| 1 | 1 | | 88S30143 SRA-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Toth H.B. No. 158 |
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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 a prohibition on the sale, production, or distribution |
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| 8 | 8 | | of lab-grown meat; authorizing a civil penalty. |
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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. Subtitle C, Title 5, Business & Commerce Code, is |
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| 11 | 11 | | amended by adding Chapter 121 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | CHAPTER 121. SALE, PRODUCTION, OR DISTRIBUTION OF LAB-GROWN MEAT |
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| 13 | 13 | | Sec. 121.0001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "lab-grown |
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| 14 | 14 | | meat" means a food product derived in a laboratory by harvesting |
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| 15 | 15 | | animal cells and artificially replicating those cells in a growth |
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| 16 | 16 | | medium separate from a parent animal to produce tissue for the |
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| 17 | 17 | | product. |
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| 18 | 18 | | Sec. 121.0002. PROHIBITED SALE, PRODUCTION, OR |
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| 19 | 19 | | DISTRIBUTION OF LAB-GROWN MEAT. A person may not sell, produce, or |
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| 20 | 20 | | distribute lab-grown meat in this state. |
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| 21 | 21 | | Sec. 121.0003. CIVIL PENALTY; INJUNCTIVE RELIEF. (a) A |
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| 22 | 22 | | person who violates Section 121.0002 is liable to this state for a |
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| 23 | 23 | | civil penalty in the amount of $1,000 for each violation. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (b) The attorney general may bring an action in the name of |
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| 25 | 25 | | the state: |
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| 26 | 26 | | (1) for injunctive relief to require compliance with |
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| 27 | 27 | | Section 121.0002; |
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| 28 | 28 | | (2) to recover a civil penalty under this section; or |
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| 29 | 29 | | (3) for both injunctive relief and to recover the |
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| 30 | 30 | | civil penalty. |
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| 31 | 31 | | (c) The action may be brought in a district court in: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (1) Travis County; or |
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| 33 | 33 | | (2) a county in which any part of the violation or |
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| 34 | 34 | | threatened violation occurs. |
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| 35 | 35 | | (d) A civil penalty collected under this section shall be |
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| 36 | 36 | | deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the general revenue |
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| 37 | 37 | | fund. |
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| 38 | 38 | | (e) The attorney general may recover costs incurred in |
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| 39 | 39 | | bringing the action, including reasonable attorney's fees and |
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| 40 | 40 | | reasonable investigative costs. |
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| 41 | 41 | | SECTION 2. If any provision of this Act or its application |
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| 42 | 42 | | to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity does |
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| 43 | 43 | | not affect other provisions or applications of this Act that can be |
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| 44 | 44 | | given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to |
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| 45 | 45 | | this end the provisions of this Act are declared severable. |
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| 46 | 46 | | SECTION 3. Chapter 121, Business & Commerce Code, as added |
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| 47 | 47 | | by this Act, applies only to a cause of action that accrues on or |
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| 48 | 48 | | after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 49 | 49 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the |
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| 50 | 50 | | last day of the legislative session. |
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