By: Vasut H.B. No. 1625
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the penalties for the offense of passing certain
vehicles, creating a criminal offense, increasing a criminal
penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as the Kevin Alexis
Ramirez Vasquez Act.
SECTION 2. Section 521.292(a), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Section 521.457(h), 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 collision
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 Sections
545.157(c)(1), (c)(2), (c)(3), or 545.421.
SECTION 3. Section 545.157(c), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(c) A person who violates this section commits an offense.
An offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine
of not less than $500 or more than $1,250, except that the offense
is:
(1) a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than
$1,000 or more than $2,000 for a second or subsequent offense
committed within five years of the date on which the most recent
preceding offense was committed;
(2) a Class A misdemeanor if the offense results in a
collision [bodily injury to another]; or
(3) a state jail felony for a second or subsequent
offense punishable under Subdivision (2) or an offense resulting in
bodily injury to another.
SECTION 4. The change in law made 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 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.