89R4970 AMF-F
By: Rosenthal H.B. No. 1601
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the prohibition, prevention, and remedying of certain
discrimination.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Title 4, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is
amended by adding Chapter 100B to read as follows:
CHAPTER 100B. LIABILITY ARISING FROM DISCRIMINATION
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 100B.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Aggrieved person" includes any person who:
(A) claims to have been injured by a
discriminatory practice; or
(B) believes the person will be injured by a
discriminatory practice about to occur.
(2) "Discriminatory practice" means an act prohibited
by this chapter.
(3) "Gender identity or expression" means having or
being perceived as having a gender-related identity, appearance,
expression, or behavior, regardless of whether that identity,
appearance, expression, or behavior is different from that commonly
associated with the individual's actual or perceived sex.
(4) "Public accommodation" means a business or other
entity offering to the public food, shelter, recreation or
amusement, or any other good, service, privilege, facility, or
accommodation.
(5) "Religious organization" means:
(A) a religious corporation, association, or
society; or
(B) a school, institution of higher education, or
other educational institution, not otherwise a religious
organization, that:
(i) is wholly or substantially controlled,
managed, owned, or supported by a religious organization; or
(ii) has a curriculum directed toward the
propagation of a particular religion.
(6) "Sexual orientation" means the actual or perceived
status of an individual with respect to the individual's sexuality.
Sec. 100B.002. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. (a) Except as
provided by Subsection (b), this chapter does not apply to a
religious organization.
(b) This chapter applies to activities conducted by a
religious organization for profit to the extent those activities
are subject to federal taxation under Section 511(a), Internal
Revenue Code of 1986, as that section existed on September 1, 2025.
SUBCHAPTER B. DISCRIMINATION IN PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS PROHIBITED
Sec. 100B.051. PUBLIC ACCOMMODATIONS. (a) Except as
provided by Subsection (b), a person engages in a discriminatory
practice and violates this chapter if the person, because of the
sexual orientation or gender identity or expression of an
individual:
(1) denies that individual full and equal
accommodation in any place of public accommodation in this state,
subject only to the conditions established by law and applicable to
all persons; or
(2) otherwise discriminates against or segregates or
separates the individual in a place of public accommodation in this
state based on sexual orientation or gender identity or expression.
(b) A person does not engage in a discriminatory practice or
violate this chapter under Subsection (a) if segregation or
separation of an individual is necessary to provide a service that:
(1) provides acceptance, support, and understanding
to the individual;
(2) assists the individual with coping with the
individual's sexual orientation or gender identity or expression,
maintaining social support, and exploring and identifying the
individual's identity; or
(3) provides support to an individual undergoing a
gender transition.
(c) The services described by Subsection (b)(2) include a
sexual orientation-neutral intervention for preventing or
addressing unlawful conduct or unsafe sexual practices if the
intervention does not seek to change the individual's sexual
orientation or gender identity or expression.
SUBCHAPTER C. CAUSE OF ACTION
Sec. 100B.101. CIVIL ACTION. An aggrieved person may file a
civil action in district court not later than the second
anniversary of the occurrence of the termination of an alleged
discriminatory practice under this chapter to obtain appropriate
relief with respect to the discriminatory practice.
Sec. 100B.102. RELIEF GRANTED. In an action under this
subchapter, if the court finds a discriminatory practice has
occurred or is about to occur, the court may award to the claimant:
(1) actual and exemplary damages;
(2) reasonable attorney's fees;
(3) court costs; and
(4) any permanent or temporary injunction, temporary
restraining order, or other order, including an order enjoining the
defendant from engaging in the practice or ordering other
appropriate action.
SECTION 2. Articles 42.014(a) and (c), Code of Criminal
Procedure, are amended to read as follows:
(a) In the trial of an offense under Title 5, Penal Code, or
Section 28.02, 28.03, 28.08, or 42.0601, Penal Code, the judge
shall make an affirmative finding of fact and enter the affirmative
finding in the judgment of the case if at the guilt or innocence
phase of the trial, the judge or the jury, whichever is the trier of
fact, determines beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant
intentionally selected the person against whom the offense was
committed, or intentionally selected the person's property that was
damaged or affected as a result of the offense, because of the
defendant's bias or prejudice against a group identified by race,
color, disability, religion, national origin or ancestry, age,
gender, [or] sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression
[preference] or by status as a peace officer or judge.
(c) In this article:
(1) "Gender identity or expression" means having or
being perceived as having a gender-related identity, appearance,
expression, or behavior, regardless of whether that identity,
appearance, expression, or behavior is different from that commonly
associated with the individual's actual or perceived sex.
(2) "Sexual orientation" means the actual or perceived
status of an individual with respect to the individual's
sexuality[, "sexual preference" has the following meaning only: a
preference for heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality].
SECTION 3. Subchapter D, Chapter 11, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 11.172 to read as follows:
Sec. 11.172. DISCRIMINATION, HARASSMENT, AND RETALIATION
PROHIBITED. (a) In this section:
(1) "Gender identity or expression" means having or
being perceived as having a gender-related identity, appearance,
expression, or behavior, regardless of whether that identity,
appearance, expression, or behavior is different from that commonly
associated with the individual's actual or perceived sex.
(2) "Sexual orientation" means the actual or perceived
status of an individual with respect to the individual's sexuality.
(b) A school district or employee of a school district may
not:
(1) discriminate against or harass a district employee
or a student enrolled in the district on account of:
(A) the actual or perceived ethnicity, color,
gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation,
disability, religion, or national origin of the employee, student,
or student's parent; or
(B) one or more persons with whom the employee,
student, or student's parent associates; or
(2) retaliate against a district employee or a student
enrolled in the district for reporting potential discrimination or
harassment prohibited by Subdivision (1).
(c) This section applies to conduct that occurs:
(1) on school property;
(2) while attending a school-sponsored or
school-related activity on or off school property; or
(3) in connection with transportation of students in a
vehicle owned or operated by a school district or owned or operated
by another entity under contract with a school district.
(d) A school district shall provide periodic training to
district employees regarding prevention of discrimination and
harassment prohibited by this section and procedures for responding
to reported or observed incidents of prohibited discrimination or
harassment. The training may be provided in conjunction with any
education provided under Section 37.083.
(e) In accordance with rules adopted by the commissioner,
each school district shall report biennially to the agency
information regarding each incident of alleged discrimination or
harassment that occurred at each campus in the district during the
preceding two school years. The agency shall include the
information, disaggregated by campus, in the comprehensive
biennial report required by Section 39.332.
SECTION 4. Section 12.104(b), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) An open-enrollment charter school is subject to:
(1) a provision of this title establishing a criminal
offense;
(2) the provisions in Chapter 554, Government Code;
and
(3) a prohibition, restriction, or requirement, as
applicable, imposed by this title or a rule adopted under this
title, relating to:
(A) the Public Education Information Management
System (PEIMS) to the extent necessary to monitor compliance with
this subchapter as determined by the commissioner;
(B) criminal history records under Subchapter C,
Chapter 22;
(C) reading instruments and accelerated reading
instruction programs under Section 28.006;
(D) accelerated instruction under Section
28.0211;
(E) high school graduation requirements under
Section 28.025;
(F) special education programs under Subchapter
A, Chapter 29;
(G) bilingual education under Subchapter B,
Chapter 29;
(H) prekindergarten programs under Subchapter E
or E-1, Chapter 29, except class size limits for prekindergarten
classes imposed under Section 25.112, which do not apply;
(I) extracurricular activities under Section
33.081;
(J) discipline management practices or behavior
management techniques under Section 37.0021;
(K) health and safety under Chapter 38;
(L) the provisions of Subchapter A, Chapter 39;
(M) public school accountability and special
investigations under Subchapters A, B, C, D, F, G, and J, Chapter
39, and Chapter 39A;
(N) the requirement under Section 21.006 to
report an educator's misconduct;
(O) intensive programs of instruction under
Section 28.0213;
(P) the right of a school employee to report a
crime, as provided by Section 37.148;
(Q) bullying prevention policies and procedures
under Section 37.0832;
(R) the right of a school under Section 37.0052
to place a student who has engaged in certain bullying behavior in a
disciplinary alternative education program or to expel the student;
(S) the right under Section 37.0151 to report to
local law enforcement certain conduct constituting assault or
harassment;
(T) a parent's right to information regarding the
provision of assistance for learning difficulties to the parent's
child as provided by Sections 26.004(b)(11) and 26.0081(c) and (d);
(U) establishment of residency under Section
25.001;
(V) school safety requirements under Sections
37.0814, 37.108, 37.1081, 37.1082, 37.1083, 37.1084, 37.1085,
37.1086, 37.109, 37.113, 37.114, 37.1141, 37.115, 37.207, and
37.2071 and Subchapter J, Chapter 37;
(W) the early childhood literacy and mathematics
proficiency plans under Section 11.185;
(X) the college, career, and military readiness
plans under Section 11.186; [and]
(Y) parental options to retain a student under
Section 28.02124; and
(Z) discrimination, harassment, and retaliation
under Section 11.172.
SECTION 5. Section 121.151, Estates Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 121.151. DISTRIBUTION OF COMMUNITY PROPERTY. (a)
This section applies to community property, including the proceeds
of life or accident insurance that are community property and
become payable to the estate of either spouse [the husband or wife].
(b) If spouses [a husband and wife] die leaving community
property but neither survives the other by 120 hours, one-half of
all community property shall be distributed as if one spouse [the
husband] had survived, and the other one-half shall be distributed
as if the other spouse [wife] had survived.
SECTION 6. Section 1104.001(b), Estates Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) Subsection (a) does not prohibit the joint appointment,
if the court finds it to be in the best interest of the
incapacitated person or ward, of:
(1) spouses [a husband and wife];
(2) joint managing conservators;
(3) co-guardians appointed under the laws of a
jurisdiction other than this state; or
(4) both parents of an adult who is incapacitated if
the incapacitated person:
(A) has not been the subject of a suit affecting
the parent-child relationship; or
(B) has been the subject of a suit affecting the
parent-child relationship and both of the incapacitated person's
parents were named as joint managing conservators in the suit but
are no longer serving in that capacity.
SECTION 7. Subchapter A, Chapter 1, Family Code, is amended
by adding Section 1.0015 to read as follows:
Sec. 1.0015. CONSTRUCTION OF GENDER-SPECIFIC TERMINOLOGY.
When necessary to implement the rights and duties of spouses or
parents in a marriage between persons of the same sex under the laws
of this state, gender-specific terminology must be construed in a
neutral manner to refer to a person of either gender.
SECTION 8. Section 2.001(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) Two individuals [A man and a woman] desiring to enter
into a ceremonial marriage must obtain a marriage license from the
county clerk of any county of this state.
SECTION 9. Section 2.004(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The application form must contain:
(1) a heading entitled "Application for Marriage
License, ____________ County, Texas";
(2) spaces for each applicant's full name, including
the [woman's maiden] surname of an applicant intending to change
the applicant's surname as a result of the marriage, address,
social security number, if any, date of birth, and place of birth,
including city, county, and state;
(3) a space for indicating the document tendered by
each applicant as proof of identity and age;
(4) spaces for indicating whether each applicant has
been divorced within the last 30 days;
(5) printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"
or "false" in response to the following statement: "I am not
presently married and the other applicant is not presently
married.";
(6) printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"
or "false" in response to the following statement: "The other
applicant is not related to me as:
(A) an ancestor or descendant, by blood or
adoption;
(B) a brother or sister, of the whole or half
blood or by adoption;
(C) a parent's brother or sister, of the whole or
half blood or by adoption;
(D) a son or daughter of a brother or sister, of
the whole or half blood or by adoption;
(E) a current or former stepchild or stepparent;
or
(F) a son or daughter of a parent's brother or
sister, of the whole or half blood or by adoption.";
(7) printed boxes for each applicant to check "true"
or "false" in response to the following statement: "I am not
presently delinquent in the payment of court-ordered child
support.";
(8) a printed oath reading: "I SOLEMNLY SWEAR (OR
AFFIRM) THAT THE INFORMATION I HAVE GIVEN IN THIS APPLICATION IS
CORRECT.";
(9) spaces immediately below the printed oath for the
applicants' signatures;
(10) a certificate of the county clerk that:
(A) each applicant made the oath and the date and
place that it was made; or
(B) an applicant did not appear personally but
the prerequisites for the license have been fulfilled as provided
by this chapter;
(11) spaces for indicating the date of the marriage
and the county in which the marriage is performed;
(12) a space for the address to which the applicants
desire the completed license to be mailed; and
(13) a printed box for each applicant to check
indicating that the applicant wishes to make a voluntary
contribution of $5 to promote healthy early childhood by supporting
the Texas Home Visiting Program administered by the [Office of
Early Childhood Coordination of the] Health and Human Services
Commission.
SECTION 10. Section 2.401(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) In a judicial, administrative, or other proceeding, the
marriage of two individuals [a man and woman] may be proved by
evidence that:
(1) a declaration of their marriage has been signed as
provided by this subchapter; or
(2) the individuals [man and woman] agreed to be
married and after the agreement they lived together in this state as
spouses [husband and wife] and there represented to others that
they were married.
SECTION 11. Section 2.402(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The declaration form must contain:
(1) a heading entitled "Declaration and Registration
of Informal Marriage, ___________ County, Texas";
(2) spaces for each party's full name, including the
[woman's maiden] surname of a party intending to change the party's
surname as a result of the marriage, address, date of birth, place
of birth, including city, county, and state, and social security
number, if any;
(3) a space for indicating the type of document
tendered by each party as proof of age and identity;
(4) printed boxes for each party to check "true" or
"false" in response to the following statement: "The other party
is not related to me as:
(A) an ancestor or descendant, by blood or
adoption;
(B) a brother or sister, of the whole or half
blood or by adoption;
(C) a parent's brother or sister, of the whole or
half blood or by adoption;
(D) a son or daughter of a brother or sister, of
the whole or half blood or by adoption;
(E) a current or former stepchild or stepparent;
or
(F) a son or daughter of a parent's brother or
sister, of the whole or half blood or by adoption.";
(5) a printed declaration and oath reading: "I
SOLEMNLY SWEAR (OR AFFIRM) THAT WE, THE UNDERSIGNED, ARE MARRIED TO
EACH OTHER BY VIRTUE OF THE FOLLOWING FACTS: ON OR ABOUT (DATE) WE
AGREED TO BE MARRIED, AND AFTER THAT DATE WE LIVED TOGETHER AS
SPOUSES [HUSBAND AND WIFE] AND IN THIS STATE WE REPRESENTED TO
OTHERS THAT WE WERE MARRIED. SINCE THE DATE OF MARRIAGE TO THE
OTHER PARTY I HAVE NOT BEEN MARRIED TO ANY OTHER PERSON. THIS
DECLARATION IS TRUE AND THE INFORMATION IN IT WHICH I HAVE GIVEN IS
CORRECT.";
(6) spaces immediately below the printed declaration
and oath for the parties' signatures; and
(7) a certificate of the county clerk that the parties
made the declaration and oath and the place and date it was made.
SECTION 12. Section 3.401, Family Code, is amended by
adding Subdivision (1-a) and amending Subdivisions (4) and (5) to
read as follows:
(1-a) "Civil union" means any relationship status
other than marriage that:
(A) is intended as an alternative to marriage or
applies primarily to cohabitating persons; and
(B) grants to the parties of the relationship
legal protections, benefits, or responsibilities granted to the
spouses of a marriage.
(4) "Marital estate" means one of three estates:
(A) the community property owned by the spouses
together and referred to as the community marital estate; or
(B) the separate property owned individually by
each spouse [the husband] and referred to as a separate marital
estate[; or
[(C) the separate property owned individually by
the wife, also referred to as a separate marital estate].
(5) "Spouse" means one of the two individuals who are
the parties to:
(A) a marriage; or
(B) [a husband, who is a man, or a wife, who is a
woman. A member of] a civil union [or similar relationship] entered
into in another state [between persons of the same sex is not a
spouse].
SECTION 13. Section 6.104(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) In exercising its discretion, the court shall consider
the pertinent facts concerning the welfare of the parties to the
marriage, including whether a spouse [the female] is pregnant.
SECTION 14. Section 6.202(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The later marriage that is void under this section
becomes valid when the prior marriage is dissolved if, after the
date of the dissolution, the parties have lived together as spouses
[husband and wife] and represented themselves to others as being
married.
SECTION 15. Section 6.203, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 6.203. CERTAIN VOID MARRIAGES VALIDATED. Except for a
marriage that would have been void under Section 6.201, a marriage
that was entered into before January 1, 1970, in violation of the
prohibitions of Article 496, Penal Code of Texas, 1925, is
validated from the date the marriage commenced if the parties
continued until January 1, 1970, to live together as spouses
[husband and wife] and to represent themselves to others as being
married.
SECTION 16. Section 6.704, Family Code, is amended to read
as follows:
Sec. 6.704. TESTIMONY OF SPOUSE [HUSBAND OR WIFE]. (a) In
a suit for dissolution of a marriage, each spouse is a [the husband
and wife are] competent witness [witnesses] for and against the
[each] other spouse. A spouse may not be compelled to testify as to
a matter that will incriminate the spouse.
(b) If a spouse [the husband or wife] testifies, the court
or jury trying the case shall determine the credibility of the
witness and the weight to be given the witness's testimony.
SECTION 17. Subchapter B, Chapter 45, Family Code, is
amended by adding Section 45.108 to read as follows:
Sec. 45.108. CHANGE OF NAME AND VITAL STATISTICS
INFORMATION. (a) Subject to the eligibility requirements for a
name change under Section 45.103, a court shall order a change of
name under this subchapter for a petitioner whose petition is
accompanied by a sworn affidavit of a licensed physician stating
the petitioner identifies as a gender other than the gender
indicated on the petitioner's driver's license, birth certificate,
or other official document.
(b) A court that orders a change of name for a petitioner
under this section shall simultaneously order:
(1) the Department of Public Safety, as soon as
practicable, to change the petitioner's name and gender on the
petitioner's driver's license and other identification documents
under the department's control; and
(2) the vital statistics unit of the Department of
State Health Services, on receipt of a licensed physician's sworn
affidavit that the petitioner identifies as a gender other than the
gender indicated on the petitioner's birth certificate, to amend
the petitioner's birth certificate in the manner provided by
Section 192.011, Health and Safety Code, to reflect the
petitioner's true gender.
(c) This section may not be construed to require a surgical
procedure as a prerequisite for a court order under Subsection (a)
or (b).
SECTION 18. Chapter 51, Family Code, is amended by adding
Section 51.015 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.015. CONSTRUCTION OF GENDER-SPECIFIC TERMINOLOGY.
When necessary to implement the rights and duties of spouses or
parents in a marriage between persons of the same sex under the laws
of this state, gender-specific terminology must be construed in a
neutral manner to refer to a person of either gender.
SECTION 19. Chapter 101, Family Code, is amended by adding
Section 101.0012 to read as follows:
Sec. 101.0012. CONSTRUCTION OF GENDER-SPECIFIC
TERMINOLOGY. When necessary to implement the rights and duties of
spouses or parents in a marriage between persons of the same sex
under the laws of this state, gender-specific terminology must be
construed in a neutral manner to refer to a person of either gender.
SECTION 20. Section 101.024(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) "Parent" means the mother, a man presumed to be the
father, an individual [a man] legally determined to be a parent [the
father], an individual [a man] who has been adjudicated to be a
parent [the father] by a court of competent jurisdiction, an
individual [a man] who has acknowledged the individual's parentage
[his paternity] under applicable law, or an adoptive mother or
father. Except as provided by Subsection (b), the term does not
include a parent as to whom the parent-child relationship has been
terminated.
SECTION 21. Section 108.009(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The new certificate may not show that a parent-child
[the father and child] relationship was established after the
child's birth but may show the child's actual place and date of
birth.
SECTION 22. Section 152.310(d), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(d) A privilege against disclosure of communications
between spouses and a defense of immunity based on the relationship
of spouses [husband and wife] or parent and child may not be invoked
in a proceeding under this subchapter.
SECTION 23. Section 153.312(b), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The following provisions govern possession of the child
for vacations and certain specific holidays and supersede
conflicting weekend or Thursday periods of possession. The
possessory conservator and the managing conservator shall have
rights of possession of the child as follows:
(1) the possessory conservator shall have possession
in even-numbered years, beginning at 6 p.m. on the day the child is
dismissed from school for the school's spring vacation and ending
at 6 p.m. on the day before school resumes after that vacation, and
the managing conservator shall have possession for the same period
in odd-numbered years;
(2) if a possessory conservator:
(A) gives the managing conservator written
notice by April 1 of each year specifying an extended period or
periods of summer possession, the possessory conservator shall have
possession of the child for 30 days beginning not earlier than the
day after the child's school is dismissed for the summer vacation
and ending not later than seven days before school resumes at the
end of the summer vacation, to be exercised in not more than two
separate periods of at least seven consecutive days each, with each
period of possession beginning and ending at 6 p.m. on each
applicable day; or
(B) does not give the managing conservator
written notice by April 1 of each year specifying an extended period
or periods of summer possession, the possessory conservator shall
have possession of the child for 30 consecutive days beginning at 6
p.m. on July 1 and ending at 6 p.m. on July 31;
(3) if the managing conservator gives the possessory
conservator written notice by April 15 of each year, the managing
conservator shall have possession of the child on any one weekend
beginning Friday at 6 p.m. and ending at 6 p.m. on the following
Sunday during one period of possession by the possessory
conservator under Subdivision (2), provided that the managing
conservator picks up the child from the possessory conservator and
returns the child to that same place; and
(4) if the managing conservator gives the possessory
conservator written notice by April 15 of each year or gives the
possessory conservator 14 days' written notice on or after April 16
of each year, the managing conservator may designate one weekend
beginning not earlier than the day after the child's school is
dismissed for the summer vacation and ending not later than seven
days before school resumes at the end of the summer vacation, during
which an otherwise scheduled weekend period of possession by the
possessory conservator will not take place, provided that the
weekend designated does not interfere with the possessory
conservator's period or periods of extended summer possession or
with Father's Day if the possessory conservator is a [the] father of
the child who is entitled to possession of the child for Father's
Day weekend that year.
SECTION 24. Sections 153.313 and 153.314, Family Code, are
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 153.313. PARENTS WHO RESIDE OVER 100 MILES APART. If
the possessory conservator resides more than 100 miles from the
residence of the child, the possessory conservator shall have the
right to possession of the child as follows:
(1) either regular weekend possession beginning on the
first, third, and fifth Friday as provided under the terms
applicable to parents who reside 100 miles or less apart or not more
than one weekend per month of the possessory conservator's choice
beginning at 6 p.m. on the day school recesses for the weekend and
ending at 6 p.m. on the day before school resumes after the weekend,
provided that the possessory conservator gives the managing
conservator 14 days' written or telephonic notice preceding a
designated weekend, and provided that the possessory conservator
elects an option for this alternative period of possession by
written notice given to the managing conservator within 90 days
after the parties begin to reside more than 100 miles apart, as
applicable;
(2) each year beginning at 6 p.m. on the day the child
is dismissed from school for the school's spring vacation and
ending at 6 p.m. on the day before school resumes after that
vacation;
(3) if the possessory conservator:
(A) gives the managing conservator written
notice by April 1 of each year specifying an extended period or
periods of summer possession, the possessory conservator shall have
possession of the child for 42 days beginning not earlier than the
day after the child's school is dismissed for the summer vacation
and ending not later than seven days before school resumes at the
end of the summer vacation, to be exercised in not more than two
separate periods of at least seven consecutive days each, with each
period of possession beginning and ending at 6 p.m. on each
applicable day; or
(B) does not give the managing conservator
written notice by April 1 of each year specifying an extended period
or periods of summer possession, the possessory conservator shall
have possession of the child for 42 consecutive days beginning at 6
p.m. on June 15 and ending at 6 p.m. on July 27;
(4) if the managing conservator gives the possessory
conservator written notice by April 15 of each year the managing
conservator shall have possession of the child on one weekend
beginning Friday at 6 p.m. and ending at 6 p.m. on the following
Sunday during one period of possession by the possessory
conservator under Subdivision (3), provided that if a period of
possession by the possessory conservator exceeds 30 days, the
managing conservator may have possession of the child under the
terms of this subdivision on two nonconsecutive weekends during
that time period, and further provided that the managing
conservator picks up the child from the possessory conservator and
returns the child to that same place; and
(5) if the managing conservator gives the possessory
conservator written notice by April 15 of each year, the managing
conservator may designate 21 days beginning not earlier than the
day after the child's school is dismissed for the summer vacation
and ending not later than seven days before school resumes at the
end of the summer vacation, to be exercised in not more than two
separate periods of at least seven consecutive days each, with each
period of possession beginning and ending at 6 p.m. on each
applicable day, during which the possessory conservator may not
have possession of the child, provided that the period or periods so
designated do not interfere with the possessory conservator's
period or periods of extended summer possession or with Father's
Day if the possessory conservator is a [the] father of the child who
is entitled to possession of the child for Father's Day weekend that
year.
Sec. 153.314. HOLIDAY POSSESSION UNAFFECTED BY DISTANCE
PARENTS RESIDE APART. The following provisions govern possession
of the child for certain specific holidays and supersede
conflicting weekend or Thursday periods of possession without
regard to the distance the parents reside apart. The possessory
conservator and the managing conservator shall have rights of
possession of the child as follows:
(1) the possessory conservator shall have possession
of the child in even-numbered years beginning at 6 p.m. on the day
the child is dismissed from school for the Christmas school
vacation and ending at noon on December 28, and the managing
conservator shall have possession for the same period in
odd-numbered years;
(2) the possessory conservator shall have possession
of the child in odd-numbered years beginning at noon on December 28
and ending at 6 p.m. on the day before school resumes after that
vacation, and the managing conservator shall have possession for
the same period in even-numbered years;
(3) the possessory conservator shall have possession
of the child in odd-numbered years, beginning at 6 p.m. on the day
the child is dismissed from school before Thanksgiving and ending
at 6 p.m. on the following Sunday, and the managing conservator
shall have possession for the same period in even-numbered years;
(4) the parent not otherwise entitled under this
standard possession order to present possession of a child on the
child's birthday shall have possession of the child beginning at 6
p.m. and ending at 8 p.m. on that day, provided that the parent
picks up the child from the residence of the conservator entitled to
possession and returns the child to that same place;
(5) if a conservator, the father shall have possession
of the child beginning at 6 p.m. on the Friday preceding Father's
Day and ending on Father's Day at 6 p.m., provided that, if he is not
otherwise entitled under this standard possession order to present
possession of the child, he picks up the child from the residence of
the conservator entitled to possession and returns the child to
that same place, except if the child has two fathers appointed as
conservators, the managing conservator shall have possession of the
child for the period described by this subdivision in even-numbered
years and the possessory conservator shall have possession of the
child for that period in odd-numbered years; and
(6) if a conservator, the mother shall have possession
of the child beginning at 6 p.m. on the Friday preceding Mother's
Day and ending on Mother's Day at 6 p.m., provided that, if she is
not otherwise entitled under this standard possession order to
present possession of the child, she picks up the child from the
residence of the conservator entitled to possession and returns the
child to that same place, except if the child has two mothers
appointed as conservators, the managing conservator shall have
possession of the child for the period described by this
subdivision in even-numbered years and the possessory conservator
shall have possession of the child for that period in odd-numbered
years.
SECTION 25. Section 159.316(i), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(i) The defense of immunity based on the relationship of
spouses [husband and wife] or parent and child does not apply in a
proceeding under this chapter.
SECTION 26. Section 162.014(a), Family Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) If the joint petitioners are spouses [husband and wife]
and it would be unduly difficult for one of the petitioners to
appear at the hearing, the court may waive the attendance of that
petitioner if the other spouse is present.
SECTION 27. Section 24.601(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) A family district court has primary responsibility for
cases involving family law matters. These matters include:
(1) adoptions;
(2) birth records;
(3) divorce and marriage annulment;
(4) child welfare, custody, support and reciprocal
support, dependency, neglect, and delinquency;
(5) parent and child; and
(6) spouses [husband and wife].
SECTION 28. Section 573.025(a), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) Spouses [A husband and wife] are related to each other
in the first degree by affinity. For other relationships by
affinity, the degree of relationship is the same as the degree of
the underlying relationship by consanguinity. For example: if two
individuals are related to each other in the second degree by
consanguinity, the spouse of one of the individuals is related to
the other individual in the second degree by affinity.
SECTION 29. Section 85.007(b), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) The materials in the education programs intended for
persons younger than 18 years of age must[:
[(1)] emphasize sexual abstinence before marriage and
fidelity in marriage as the expected standard in terms of public
health and the most effective ways to prevent HIV infection,
sexually transmitted diseases, and unwanted pregnancies[; and
[(2) state that homosexual conduct is not an
acceptable lifestyle and is a criminal offense under Section 21.06,
Penal Code].
SECTION 30. Section 163.002, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 163.002. INSTRUCTIONAL ELEMENTS. Course materials and
instruction relating to sexual education or sexually transmitted
diseases should include:
(1) an emphasis on sexual abstinence as the only
completely reliable method of avoiding unwanted teenage pregnancy
and sexually transmitted diseases;
(2) an emphasis on the importance of self-control,
responsibility, and ethical conduct in making decisions relating to
sexual behavior;
(3) statistics, based on the latest medical
information, that indicate the efficacy of the various forms of
contraception;
(4) information concerning the laws relating to the
financial responsibilities associated with pregnancy, childbirth,
and child rearing;
(5) information concerning the laws prohibiting
sexual abuse and the legal and counseling options available to
victims of sexual abuse;
(6) information on how to cope with and rebuff
unwanted physical and verbal sexual advances, as well as the
importance of avoiding the sexual exploitation of other persons;
(7) psychologically sound methods of resisting
unwanted peer pressure; and
(8) emphasis, provided in a factual manner and from a
public health perspective, that homosexuality is not a lifestyle
acceptable to the general public [and that homosexual conduct is a
criminal offense under Section 21.06, Penal Code].
SECTION 31. Section 164.052(a), Occupations Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) A physician or an applicant for a license to practice
medicine commits a prohibited practice if that person:
(1) submits to the board a false or misleading
statement, document, or certificate in an application for a
license;
(2) presents to the board a license, certificate, or
diploma that was illegally or fraudulently obtained;
(3) commits fraud or deception in taking or passing an
examination;
(4) uses alcohol or drugs in an intemperate manner
that, in the board's opinion, could endanger a patient's life;
(5) commits unprofessional or dishonorable conduct
that is likely to deceive or defraud the public, as provided by
Section 164.053, or injure the public;
(6) uses an advertising statement that is false,
misleading, or deceptive;
(7) advertises professional superiority or the
performance of professional service in a superior manner if that
advertising is not readily subject to verification;
(8) purchases, sells, barters, or uses, or offers to
purchase, sell, barter, or use, a medical degree, license,
certificate, or diploma, or a transcript of a license, certificate,
or diploma in or incident to an application to the board for a
license to practice medicine;
(9) alters, with fraudulent intent, a medical license,
certificate, or diploma, or a transcript of a medical license,
certificate, or diploma;
(10) uses a medical license, certificate, or diploma,
or a transcript of a medical license, certificate, or diploma that
has been:
(A) fraudulently purchased or issued;
(B) counterfeited; or
(C) materially altered;
(11) impersonates or acts as proxy for another person
in an examination required by this subtitle for a medical license;
(12) engages in conduct that subverts or attempts to
subvert an examination process required by this subtitle for a
medical license;
(13) impersonates a physician or permits another to
use the person's license or certificate to practice medicine in
this state;
(14) directly or indirectly employs a person whose
license to practice medicine has been suspended, canceled, or
revoked;
(15) associates in the practice of medicine with a
person:
(A) whose license to practice medicine has been
suspended, canceled, or revoked; or
(B) who has been convicted of the unlawful
practice of medicine in this state or elsewhere;
(16) performs or procures a criminal abortion, aids or
abets in the procuring of a criminal abortion, attempts to perform
or procure a criminal abortion, or attempts to aid or abet the
performance or procurement of a criminal abortion;
(17) directly or indirectly aids or abets the practice
of medicine by a person, partnership, association, or corporation
that is not licensed to practice medicine by the board;
(18) performs an abortion on a woman who is pregnant
with a viable unborn child during the third trimester of the
pregnancy unless:
(A) the abortion is necessary to prevent the
death of the woman;
(B) the viable unborn child has a severe,
irreversible brain impairment; or
(C) the woman is diagnosed with a significant
likelihood of suffering imminent severe, irreversible brain damage
or imminent severe, irreversible paralysis;
(19) performs an abortion on an unemancipated minor
without the written consent of the child's parent, managing
conservator, or legal guardian or without a court order, as
provided by Section 33.003 or 33.004, Family Code, unless the
abortion is necessary due to a medical emergency, as defined by
Section 171.002, Health and Safety Code;
(20) otherwise performs an abortion on an
unemancipated minor in violation of Chapter 33, Family Code;
(21) performs or induces or attempts to perform or
induce an abortion in violation of Subchapter C, F, or G, Chapter
171, Health and Safety Code;
(22) in complying with the procedures outlined in
Sections 166.045 and 166.046, Health and Safety Code, wilfully
fails to make a reasonable effort to transfer a patient to a
physician who is willing to comply with a directive; or
(23) performs or delegates to another individual the
performance of a pelvic examination on an anesthetized or
unconscious patient in violation of Section 167A.002, Health and
Safety Code [; or
[(24) performs a gender transitioning or gender
reassignment procedure or treatment in violation of Section
161.702, Health and Safety Code].
SECTION 32. Section 21.11(b), Penal Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
section that the actor:
(1) was not more than three years older than the victim
[and of the opposite sex];
(2) did not use duress, force, or a threat against the
victim at the time of the offense; and
(3) at the time of the offense:
(A) was not required under Chapter 62, Code of
Criminal Procedure, to register for life as a sex offender; or
(B) was not a person who under Chapter 62, Code of
Criminal Procedure, had a reportable conviction or adjudication for
an offense under this section.
SECTION 33. Section 301.003, Property Code, is amended by
amending Subdivision (6) and adding Subdivisions (9-a) and (10-a)
to read as follows:
(6) "Disability" means a mental or physical impairment
that substantially limits at least one major life activity, a
record of the impairment, or being regarded as having the
impairment. The term does not include current illegal use or
addiction to any drug or illegal or federally controlled substance
[and does not apply to an individual because of an individual's
sexual orientation or because that individual is a transvestite].
(9-a) "Gender identity or expression" means having or
being perceived as having a gender-related identity, appearance,
expression, or behavior, regardless of whether that identity,
appearance, expression, or behavior is different from that commonly
associated with the individual's actual or perceived sex.
(10-a) "Sexual orientation" means the actual or
perceived status of an individual with respect to the individual's
sexuality.
SECTION 34. Sections 301.021(a) and (b), Property Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) A person may not refuse to sell or rent, after the making
of a bona fide offer, refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of,
or in any other manner make unavailable or deny a dwelling to
another because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status,
[or] national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity or
expression.
(b) A person may not discriminate against another in the
terms, conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling or
in providing services or facilities in connection with a sale or
rental of a dwelling because of race, color, religion, sex,
familial status, [or] national origin, sexual orientation, or
gender identity or expression.
SECTION 35. Section 301.022, Property Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 301.022. PUBLICATION. A person may not make, print, or
publish or effect the making, printing, or publishing of a notice,
statement, or advertisement that is about the sale or rental of a
dwelling and that indicates any preference, limitation, or
discrimination or the intention to make a preference, limitation,
or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex,
disability, familial status, [or] national origin, sexual
orientation, or gender identity or expression.
SECTION 36. Section 301.023, Property Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 301.023. INSPECTION. A person may not represent to
another because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial
status, [or] national origin, sexual orientation, or gender
identity or expression that a dwelling is not available for
inspection for sale or rental when the dwelling is available for
inspection.
SECTION 37. Section 301.024, Property Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 301.024. ENTRY INTO NEIGHBORHOOD. A person may not,
for profit, induce or attempt to induce another to sell or rent a
dwelling by representations regarding the entry or prospective
entry into a neighborhood of a person of a particular race, color,
religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression.
SECTION 38. Section 301.026(a), Property Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) A person whose business includes engaging in
residential real estate related transactions may not discriminate
against another in making a real estate related transaction
available or in the terms or conditions of a real estate related
transaction because of race, color, religion, sex, disability,
familial status, [or] national origin, sexual orientation, or
gender identity or expression.
SECTION 39. Section 301.027, Property Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 301.027. BROKERAGE SERVICES. A person may not deny
another access to, or membership or participation in, a
multiple-listing service, real estate brokers' organization, or
other service, organization, or facility relating to the business
of selling or renting dwellings, or discriminate against a person
in the terms or conditions of access, membership, or participation
in such an organization, service, or facility because of race,
color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national
origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression.
SECTION 40. Sections 301.042(a) and (c), Property Code, are
amended to read as follows:
(a) This chapter does not prohibit a religious
organization, association, or society or a nonprofit institution or
organization operated, supervised, or controlled by or in
conjunction with a religious organization, association, or society
from:
(1) limiting the sale, rental, or occupancy of
dwellings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial
purpose to persons of the same religion; or
(2) giving preference to persons of the same religion,
unless membership in the religion is restricted because of race,
color, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression.
(c) This chapter does not prohibit a person engaged in the
business of furnishing appraisals of real property from considering
in those appraisals factors other than race, color, religion, sex,
disability, familial status, [or] national origin, sexual
orientation, or gender identity or expression.
SECTION 41. Section 301.068, Property Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 301.068. REFERRAL TO MUNICIPALITY. (a) Subject to
Subsection (b), the [The] commission may defer proceedings under
this chapter and refer a complaint to a municipality that has been
certified by the federal Department of Housing and Urban
Development as a substantially equivalent fair housing agency.
(b) The commission may not defer proceedings and refer a
complaint under Subsection (a) to a municipality in which the
alleged discrimination occurred if:
(1) the complaint alleges discrimination based on
sexual orientation or gender identity or expression; and
(2) the municipality does not have laws prohibiting
the alleged discrimination.
SECTION 42. Section 301.171(a), Property Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(a) A person commits an offense if the person, without
regard to whether the person is acting under color of law, by force
or threat of force intentionally intimidates or interferes with a
person:
(1) because of the person's race, color, religion,
sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin, sexual
orientation, or gender identity or expression and because the
person is or has been selling, purchasing, renting, financing,
occupying, or contracting or negotiating for the sale, purchase,
rental, financing, or occupation of any dwelling or applying for or
participating in a service, organization, or facility relating to
the business of selling or renting dwellings; or
(2) because the person is or has been or to intimidate
the person from:
(A) participating, without discrimination
because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status,
[or] national origin, sexual orientation, or gender identity or
expression, in an activity, service, organization, or facility
described by Subdivision (1); [or]
(B) affording another person opportunity or
protection to so participate; or
(C) lawfully aiding or encouraging other persons
to participate, without discrimination because of race, color,
religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression, in an
activity, service, organization, or facility described by
Subdivision (1).
SECTION 43. The following laws are repealed:
(1) Section 2.001(b), Family Code;
(2) Section 6.204, Family Code;
(3) Sections 810.001(g), (h), and (i), Government
Code;
(4) Section 62.151(g), Health and Safety Code;
(5) Subchapter X, Chapter 161, Health and Safety Code,
as added by Chapter 335 (S.B. 14), Acts of the 88th Legislature,
Regular Session, 2023;
(6) Section 32.024(pp), Human Resources Code;
(7) Section 164.0552, Occupations Code; and
(8) Section 21.06, Penal Code.
SECTION 44. Article 42.014, Code of Criminal Procedure, as
amended by this Act, applies only to an offense committed on or
after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before
the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on
the date the offense was committed, and the former law is continued
in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense
was committed before the effective date of this Act if any element
of the offense occurred before that date.
SECTION 45. (a) Notwithstanding Section 11.172(e),
Education Code, as added by this Act, each school district and
open-enrollment charter school shall submit to the Texas Education
Agency information described by that subsection for the 2025-2026
school year not later than October 1, 2026, and the Texas Education
Agency shall include the submitted information in the comprehensive
biennial report required by Section 39.332, Education Code, to be
submitted by the agency not later than December 1, 2026. As
authorized by Section 11.172(e), Education Code, as added by this
Act, the commissioner of education in a timely manner shall adopt
any rules necessary to implement the deadlines specified by this
subsection.
(b) Beginning with the comprehensive biennial report
required by Section 39.332, Education Code, to be submitted not
later than December 1, 2028, the Texas Education Agency shall
include information submitted by school districts and
open-enrollment charter schools in accordance with Section
11.172(e), Education Code, as added by this Act, for the preceding
two school years.
(c) Section 11.172, Education Code, as added by this Act,
applies beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.
SECTION 46. Section 121.151, Estates Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to the estate of a decedent who dies on or
after the effective date of this Act. The estate of a decedent who
dies before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law as
it existed immediately before the effective date of this Act, and
that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 47. Section 1104.001, Estates Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to an application for the appointment of a
guardian filed on or after the effective date of this Act. An
application for appointment of a guardian filed before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the application was filed, and that law is continued in effect
for that purpose.
SECTION 48. Section 108.009(b), Family Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to a new birth certificate for a child born
on or after the effective date of this Act. A new birth certificate
for a child born before that date is governed by the law in effect on
the date the child was born, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 49. Sections 153.312(b), 153.313, and 153.314,
Family Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to a court order
providing for possession of or access to a child rendered on or
after the effective date of this Act. A court order rendered before
the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on
the date the order was rendered, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 50. Sections 159.316 and 162.014, Family Code, as
amended by this Act, apply only to a suit affecting the parent-child
relationship filed on or after the effective date of this Act. A
suit affecting the parent-child relationship filed before that date
is governed by the law in effect on the date the suit was filed, and
that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 51. Section 24.601, Government Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to an action filed on or after the effective
date of this Act. An action filed before the effective date of this
Act is governed by the law on the date the action was filed, and that
law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 52. Section 164.052, Occupations Code, as amended
by this Act, and Section 164.0552, Occupations Code, as repealed by
this Act, apply only to conduct that occurs on or after the
effective date of this Act. Conduct that occurs before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the conduct occurred, and the former law is continued in effect
for that purpose.
SECTION 53. Section 21.11(b), Penal Code, as amended by
this Act, applies to an offense committed on or after the effective
date of this Act and to any criminal action pending on the effective
date of this Act for an offense committed before that effective
date. A final conviction for an offense under Section 21.11, Penal
Code, that exists on the effective date of this Act is unaffected by
this Act.
SECTION 54. Sections 301.003, 301.021, 301.022, 301.023,
301.024, 301.026, 301.027, 301.042, 301.068, and 301.171, Property
Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to a complaint filed with
the Texas Workforce Commission civil rights division on or after
the effective date of this Act. A complaint filed before that date
is governed by the law as it existed immediately before the
effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for
that purpose.
SECTION 55. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
over another Act of the 89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025,
relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
codes.
SECTION 56. (a) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection
(b) of this section, this Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
(b) Section 11.172, Education Code, as added by this Act,
takes effect immediately if this Act receives a vote of two-thirds
of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39,
Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the
vote necessary for Section 11.172, Education Code, as added by this
Act, to have immediate effect, that section takes effect September
1, 2025.