1-1 By: Black (Senate Sponsor - Sims) H.B. No. 608
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House March 22, 1993;
1-3 March 23, 1993, read first time and referred to Committee on
1-4 Natural Resources; May 3, 1993, reported adversely, with favorable
1-5 Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0;
1-6 May 3, 1993, sent to printer.)
1-7 COMMITTEE VOTE
1-8 Yea Nay PNV Absent
1-9 Sims x
1-10 Truan x
1-11 Armbrister x
1-12 Barrientos x
1-13 Bivins x
1-14 Brown x
1-15 Carriker x
1-16 Lucio x
1-17 Montford x
1-18 Ratliff x
1-19 Shelley x
1-20 COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 608 By: Sims
1-21 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-22 AN ACT
1-23 relating to the ownership, recovery, theft, and taxation of exotic
1-24 livestock and exotic fowl, and to control of disease in exotic
1-25 fowl; providing criminal penalties.
1-26 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-27 SECTION 1. Section 142.001, Agriculture Code, is amended by
1-28 amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivisions (4) and (5) to
1-29 read as follows:
1-30 (1) "Estray" means stray livestock, stray exotic
1-31 livestock, or stray exotic fowl.
1-32 (4) "Exotic livestock" means grass-eating or
1-33 plant-eating, single-hooved or cloven-hooved mammals that are not
1-34 indigenous to this state and are known as ungulates, including
1-35 animals from the swine, horse, tapir, rhinoceros, elephant, deer,
1-36 and antelope families but not including a mammal defined by Section
1-37 63.001, Parks and Wildlife Code, as a game animal, or by Section
1-38 71.001, Parks and Wildlife Code, as a fur-bearing animal, or any
1-39 other indigenous mammal regulated by the Parks and Wildlife
1-40 Department as an endangered or threatened species. The term does
1-41 not include a nonindigenous mammal located on publicly owned land.
1-42 (5) "Exotic fowl" means any avian species that is not
1-43 indigenous to this state. The term includes ratites but does not
1-44 include a bird defined by Section 64.001, Parks and Wildlife Code,
1-45 as a game bird or any other indigenous bird regulated by the Parks
1-46 and Wildlife Department as an endangered or threatened species.
1-47 The term does not include nonindigenous birds located on publicly
1-48 owned land.
1-49 SECTION 2. Chapter 142, Agriculture Code, is amended by
1-50 adding Section 142.0021 to read as follows:
1-51 Sec. 142.0021. OWNERSHIP OF EXOTIC WILDLIFE AND FOWL. A
1-52 person may claim to be the owner of exotic livestock or exotic fowl
1-53 under this chapter only if the animal is tagged, branded, banded,
1-54 or marked in another conspicuous manner that can be read or
1-55 identified from a long distance and that identifies the animal as
1-56 being the property of the claimant.
1-57 SECTION 3. Section 161.001(a)(4), Agriculture Code, is
1-58 amended to read as follows:
1-59 (4) "Exotic fowl" means any avian species that is not
1-60 indigenous to this state. The term includes ratites <ostriches>.
1-61 SECTION 4. Section 31.03(e), Penal Code, is amended to read
1-62 as follows:
1-63 (e) Except as provided by Subsection (f) of this section, an
1-64 offense under this section is:
1-65 (1) a Class C misdemeanor if the value of the property
1-66 stolen is less than $20;
1-67 (2) a Class B misdemeanor if:
1-68 (A) the value of the property stolen is $20 or
2-1 more but less than $200; or
2-2 (B) the value of the property stolen is less
2-3 than $20 and the defendant has previously been convicted of any
2-4 grade of theft;
2-5 (3) a Class A misdemeanor if:
2-6 (A) the value of the property stolen is $200 or
2-7 more but less than $750; or
2-8 (B) the property stolen is one firearm, as
2-9 defined by Section 46.01 of this code, and is valued at less than
2-10 $400;
2-11 (4) a felony of the third degree if:
2-12 (A) the value of the property stolen is $750 or
2-13 more but less than $20,000, or the property is one or more head of
2-14 cattle, horses, sheep, swine, <or> goats, or exotic livestock or
2-15 exotic fowl as defined by Section 142.001, Agriculture Code, or any
2-16 part of these animals <thereof> under the value of $20,000;
2-17 (B) regardless of value, the property is stolen
2-18 from the person of another or from a human corpse or grave;
2-19 (C) the property stolen is one firearm, as
2-20 defined by Section 46.01 of this code, and is valued at more than
2-21 $400;
2-22 (D) the property stolen is two or more firearms,
2-23 as defined by Section 46.01 of this code; or
2-24 (E) the value of the property stolen is less
2-25 than $750 and the defendant has been previously convicted two or
2-26 more times of any grade of theft;
2-27 (5) a felony of the second degree if:
2-28 (A) the value of the property stolen is less
2-29 than $100,000 and the property is:
2-30 (i) combustible hydrocarbon natural or
2-31 synthetic natural gas, or crude petroleum oil;
2-32 (ii) equipment designed for use in
2-33 exploration for or production of natural gas or crude petroleum
2-34 oil; or
2-35 (iii) equipment designed for use in
2-36 remedial or diagnostic operations on gas or crude petroleum oil
2-37 wells;
2-38 (B) the value of the property stolen is $20,000
2-39 or more but less than $100,000; or
2-40 (C) the value of the property is less than
2-41 $100,000 and the property was unlawfully appropriated or attempted
2-42 to be unlawfully appropriated by threat to commit a felony offense
2-43 against the person or property of the person threatened or another
2-44 or to withhold information about the location or purported location
2-45 of a bomb, poison, or other harmful object that threatens to harm
2-46 the person or property of the person threatened or another person;
2-47 or
2-48 (6) a felony of the first degree if:
2-49 (A) the value of the property stolen is $100,000
2-50 or more; or
2-51 (B) the value of the property is $100,000 or
2-52 more and the property was unlawfully appropriated or attempted to
2-53 be unlawfully appropriated in the manner described by Subdivision
2-54 (5)(C) of this subsection.
2-55 SECTION 5. Section 31.03, Penal Code, is amended by adding
2-56 Subsection (h) to read as follows:
2-57 (h) For the purposes of Subsection (a) of this section, a
2-58 person is the owner of exotic livestock or exotic fowl as defined
2-59 by Section 142.001, Agriculture Code, only if the person qualifies
2-60 to claim the animal under Section 142.0021, Agriculture Code, if
2-61 the animal is an estray.
2-62 SECTION 6. Section 23.51(6), Tax Code, is amended to read as
2-63 follows:
2-64 (6) "Exotic animal" means a species of game not
2-65 indigenous to this state, including axis deer, nilga antelope, red
2-66 sheep, <or> other cloven-hoofed ruminant mammals, or exotic fowl as
2-67 defined by Section 142.001, Agriculture Code.
2-68 SECTION 7. (a) The change in law made by Sections 4 and 5
2-69 of this Act applies only to an offense committed on or after the
2-70 effective date of this Act. For purposes of this section, an
3-1 offense is committed before the effective date of this Act if any
3-2 element of this offense occurs before the effective date.
3-3 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
3-4 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
3-5 and the former law is continued in effect for this purpose.
3-6 SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
3-7 SECTION 9. The importance of this legislation and the
3-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
3-12 * * * * *
3-13 Austin,
3-14 Texas
3-15 May 3, 1993
3-16 Hon. Bob Bullock
3-17 President of the Senate
3-18 Sir:
3-19 We, your Committee on Natural Resources to which was referred H.B.
3-20 No. 608, have had the same under consideration, and I am instructed
3-21 to report it back to the Senate with the recommendation that it do
3-22 not pass, but that the Committee Substitute adopted in lieu thereof
3-23 do pass and be printed.
3-24 Sims,
3-25 Chairman
3-26 * * * * *
3-27 WITNESSES
3-28 FOR AGAINST ON
3-29 ___________________________________________________________________
3-30 Name: Norman Dean x
3-31 Representing: Texas Emu Assoc.
3-32 City: New Braunfels
3-33 -------------------------------------------------------------------
3-34 Name: Robert L. Cook x
3-35 Representing: Texas Parks & Wildlife
3-36 City: Austin
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3-38 Name: Richard Winters, Jr. x
3-39 Representing: Exotic Wildlife Assn.
3-40 City: Brady
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3-42 Name: L. David Sinclair x
3-43 Representing: Texas Parks & Wildlife
3-44 City: Austin
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