| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to increasing the criminal penalty for making certain |
|
|
false reports and to restitution for emergency response costs |
|
|
associated with those false reports. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Article 42.037(w), Code of Criminal Procedure, |
|
|
is amended to read as follows: |
|
|
(w) If a defendant is convicted of an offense under Section |
|
|
42.0601, Penal Code, or an offense punishable under Section |
|
|
42.06(b)(2), Penal Code, the court may order the defendant to make |
|
|
restitution to an entity for the reasonable costs of the emergency |
|
|
response by that entity resulting from the false report. |
|
|
SECTION 2. Section 42.06(b), Penal Code, is amended to read |
|
|
as follows: |
|
|
(b) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor, |
|
|
except that the offense is: |
|
|
(1) a state jail felony if [unless] the false report is |
|
|
of an emergency involving [a public or private institution of |
|
|
higher education or involving a public primary or secondary |
|
|
school,] public communications, public transportation, public |
|
|
water, gas, or power supply or other public service; or |
|
|
(2) a felony of the third degree if the false report is |
|
|
of an emergency involving: |
|
|
(A) a public or private institution of higher |
|
|
education; or |
|
|
(B) a public or private primary or secondary |
|
|
school [, in which event the offense is a state jail felony]. |
|
|
SECTION 3. 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 was |
|
|
committed before that date. |
|
|
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |