By:  Delisi                                            H.B. No. 480
       73R2437 MI-D
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the punishment for the purchase, possession, or
    1-3  consumption of alcoholic beverages by a minor.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Section 106.115, Alcoholic Beverage Code, is
    1-6  amended to read as follows:
    1-7        Sec. 106.115.  ATTENDANCE AT ALCOHOL AWARENESS COURSE;
    1-8  LICENSE SUSPENSION.  (a)  On the first conviction of a minor of an
    1-9  offense under Section 106.02, 106.04, or 106.05 of this code, the
   1-10  court, in addition to <instead of> assessing a fine as provided by
   1-11  those sections, may require the defendant to attend an alcohol
   1-12  awareness course approved by the Texas Commission on Alcohol and
   1-13  Drug Abuse <or a similar alcohol awareness course approved by the
   1-14  court>.  If the defendant is younger than 18 years of age, the
   1-15  parent or guardian of the defendant may attend the course with the
   1-16  defendant.  The court shall require the defendant to present
   1-17  evidence to the court, in the manner prescribed by the court, of
   1-18  satisfactory participation in and completion of the course.
   1-19        (b)  If the conviction under Section 106.02, 106.04, or
   1-20  106.05 of this code is for a second or subsequent offense, the
   1-21  court shall require the defendant to participate in an alcohol
   1-22  awareness course in addition to paying the fine assessed under that
   1-23  section.  If the defendant is younger than 18 years of age, the
   1-24  parent or guardian of the defendant may attend the course with the
    2-1  defendant.
    2-2        (c)  If the defendant resides in a rural or other area in
    2-3  which access to an alcohol awareness course is not readily
    2-4  available, the court may require the defendant to perform eight to
    2-5  12 hours of community service instead of participating in an
    2-6  alcohol awareness course.
    2-7        (d)  When requested, an alcohol awareness course may be
    2-8  taught in languages other than English.
    2-9        (e)  If the court orders a defendant to attend an alcohol
   2-10  awareness course or to perform community service, the court shall
   2-11  require the defendant to present to the court, within 90 days of
   2-12  the date of final conviction, evidence in the form prescribed by
   2-13  the court that the defendant, as ordered by the court, has
   2-14  satisfactorily completed an alcohol awareness course or performed
   2-15  the required hours of community service.
   2-16        (f)  If the defendant does not present the required evidence
   2-17  within the prescribed period, the court shall order the Department
   2-18  of Public Safety to suspend the defendant's driver's license or
   2-19  permit for a period not to exceed six months or, if the defendant
   2-20  does not have a license or permit, to deny the issuance of a
   2-21  license or permit to the defendant for that period.
   2-22        SECTION 2.  Section 24(h), Chapter 173, Acts of the 47th
   2-23  Legislature, Regular Session, 1941 (Article 6687b, Vernon's Texas
   2-24  Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
   2-25        (h)  The Department shall suspend the license of a person on
   2-26  receiving an order from a juvenile court under Section 54.042,
   2-27  Family Code, or from a court under Section 106.115, Alcoholic
    3-1  Beverage Code, to suspend that person's license.  The period of the
    3-2  suspension shall be for the period specified in the order.
    3-3        SECTION 3.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
    3-4  only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
    3-5  Act.  For purposes of this section an offense is committed before
    3-6  the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
    3-7  before that date.
    3-8        (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
    3-9  Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
   3-10  and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
   3-11        SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
   3-12        SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the
   3-13  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   3-14  emergency   and   an   imperative   public   necessity   that   the
   3-15  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   3-16  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.