	85	(ii) an ammunition magazine that attaches
86	86	to the pistol outside of the pistol grip;
87	87	(iii) a threaded barrel capable of
88	88	accepting a flash suppressor, forward handgrip, or silencer; or
89	89	(iv) a shroud that is attached to or
90	90	partially or completely encircles the barrel and that permits the
91	91	shooter to hold the firearm with the non-trigger hand without being
92	92	burned;
93	93	(G) a semiautomatic pistol that has a fixed
94	94	magazine that holds more than 10 rounds of ammunition;
95	95	(H) a revolving cylinder shotgun; or
96	96	(I) a conversion kit, part, or combination of
97	97	parts from which an assault weapon can be assembled or with which a
98	98	firearm may be converted into a weapon described by Paragraph (A),
99	99	(B), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), or (H).
100	100	(c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
101	101	Subsection (a)(2)(A) [(a)(2)] that the transfer was to a minor
102	102	whose parent or the person having legal custody of the minor had
103	103	given written permission for the sale or, if the transfer was other
104	104	than a sale, the parent or person having legal custody had given
105	105	effective consent.
106	106	(c-1) It is an exception to the application of Subsection
107	107	(a)(2)(B) that the transfer of the assault weapon is necessary for
108	108	the actual discharge of the recipient's official duties as a member
109	109	of the armed forces or state military forces, as defined by Section
110	110	437.001, Government Code.
111	111	(d) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor,
112	112	except that:
113	113	(1) an offense under Subsection (a)(2)(A) [(a)(2)] is
114	114	a state jail felony if the weapon that is the subject of the offense
115	115	is a handgun; and
116	116	(2) an offense under Subsection (a)(2)(B) or (a)(7) is
117	117	a state jail felony.
118	118	SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
119	119	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
120	120	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
121	121	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
122	122	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
123	123	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
124	124	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
125	125	before that date.
126	126	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.