| 1 | 1 | | 88R8429 EAS-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Hinojosa S.B. No. 732 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to an exception to the application of the offense of misuse |
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| 8 | 8 | | of official information for journalists. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 39.06, Penal Code, is amended by adding |
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| 11 | 11 | | Subsection (c-1) to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (c-1) It is an exception to the application of Subsection |
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| 13 | 13 | | (c) that the person solicited or received the information for |
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| 14 | 14 | | purposes of gathering, compiling, preparing, collecting, |
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| 15 | 15 | | photographing, recording, writing, editing, reporting, |
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| 16 | 16 | | investigating, processing, or publishing news or information for |
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| 17 | 17 | | dissemination by: |
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| 18 | 18 | | (1) a communication service provider or news medium, |
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| 19 | 19 | | as those terms are defined by Article 38.11, Code of Criminal |
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| 20 | 20 | | Procedure; or |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) an Internet website, including a social media |
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| 22 | 22 | | platform. |
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| 23 | 23 | | SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 24 | 24 | | to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 25 | 25 | | An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 26 | 26 | | governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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| 27 | 27 | | and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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| 28 | 28 | | purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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| 29 | 29 | | effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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| 30 | 30 | | before that date. |
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| 31 | 31 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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