H.B. No. 842
AN ACT
relating to prohibiting the suspension of a person's driver's
license or extension of the period of a driver's license suspension
for certain driving while license invalid convictions; authorizing
a fee.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 521.292(a), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Section 521.457(h), the [The]
department shall suspend the person's license if the department
determines that the person:
(1) has operated a motor vehicle on a highway while the
person's license was suspended, canceled, disqualified, or
revoked, or without a license after an application for a license was
denied;
(2) is a habitually reckless or negligent operator of
a motor vehicle;
(3) is a habitual violator of the traffic laws;
(4) has permitted the unlawful or fraudulent use of
the person's license;
(5) has committed an offense in another state or
Canadian province that, if committed in this state, would be
grounds for suspension;
(6) has been convicted of two or more separate
offenses of a violation of a restriction imposed on the use of the
license;
(7) has been responsible as a driver for any accident
resulting in serious personal injury or serious property damage;
(8) is under 18 years of age and has been convicted of
two or more moving violations committed within a 12-month period;
or
(9) has committed an offense under Section 545.421.
SECTION 2. Section 521.343(c), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(c) Except as provided by Section 521.457(h), if [If] the
license holder is convicted of operating a motor vehicle while the
license to operate a motor vehicle is cancelled, disqualified,
suspended, revoked, or denied, the period is extended for the same
term as the original suspension or disqualification, in addition to
any penalty assessed under this chapter or Chapter 522.
SECTION 3. Section 521.457, Transportation Code, is amended
by adding Subsections (h), (i), and (j) to read as follows:
(h) Except as provided by Subsection (i), the department may
not suspend a person's driver's license under Section
521.292(a)(1), or extend the period a person's driver's license is
suspended under Section 521.343(c), for a conviction of an offense
under this section if:
(1) the offense was committed before September 1,
2019;
(2) the person was convicted of the offense after
August 31, 2023; and
(3) the person pays the department the fee required
under Section 521.313(a) or any other fee required for the
reinstatement of the person's driver's license in the manner
prescribed by the department.
(i) Subsection (h) does not apply to:
(1) a commercial driver's license issued under Chapter
522; or
(2) a person who was transporting hazardous materials
or operating a commercial motor vehicle at the time of the offense
under this section.
(j) The fee collected under Subsection (h)(3) shall be
deposited to the credit of the Texas mobility fund.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 842 was passed by the House on April
13, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 147, Nays 0, 2 present, not
voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 842 was passed by the Senate on May 3,
2023, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor