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House Bill 2552 |
House Author: Thompson, Senfronia et al. |
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Effective: 9-1-17 |
Senate Sponsor: Huffman et al. |
House Bill 2552 amends the Business & Commerce Code, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, Education Code, Government Code, Health and Safety Code, Occupations Code, Penal Code, and Property Code to set out and revise provisions relating to measures that address and deter certain criminal or other unlawful activity. The bill, among other provisions, makes owning, operating, maintaining, or advertising a massage establishment that is not appropriately licensed or in compliance with the applicable requirements or a local ordinance a false, misleading, or deceptive act or practice for purposes of the Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act. The bill establishes that, subject to specified exceptions, a person operating a web address or computer network in connection with certain specified activity maintains a common nuisance and also provides for the bringing of suit to declare that a person so operating a web address or computer network is maintaining a common nuisance.
House Bill 2552 requires a law enforcement agency that makes an arrest related to certain prostitution-related or violative massage services activity at a property leased to a massage establishment to provide written notice to each person maintaining the property of the arrest by a specified deadline and provides that, on proof of a subsequent commission of such activity, such notice may be prima facie evidence that the defendant knowingly tolerated the activity or that the defendant did so and also did not make a reasonable attempt to abate the activity. The bill makes evidence of a previous common nuisance suit that resulted in a judgment against a landowner with respect to such a described activity admissible in a subsequent suit to demonstrate that the landowner knowingly tolerated the activity and did not make a reasonable attempt to abate the activity.
House Bill 2552 makes a person who has been convicted of prostitution by payment of a fee ineligible to serve as a member of the board of trustees of a school district. The bill also requires the display of specified human trafficking signs at an abortion facility, an emergency department of a hospital, and a licensed cosmetology facility.
House Bill 2552 includes the commission of a trafficking of persons offense that results in the death of an unborn child of the person who is trafficked among circumstances enhancing the penalty for such an offense; increases the penalty for a voyeurism offense; creates the state jail felony offense of sexual coercion; and includes assault against a pregnant individual in a dating relationship or family or household relationship with the actor to force the individual to have an abortion among conduct that enhances the penalties for assault causing bodily injury and that enhances the penalties for assaultive threatening.
House Bill 2552 sets out provisions regarding the termination of a tenant's right of possession and a landlord's right to recover possession of the leased premises if the tenant is using or allowing the premises to be used for certain prostitution-related offenses or the trafficking of persons.