1-1 By: Combs, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Bivins) H.B. No. 2133 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House May 15, 1995; 1-3 May 17, 1995, read first time and referred to Committee on Natural 1-4 Resources; May 19, 1995, reported favorably by the following vote: 1-5 Yeas 9, Nays 0; May 19, 1995, sent to printer.) 1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-7 AN ACT 1-8 relating to the authority of certain Parks and Wildlife Department 1-9 employees to enter on private property and to the use of 1-10 information obtained. 1-11 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-12 SECTION 1. Section 12.103, Parks and Wildlife Code, is 1-13 amended to read as follows: 1-14 Sec. 12.103. ENTERING LAND; USE OF INFORMATION OBTAINED BY 1-15 ENTRY; CIVIL PENALTY. (a) To enforce the game and fish laws of 1-16 the state and to conduct scientific investigations and research 1-17 regarding wild game or fish, an authorized employee of the 1-18 department may enter on any land or water where wild game or fish 1-19 are known to range or stray. No action may be sustained against an 1-20 employee of the department to prevent his entering on land or water 1-21 when acting in his official capacity as described by this 1-22 subsection. 1-23 (b) Except as provided by Subsection (d), the department may 1-24 use information collected by an employee of the department on 1-25 privately owned land only for the purposes of scientific 1-26 investigations and research described in Subsection (a) and only if 1-27 authorized in writing by the landowner or the landowner's agent. 1-28 Unless the department first obtains the written consent of the 1-29 landowner or the landowner's agent, the department may not: 1-30 (1) use other incidental information obtained on the 1-31 land that does not pertain directly to the investigation or 1-32 research authorized under Subsection (a); or 1-33 (2) enter or permit the entry of any information that 1-34 does not pertain directly to the investigation or research 1-35 authorized under Subsection (a), into a database: 1-36 (A) maintained by the department and available 1-37 to a person other than a department employee; 1-38 (B) maintained by a natural heritage program 1-39 administered by the department; or 1-40 (C) established and maintained by any other 1-41 person. 1-42 (c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), information 1-43 collected under this section may only be reported or compiled in a 1-44 manner that prevents the identification of an individual parcel or 1-45 specific parcels of private property without the written consent of 1-46 the landowner or the landowner's agent. 1-47 (d) The department may collect and enter data as necessary 1-48 relating to the occurrence or harvest of natural resources in 1-49 public land or water. The department may collect and report 1-50 standardized annual wildlife survey information required by the 1-51 Pitman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. Section 669 et 1-52 seq.). 1-53 (e) The department is liable to a private landowner for a 1-54 civil penalty in the amount of $1,000 for a violation of this 1-55 section involving information collected by an employee of the 1-56 department on the landowner's property. A landowner may bring suit 1-57 to collect the penalty in the county in which the land is located 1-58 or the county in which the landowner resides. 1-59 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995. 1-60 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 1-61 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 1-62 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 1-63 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 1-64 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended. 1-65 * * * * *