By Flores                                             H.B. No. 1856
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to the tort liability of transportation entities providing
    1-3  public transportation.
    1-4        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-5        SECTION 1.  Section 13a, Chapter 141, Acts of the 63rd
    1-6  Legislature, Regular Session, 1973 (Article 1118x, Vernon's Texas
    1-7  Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
    1-8        Sec. 13A.  Tort Claims.  Any authority established hereunder
    1-9  or any transportation entity created under Title 112, revised
   1-10  statutes, or Article 2.01C of the Texas Business Corporations Act
   1-11  for the purposes of mass transit as defined by this act shall be
   1-12  within the definition of "unit of government" as defined by Chapter
   1-13  101, Civil Practices and Remedies Code, <the Texas Tort Claims Act,
   1-14  as amended (Article 6252-19, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes),> and
   1-15  all operations of such an authority or entity are deemed to be
   1-16  essential governmental functions and not proprietary functions for
   1-17  all purposes, including the application of that chapter <the Texas
   1-18  Tort Claims Act>.  If an independent contractor of the authority or
   1-19  entity is performing a function of the authority or entity, the
   1-20  contractor is liable for damages only to the extent that the
   1-21  authority or entity would be liable if the authority or entity were
   1-22  performing the function.  This section applies only to a cause of
   1-23  action that accrues on or after the effective date of this section.
    2-1  An action that accrued before the effective date of this section is
    2-2  governed by the law in effect at the time the action accrued, and
    2-3  such law is continued in effect for that purpose.
    2-4        SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
    2-5        SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
    2-6  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
    2-7  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
    2-8  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three days in
    2-9  each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.