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House Bill 1925 |
House Author: Capriglione et al. |
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Effective: 9-1-21 |
Senate Sponsor: Buckingham et al. |
House Bill 1925 amends the Government Code, Local Government Code, and Penal Code to prohibit a local entity from adopting or enforcing a policy under which the entity prohibits or discourages the enforcement of any public camping ban and from prohibiting or discouraging a peace officer or prosecuting attorney who is employed by or otherwise under the entity's direction or control from enforcing a public camping ban. The bill authorizes the attorney general to bring an action to enjoin a violation of that prohibition and provides for the denial of state grant funds to the local entity.
House Bill 1925 makes it a Class C misdemeanor offense for a person to intentionally or knowingly camp in a public place without the effective consent of the officer or agency having the legal duty or authority to manage the public place, with certain exceptions. The bill requires a peace officer, before or at the time the officer issues a citation for the offense, to make a reasonable effort to advise the person of an alternative place where they may lawfully camp and to contact an appropriate official or nonprofit organization to provide the person with information regarding the prevention of human trafficking or any other services that would reduce the likelihood of the person continuing to camp in the public place. If the person is arrested or detained solely for that offense, the arresting or detaining officer must ensure that all of the person's personal property not designated as contraband is preserved.
House Bill 1925 provides for the authorized camping by homeless individuals on property designated for that purpose. The bill prohibits a political subdivision from designating a property to be used by homeless individuals to camp unless the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) approves a plan to designate the property for that purpose and prohibits the TDHCA from approving such a plan if the proposed property under the plan is a public park.