74(R) HB 3140 House Committee Report

BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 3140
By: Giddings
4-26-95
Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND

As a consequence of local options regarding the legal sale of
alcohol, each day students in many urban areas, and at Pearl C.
Anderson Middle Learning Center in Dallas have to walk through a
crime ridden neighborhood often confronting very undesirable
persons drawn to areas where the sale of alcohol is legal and
concentrated. Frustration regarding this situation, led the
students to mount a campaign to reclaim this area by contacting a
number of state, local, and school officials for assistance in
helping to secure changes to their personal safety and subsequently
clean up the area. A task force was formed to coordinate the
efforts to redress the students concerns and recommend actions to
state and city officials that would help to confront the situation
and problems unique to Pearl C. Anderson.

PURPOSE

HB 3140 would establish historically impacted school zones.
Defines such zone, and establishes security and police requirements
for impacted coverage areas. It also establishes incentives to
retailers to relocate, and provides for condemnation to prevent
alcohol sales. Also prohibits open containers and consumption in
zones, provides for conditions for continuance of designation as
such a zone. Also would establish a freeze on new alcohol
locations in such zones and prevention of problems in such zones.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that Section 2 of the bill grants
additional authority to the TABC.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1 - Titles this Act as the "Pearl C. Anderson Middle
Learning Center Act."

SECTION 2 - Amends Chapter 109, Alcoholic Beverage Code, by adding
Subchapter E.

Subchapter E. HISTORICALLY IMPACTED SCHOOL ZONES.

Section 109.80. GENERAL. (a) Allows the Texas legislature,
by statute, to identify and declare certain areas
"Historically Impacted School Zones" if the areas are found:

(1) to be in close proximity to a public school;

(2) to be currently experiencing extraordinarily high
crime rates; and

(3) to contain an extraordinarily high concentration of
alcoholic beverage retailers.

(b) Includes private club registration permittees in the term
"alcoholic beverage retailer" for purposes of this subchapter.
Serving of alcoholic beverages by private club permittees is
considered sale of alcoholic beverages.

Section 109.81. HISTORICALLY IMPACTED SCHOOL ZONES CREATED.
Legislature declares the area within a 1000 foot radius of the
property line of Pearl C. Anderson Middle Learning Center in
Dallas, Texas, a Historically Impacted School Zone for the
purposes of Subchapter E. The designation expires September
1, 1997, unless extended in accordance with Section 109.88 of
Subchapter E.

Section 109.82. PRIVATE SECURITY REQUIRED. (a) The Texas
Alcoholic Beverage Commission is charged with hiring a private
security patrol person to patrol the Zone during the hours of
7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and between the hours of 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.
on days that classes are held in the school. The private
security patrol person is charged with conspicuously
videotaping any suspicious activity in the area in order to
deter and document possible violations of the law.

(b) The commission is charged with preparing a list of
alcoholic beverage retailers in the zone and with periodically
assessing a fee on each retailer by prorata share of the
actual expense of hiring a private security patrol person. If
a retailer is not current in its payment to the commission of
the assessment, the commission may not renew that retailer's
permit or license.

Section 109.83. CITY POLICE COVERAGE REQUIRED.
Municipalities where an Historically Impacted School Zone is
located are required to provide two full time law enforcement
officers with exclusive duties of patrolling the Zone, except
during extreme emergencies when the officers' presence are
required elsewhere.

Section 109. 84. INCENTIVES TO RETAILERS TO RELOCATE. (a)
Taxing authorities with jurisdiction over property located in
a Zone are authorized to grant tax incentives deemed
appropriate by the authorities to property owners and
businesses located in a Zone in exchange for a contractual
agreement by the taxpayers to:

(1) discontinue selling alcohol at a location where
alcohol was previously sold; and

(2) to deed restrict property where businesses are
located against future alcohol sales.

(b) Municipalities where Zones are located may:

(1) pay business owners in a Zone a negotiated payment
for the owners' agreements to discontinue alcohol sales
or to relocate existing alcohol beverage retail business
outside the Zone; or

(2) pay the owners of the real estate in a Zone a
negotiated payment for the owners' agreements to deed
restrict the property against future alcohol sales.

Section 109.85. CONDEMNATION TO PREVENT ALCOHOL SALES. The
state and any political subdivision of the state may condemn
by eminent domain any property in a Zone in order to resell
the property after deed restricting the property to prohibit
sale of alcohol.

Section 109.86. LENGTHENED STERILIZATION OF PREMISES WITH
REPEATED VIOLATIONS. If a permit or license of a permittee or
licensee located in a Zone is canceled by the commission under
Section 61.721, the commission has the authority to refuse to
issue any new permit or license for the same premises for up
to 5 years after the date of cancellation.

Section 109.87. OPEN CONTAINERS AND CONSUMPTION PROHIBITED IN
AN HISTORICALLY IMPACTED SCHOOL ZONE. (a) Possession of an
open container of or consumption of alcoholic beverages on
public streets, alleys, or sidewalks in a Zone is an offense.
The person is presumed to know the area is a Zone if signs
that state the area is a Zone and that state possession and
consumption of alcohol are prohibited in the Zone are posted
on all major thoroughfares entering the Zone.

(b) This section does not apply to possession or consumption
of alcohol at events authorized by appropriate authorities and
held in compliance with all other provisions of the code.

(d) "Open container" has the meaning assigned in Section
109.35.

Section 109.88. CONTINUANCE OF DESIGNATION AS AN HISTORICALLY
IMPACTED SCHOOL ZONE. (a) 90 days prior to the expiration of
a designated Zone, the commission is charged with holding a
public hearing to determine whether the situation which gave
rise to the area being declared a Zone has been resolved. If
the commission determines the situation has not been resolved,
the commission has authority to extend the designation in
increments of two years. The designation may not continue for
more than 10 years unless the legislature, by statute,
authorizes additional extensions.

(b) The commission is not allowed to extend the designation of
the Zone unless the commission finds that:

(1) the area continues to be a high crime area;

(2) extremely high concentrations of alcoholic beverage
retailer permittees or licensees continues to operate
in the area;

(3) the municipality where the Zone is located proves
to the commission's satisfaction that the city has
provided the police coverage called for; and

(4) a good faith effort has been made to establish and
maintain an active neighborhood association with
membership open to residents, businesses, alcoholic
beverage retailers, students, and school officials in
the Zone and that town hall type meetings between school
officials, residents, business owners, alcoholic
beverage retailers, and students have been held to voice
concerns about and seek solutions to problems faced by
each of the groups. Cooperative efforts to establish
such as neighborhood watch programs must be implemented
to help make the neighborhoods more desirable places to
live while permitting responsible alcoholic beverage
retailer to coexist with the neighborhood.

(c) If the incidence of crime in the area is shown not to be
directly related to the presence of alcoholic beverage
establishments in the area, the provisions for a security
guard in Section 109.82 shall not be applicable to the area
during an extension.

Section 109.90. PREVENTION OF FUTURE IMPACTED SCHOOL ZONES.
On protest, the commission may refuse to issue original
licenses or permits authorizing retail sale or service of
alcoholic beverages for any premises where a license or permit
has not been issued before if the commission determines that:

(a) the premises is located within a 500 feet radius of the
property line of a school;

(b) granting the license or permit would result in extremely
high concentrations of alcoholic beverage retailers holding
the same type of license or permit within the radius;

(d) granting the license or permit would likely worsen the
crime problem in the area.

SECTION 3 - Effective date: September 1, 1995.

SECTION 4 - Emergency clause.

SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION

HB 3140 was heard in a Public Hearing on April 11, 1995. Rep. Kubiak moved that the full
committee adopt HB 3140 and that it be reported favorably to the full House with the
recommendation that it do pass and be printed. The motion prevailed by the following vote: AYES:
6, NAYS: 1, ABSENT: 2. HB 3140 was reconsidered in a Public Hearing on April 11, 1995. Rep.
Kubiak moved to reconsider the vote by which HB 3140 had been favorably approved. There was
no objection. The Chair laid out HB 3140 and recognized Rep. Kubiak to further explain the bill.
Rep. Kubiak moved that the full committee adopt HB 3140 and that it be reported favorably to the
full House with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed. The motion prevailed by the
following vote: AYES: 7, NAYS: 0, ABSENT: 2. HB 3140 was considered in a Public Hearing on
April 26, 1995. Rep. Jones moved to reconsider the vote by which HB 3140 had been favorably
approved. There was no objection. The Chair laid out HB 3140, and recognized members for
discussion. Rep. Jones moved that the full committee adopt HB 3140, and that it be reported
favorably to the full House with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed. The motion
prevailed by the following vote: AYES: 9, NAYS: 0, ABSENT 0