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House Bill 910 |
House Author: Phillips et al. |
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Effective: See below |
Senate Sponsor: Estes et al. |
Previous law provided for a licensing scheme to carry a concealed handgun under certain circumstances. House Bill 910 amends the Alcoholic Beverage Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, Education Code, Election Code, Family Code, Government Code, Health and Safety Code, Labor Code, Local Government Code, Occupations Code, Parks and Wildlife Code, and Penal Code to authorize a person who is licensed to carry a handgun to openly carry a holstered handgun. The bill decreases the penalty for a license holder trespassing with a concealed handgun to a Class C misdemeanor and creates a Class C misdemeanor offense for a license holder trespassing with an openly carried handgun. The penalty for these trespassing offenses is enhanced to a Class A misdemeanor if the trespasser ignores verbal notice that the person may not enter or remain on the property with a handgun. The bill makes it a Class A misdemeanor offense for a handgun license holder to carry a partially or wholly visible handgun on or about the license holder's person and intentionally display the handgun in plain view of another person on the premises or certain streets, walkways, driveways, or parking areas of a public, private, or independent institution of higher education.
House Bill 910 takes effect January 1, 2016, except that the provision set to expire on September 1, 2019, relating to the fee for a mental health background check for a license to carry a handgun takes effect September 1, 2015, and an identical provision takes effect September 1, 2019.