By: AnchÃa H.B. No. 3541
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to certain criminal offenses concerning the unlawful
transfer or purchase of certain weapons; increasing a criminal
penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. The heading to Section 46.06, Penal Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 46.06. UNLAWFUL TRANSFER OR PURCHASE OF CERTAIN
WEAPONS.
SECTION 2. Section 46.06, Penal Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a), (c), and (d) and adding Subsections
(a-1), (c-1), (e), and (f) to read as follows:
(a) A person commits an offense if the person:
(1) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a firearm
[handgun] to any person knowing that the person to whom the firearm
[handgun] is to be delivered intends to use the firearm [it]
unlawfully or in the commission of an unlawful act; or
(2) purchases or attempts to purchase a firearm with
intent to deliver the firearm to a person knowing that the person to
whom the firearm is to be delivered intends to possess the firearm
unlawfully or to use the firearm unlawfully or in the commission of
an unlawful act.
(a-1) A person commits an offense if the person:
(1) [(2)] intentionally or knowingly sells, rents,
leases, or gives or offers to sell, rent, lease, or give to any
child younger than 18 years of age any firearm, club, or
location-restricted knife;
(2) [(3)] intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly
sells a firearm or ammunition for a firearm to any person who is
intoxicated;
(3) [(4)] knowingly sells a firearm or ammunition for
a firearm to any person who has been convicted of a felony before
the fifth anniversary of the later of the following dates:
(A) the person's release from confinement
following conviction of the felony; or
(B) the person's release from supervision under
community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision following
conviction of the felony;
(4) [(5)] sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a
handgun to any person knowing that an active protective order is
directed to the person to whom the handgun is to be delivered;
(5) [(6)] knowingly purchases, rents, leases, or
receives as a loan or gift from another a handgun while an active
protective order is directed to the actor; or
(6) [(7)] while prohibited from possessing a firearm
under state or federal law, knowingly makes a material false
statement on a form that is:
(A) required by state or federal law for the
purchase, sale, or other transfer of a firearm; and
(B) submitted to a [licensed] firearms dealer
licensed under [, as defined by] 18 U.S.C. Section 923.
(c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
Subsection (a-1)(1) [(a)(2)] that the transfer was to a minor whose
parent or the person having legal custody of the minor had given
written permission for the sale or, if the transfer was other than a
sale, the parent or person having legal custody had given effective
consent.
(c-1) The renunciation defense described by Section
15.04(a) is available as an affirmative defense to prosecution of
an attempted purchase under Subsection (a)(2).
(d) An offense under Subsection (a) is a felony of the third
degree.
(e) An offense under Subsection (a-1) [this section] is a
Class A misdemeanor, except that:
(1) an offense under Subsection (a-1)(1) [(a)(2)] is a
state jail felony if the weapon that is the subject of the offense
is a handgun; and
(2) an offense under Subsection (a-1)(6) [(a)(7)] is a
state jail felony.
(f) To the extent of any conflict between this section and a
federal law related to the unlawful transfer or purchase of
weapons, the federal law prevails.
SECTION 3. Article 59.01(2), Code of Criminal Procedure, is
amended to read as follows:
(2) "Contraband" means property of any nature,
including real, personal, tangible, or intangible, that is:
(A) used in the commission of:
(i) any first or second degree felony under
the Penal Code;
(ii) any felony under Section 15.031(b),
21.11, or 38.04 or Chapter 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 33A, or 35, Penal
Code;
(iii) any felony under Chapter 43, Penal
Code, except as provided by Paragraph (B);
(iv) any felony under The Securities Act
(Title 12, Government Code); or
(v) any offense under Chapter 49, Penal
Code, that is punishable as a felony of the third degree or state
jail felony, if the defendant has been previously convicted three
times of an offense under that chapter;
(B) used or intended to be used in the commission
of:
(i) any felony under Chapter 481, Health
and Safety Code (Texas Controlled Substances Act);
(ii) any felony under Chapter 483, Health
and Safety Code;
(iii) a felony under Chapter 151, Finance
Code;
(iv) any felony under Chapter 20A or 34,
Penal Code;
(v) a Class A misdemeanor under Subchapter
B, Chapter 365, Health and Safety Code, if the defendant has been
previously convicted twice of an offense under that subchapter;
(vi) any felony under Chapter 32, Human
Resources Code, or Chapter 31, 32, 35A, or 37, Penal Code, that
involves a health care program, as defined by Section 35A.01, Penal
Code;
(vii) a Class B misdemeanor under Chapter
522, Business & Commerce Code;
(viii) a Class A misdemeanor under Section
306.051, Business & Commerce Code;
(ix) any offense under Section 42.10, Penal
Code;
(x) any offense under Section 46.06(a)
[46.06(a)(1)] or 46.14, Penal Code;
(xi) any offense under Chapter 71, Penal
Code;
(xii) any offense under Section 20.05,
20.06, 20.07, 43.04, or 43.05, Penal Code;
(xiii) an offense under Section 326.002,
Business & Commerce Code; or
(xiv) a Class A misdemeanor or any felony
under Section 545.420, Transportation Code, other than a Class A
misdemeanor that is classified as a Class A misdemeanor based
solely on conduct constituting a violation of Subsection (e)(2)(B)
of that section;
(C) the proceeds gained from the commission of a
felony listed in Paragraph (A) or (B) of this subdivision, a
misdemeanor listed in Paragraph (B)(vii), (ix), (x), (xi), or (xii)
of this subdivision, or a crime of violence;
(D) acquired with proceeds gained from the
commission of a felony listed in Paragraph (A) or (B) of this
subdivision, a misdemeanor listed in Paragraph (B)(vii), (ix), (x),
(xi), or (xii) of this subdivision, or a crime of violence;
(E) used to facilitate or intended to be used to
facilitate the commission of a felony under Section 15.031 or
Chapter 43, Penal Code; or
(F) used to facilitate or intended to be used to
facilitate the commission of an offense under Section 20.05, 20.06,
or 20.07 or Chapter 20A, Penal Code.
SECTION 4. Section 71.02(a), Penal Code, is amended to read
as follows:
(a) A person commits an offense if, with the intent to
establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the
profits of a combination or as a member of a criminal street gang,
the person commits or conspires to commit one or more of the
following:
(1) murder, capital murder, arson, aggravated
robbery, robbery, burglary, theft, aggravated kidnapping,
kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault, sexual
assault, continuous sexual abuse of young child or disabled
individual, solicitation of a minor, forgery, deadly conduct,
assault punishable as a Class A misdemeanor, burglary of a motor
vehicle, or unauthorized use of a motor vehicle;
(2) any gambling offense punishable as a Class A
misdemeanor;
(3) promotion of prostitution, aggravated promotion
of prostitution, or compelling prostitution;
(4) unlawful manufacture, transportation, repair, or
sale of firearms or prohibited weapons;
(5) unlawful manufacture, delivery, dispensation, or
distribution of a controlled substance or dangerous drug, or
unlawful possession of a controlled substance or dangerous drug
through forgery, fraud, misrepresentation, or deception;
(5-a) causing the unlawful delivery, dispensation, or
distribution of a controlled substance or dangerous drug in
violation of Subtitle B, Title 3, Occupations Code;
(6) any unlawful wholesale promotion or possession of
any obscene material or obscene device with the intent to wholesale
promote the same;
(7) any offense under Subchapter B, Chapter 43,
depicting or involving conduct by or directed toward a child
younger than 18 years of age;
(8) any felony offense under Chapter 32;
(9) any offense under Chapter 36;
(10) any offense under Chapter 34, 35, or 35A;
(11) any offense under Section 37.11(a);
(12) any offense under Chapter 20A;
(13) any offense under Section 37.10;
(14) any offense under Section 38.06, 38.07, 38.09, or
38.11;
(15) any offense under Section 42.10;
(16) any offense under Section 46.06(a) [46.06(a)(1)]
or 46.14;
(17) any offense under Section 20.05 or 20.06;
(18) any offense under Section 16.02; or
(19) any offense classified as a felony under the Tax
Code.
SECTION 5. 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 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.