S.B. No. 97
AN ACT
1-1 relating to controlled killing of, attempting to injure, certain
1-2 uses of, and possession of certain dangerous wild animals;
1-3 providing a criminal penalty.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 62, Parks and Wildlife Code, is amended
1-6 by adding Subchapter F to read as follows:
1-7 SUBCHAPTER F. UNLAWFUL CONTROLLED KILLING OF OR ATTEMPTING TO
1-8 INJURE DANGEROUS WILD ANIMALS
1-9 Sec. 62.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-10 (1) "Captivity" means the state of being held under
1-11 control or kept caged or penned.
1-12 (2) "Dangerous wild animal" means a lion, tiger,
1-13 leopard, cheetah, hyena, bear, elephant, wolf, or rhinoceros and
1-14 includes any species, subspecies, or hybrid of any of those
1-15 animals.
1-16 (3) "Hybrid" means an offspring of two animals of
1-17 different breeds, species, or genera.
1-18 (4) "Lion" means African and Asiatic lion.
1-19 (5) "Sanctuary" means a place of refuge where abused,
1-20 neglected, unwanted, impounded, abandoned, orphaned, or displaced
1-21 dangerous wild animals are provided care for their lifetime or
1-22 until released back to their natural habitat.
1-23 Sec. 62.102. CONTROLLED KILLING OF OR ATTEMPTING TO INJURE
1-24 DANGEROUS WILD ANIMAL PROHIBITED. No person may:
2-1 (1) kill or attempt to injure a dangerous wild animal
2-2 that is:
2-3 (A) in captivity in this state; or
2-4 (B) released from captivity in this state for
2-5 the purpose of being killed; or
2-6 (2) conduct, promote, assist, or advertise an activity
2-7 prohibited by Subdivision (1).
2-8 Sec. 62.103. UNLAWFUL CONTROLLED KILLING; CERTAIN
2-9 COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY PROHIBITED. No person may:
2-10 (1) sell or offer for sale, or transport or consign
2-11 for transportation in this state, including interstate commerce in
2-12 this state, a dangerous wild animal that is to be used for
2-13 controlled killing prohibited by Section 62.102(1); or
2-14 (2) sell or offer for sale a part of or a product made
2-15 from a dangerous wild animal that is used in a controlled kill
2-16 prohibited by Section 62.102(1).
2-17 Sec. 62.104. SEIZURE OF DANGEROUS WILD ANIMAL OR CARCASS,
2-18 HIDE, PART OR PRODUCT. (a) A peace officer may seize a live
2-19 dangerous wild animal or a carcass, hide, or part of or a product
2-20 made from a dangerous wild animal if the officer has probable cause
2-21 to believe that the live animal, carcass, hide, part, or product
2-22 possessed by a person was killed, wounded, or injured in, or
2-23 obtained as a result of, a controlled kill prohibited by Section
2-24 62.102(1).
2-25 (b) The commission shall adopt rules for the final
2-26 disposition of a carcass, hide, part, product, or live animal
2-27 seized under this section.
3-1 (c) The department, a game warden, or other department
3-2 employee authorized to act under this section is immune from
3-3 criminal or civil liability and from prosecution or civil suit for
3-4 a seizure conducted under this section or rules adopted under this
3-5 section.
3-6 Sec. 62.105. AUTHORITY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT. This subchapter
3-7 does not restrict the authority of a local government to regulate
3-8 the possession of a dangerous wild animal if the regulation does
3-9 not conflict with this subchapter.
3-10 Sec. 62.106. EXCEPTIONS. (a) This subchapter does not
3-11 apply to a peace officer or other employee of a municipality, a
3-12 county, or this state, or a person acting at the direction of such
3-13 an officer or employee, who, while acting in an official capacity
3-14 or at the direction of such an officer or employee acting in an
3-15 official capacity, injures or kills a dangerous wild animal that
3-16 the officer or employee reasonably believes to present, under the
3-17 circumstances, the possibility of danger to the public. A person
3-18 described by this subsection is immune from criminal or civil
3-19 liability and from prosecution or civil suit for causing injury or
3-20 death to the animal.
3-21 (b) This subchapter does not apply to a licensed
3-22 veterinarian or an employee of a sanctuary exempt from federal
3-23 taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of
3-24 1986 (26 U.S.C. Section 501) or of a facility accredited by the
3-25 Association of Zoos and Aquariums, who, while in the course of such
3-26 employment, humanely euthanizes a dangerous wild animal to
3-27 eliminate the suffering of that animal due to illness or injury. A
4-1 person described by this subsection is immune from criminal or
4-2 civil liability and from prosecution or civil suit for causing
4-3 injury or death to the animal.
4-4 Sec. 62.107. CRIMINAL PENALTY. A person who violates this
4-5 subchapter commits an offense that is a Class A Parks and Wildlife
4-6 Code misdemeanor, unless it is shown at the trial of the defendant
4-7 for a violation of this subchapter that the defendant has been
4-8 convicted one or more times before the trial date of a violation of
4-9 this subchapter, in which case the offense is a Parks and Wildlife
4-10 Code felony.
4-11 SECTION 2. Section 240.0025, Local Government Code, is
4-12 amended to read as follows:
4-13 Sec. 240.0025. REGULATION <IN POPULOUS COUNTIES>. (a) The
4-14 commissioners court of a county <with a population of 2.4 million
4-15 or more> by order may prohibit or regulate the keeping of a wild
4-16 animal in the county.
4-17 (b) The order does not apply:
4-18 (1) inside the limits of a municipality; or
4-19 (2) to an exhibitor licensed under the Animal Welfare
4-20 Act (7 U.S.C. Section 2131 et seq.).
4-21 (c) In this section, "wild animal" means a lion, tiger,
4-22 ocelot, cougar, leopard, cheetah, jaguar, hyena, bear, lesser
4-23 panda, binturong, wolf, ape, elephant, and rhinoceros <has the
4-24 meaning assigned by Section 12.601, Parks and Wildlife Code>.
4-25 SECTION 3. Subchapter G, Chapter 12, Parks and Wildlife
4-26 Code, is repealed.
4-27 SECTION 4. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
5-1 only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
5-2 Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
5-3 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
5-4 before that date.
5-5 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
5-6 Act is covered by the law in effect on the date the offense is
5-7 committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
5-8 purpose.
5-9 SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995, except
5-10 that Section 3 of this Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
5-11 SECTION 6. The importance of this legislation and the
5-12 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-13 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-14 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-15 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.