By Counts H.B. No. 1319
74R5768 DLF-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to false evidence of financial responsibility under the
1-3 Texas Motor Vehicle Safety-Responsibility Act; imposing a criminal
1-4 penalty.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Article V, Texas Motor Vehicle
1-7 Safety-Responsibility Act (Article 6701h, Vernon's Texas Civil
1-8 Statutes), is amended by adding Section 32A to read as follows:
1-9 Sec. 32A. FALSE EVIDENCE OF FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY. (a)
1-10 A person commits an offense if the person:
1-11 (1) makes, presents, or uses a false evidence of
1-12 financial responsibility with knowledge of its falsity and with
1-13 intent that it be taken as a genuine evidence of financial
1-14 responsibility;
1-15 (2) possesses, sells, or offers to sell a false
1-16 evidence of financial responsibility with knowledge of its falsity;
1-17 (3) possesses a blank evidence of financial
1-18 responsibility and is not authorized to issue that evidence of
1-19 financial responsibility; or
1-20 (4) sells or offers to sell a blank evidence of
1-21 financial responsibility.
1-22 (b) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a)(3)
1-23 or (a)(4) that the person is acting in the ordinary course of
1-24 business of supplying blank forms of evidence of responsibility to
2-1 a person who is authorized to issue the evidence of responsibility.
2-2 (c) An offense under this section is a felony of the third
2-3 degree, unless the actor's intent is to defraud or harm another, in
2-4 which event the offense is a felony of the second degree.
2-5 (d) A person is presumed to intend to defraud or harm
2-6 another if the person acts with respect to two or more of the same
2-7 type of evidences of financial responsibility or blank evidences of
2-8 responsibility.
2-9 (e) In this section, "evidence of financial responsibility"
2-10 means:
2-11 (1) a motor vehicle liability insurance policy or a
2-12 copy of a motor vehicle liability insurance policy;
2-13 (2) a standard proof of motor vehicle liability
2-14 insurance form;
2-15 (3) a motor vehicle liability insurance binder; or
2-16 (4) a certificate or copy of a certificate issued
2-17 under Section 1A(b)(6), 19, 20, 24, 25, or 34 of this Act.
2-18 SECTION 2. Section 32(b), Texas Motor Vehicle
2-19 Safety-Responsibility Act (Article 6701h, Vernon's Texas Civil
2-20 Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
2-21 (b) Any person who gives information required in a report or
2-22 otherwise as provided for in Section 4, knowing or having reason to
2-23 believe that such information is false, <or who shall forge or,
2-24 without authority, sign any evidence of proof of financial
2-25 responsibility, or who files or offers for filing any such evidence
2-26 of proof knowing or having reason to believe that it is forged or
2-27 signed without authority,> shall be fined not more than One
3-1 Thousand Dollars ($1,000) or imprisoned for not more than one year,
3-2 or both.
3-3 SECTION 3. The following provisions are repealed:
3-4 (1) Section 1B(d), Texas Motor Vehicle
3-5 Safety-Responsibility Act (Article 6701h, Vernon's Texas Civil
3-6 Statutes); and
3-7 (2) Section 19(c), Texas Motor Vehicle
3-8 Safety-Responsibility Act (Article 6701h, Vernon's Texas Civil
3-9 Statutes).
3-10 SECTION 4. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
3-11 only to the punishment for an offense committed on or after the
3-12 effective date of this Act. For purposes of this section, an
3-13 offense is committed before the effective date of this Act if any
3-14 element of the offense occurs before the effective date.
3-15 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
3-16 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
3-17 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
3-18 SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
3-19 SECTION 6. The importance of this legislation and the
3-20 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
3-21 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
3-22 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
3-23 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.