By Martin                                             H.B. No. 1902
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
    1-1                                AN ACT
    1-2  relating to liability for theft committed by a child.
    1-3        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-4        SECTION 1.  Section 134.003, Civil Practice and Remedies
    1-5  Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
    1-6        (c)  Subsection (b) of this section shall not apply to:
    1-7              (1)  any facility funded in whole or in part by the
    1-8  State and licensed by the State, which accepts responsibility for a
    1-9  child or accepts the duty of control of a child under any
   1-10  applicable state licensing act or other provision of state law,
   1-11  with the permission of, or at the direction or order of, a state
   1-12  agency, a parent or guardian of the child, or a court; or
   1-13              (2)  a person who accepts responsibility for a child or
   1-14  accepts the duty of control of a child at the direction or order of
   1-15  a state agency or order of a court.
   1-16        In this subsection, "order of a court" does not include a
   1-17  custody order in a suit affecting the parent-child relationship.
   1-18        SECTION 2.  Section 134.005, Civil Practice and Remedies
   1-19  Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
   1-20        (c)  Subdivision (2), Subsection (a) of this section shall
   1-21  not apply to:
   1-22              (1)  any facility funded in whole or in part by the
   1-23  State and licensed by the State, which accepts responsibility for a
    2-1  child or accepts the duty of control of a child under any
    2-2  applicable state licensing act or other provision of state law,
    2-3  with the permission of, or at the direction or order of, a state
    2-4  agency, a parent or guardian of the child, or a court; or
    2-5              (2)  a person who accepts responsibility for a child or
    2-6  accepts the duty of control of a child at the direction or order of
    2-7  a state agency or order of a court.
    2-8        In this subsection, "order of a court" does not include a
    2-9  custody order in a suit affecting the parent-child relationship.
   2-10        SECTION 3.  (a)  The change made by this Act in the law for
   2-11  liability for damages resulting from theft applies only to an
   2-12  offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.  For
   2-13  purposes of this section, an offense is committed before the
   2-14  effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
   2-15  before that date.
   2-16        (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
   2-17  Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
   2-18  and the former law is continued in effect for this purpose.
   2-19        SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1993.
   2-20        SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-21  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   2-22  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   2-23  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   2-24  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.