By: Armbrister S.B. No. 1319
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to aural communications; authorizing civil damages;
1-2 providing criminal penalties; and conforming certain laws to
1-3 federal law.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Subdivisions (1), (14), (15), and (19), Section
1-6 1, Article 18.20, Code of Criminal Procedure, are amended to read
1-7 as follows:
1-8 (1) "Wire communication" means an aural transfer made
1-9 in whole or in part through the use of facilities for the
1-10 transmission of communications by the aid of wire, cable, or other
1-11 like connection between the point of origin and the point of
1-12 reception, including the use of such a connection in a switching
1-13 station, furnished or operated by a person authorized to engage in
1-14 providing or operating the facilities for the transmission of
1-15 communications as a communications common carrier. The term
1-16 includes the electronic storage of a wire communication<, but does
1-17 not include the radio portion of a cordless telephone communication
1-18 that is transmitted between the cordless telephone handset and its
1-19 base unit>.
1-20 (14) "Pen register" means a <mechanical or electronic>
1-21 device that records or decodes electronic or other impulses which
1-22 identify the numbers dialed or otherwise transmitted on the
1-23 <attaches to a> telephone line to which the device is attached.
2-1 The term does not include a device used by a provider or customer
2-2 of:
2-3 (A) a wire or electronic communication service
2-4 for billing, or recording as an incident to billing, for
2-5 communication services of the provider; or
2-6 (B) a wire communication service for cost
2-7 accounting, security control, or other similar purposes in the
2-8 ordinary course of its business <and is capable of recording
2-9 outgoing numbers dialed from that line but is not capable of
2-10 recording the origin of an incoming communication to that line or
2-11 the content of a communication carried between that line and
2-12 another line>.
2-13 (15) "Electronic communication" means a transfer of
2-14 signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of
2-15 any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio,
2-16 electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or photo-optical system. The
2-17 term does not include:
2-18 (A) <the radio portion of a cordless telephone
2-19 communication that is transmitted between the cordless telephone
2-20 handset and its base unit;>
2-21 <(B)> a wire or oral communication;
2-22 (B) <(C)> a communication made through a
2-23 tone-only paging device; or
2-24 (C) <(D)> a communication from a tracking
2-25 device.
3-1 (19) "Readily accessible to the general public" means,
3-2 with respect to a radio communication, a communication that is not:
3-3 (A) scrambled or encrypted;
3-4 (B) transmitted using modulation techniques
3-5 whose essential parameters have been withheld from the public with
3-6 the intention of preserving the privacy of the communication; <or>
3-7 (C) carried on a subcarrier or other signal
3-8 subsidiary to a radio transmission;
3-9 (D) transmitted over:
3-10 (i) frequencies reserved for private use
3-11 and licensed for private use under federal or state law, other than
3-12 a tone-only paging device communication; or
3-13 (ii) transmitted over a communication
3-14 system provided by a common carrier, other than a tone-only paging
3-15 device communication; or
3-16 (E) an electronic communication.
3-17 SECTION 2. Section 16, Article 18.20, Code of Criminal
3-18 Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
3-19 Sec. 16. Recovery of Civil Damages Authorized. (a) A
3-20 person whose wire, oral, or electronic communication is
3-21 intercepted, disclosed, or used in violation of this article or
3-22 Chapter 16, Penal Code, has a civil cause of action against any
3-23 person who has intercepted, disclosed, or used the communication or
3-24 solicited <intercepts, discloses, or uses or procures> another
3-25 <person> to intercept, disclose, or use the communication. The
4-1 person whose communication was intercepted, disclosed, or used
4-2 <and> is entitled to recover from the person who intercepted,
4-3 disclosed, or used the communication:
4-4 (1) actual damages but not less than liquidated
4-5 damages computed at a rate of $100 a day for each day of violation
4-6 or $1,000, whichever is higher;
4-7 (2) punitive damages; and
4-8 (3) a reasonable attorney's fee and other litigation
4-9 costs reasonably incurred.
4-10 (b) A good faith reliance on a court order or legislative
4-11 authorization constitutes a complete defense to an <any civil or
4-12 criminal> action brought under this section <article>.
4-13 (c) A person shall be subject to suit by the federal or
4-14 state government in a court of competent jurisdiction for
4-15 appropriate injunctive relief if the person engages in conduct
4-16 that:
4-17 (1) would constitute an offense under Section
4-18 16.05(b), Penal Code, that is not for a tortious, criminal, or
4-19 other illegal purpose or for the purpose of direct or indirect
4-20 commercial advantage or private commercial gain; and
4-21 (2) involves a radio communication that:
4-22 (A) is transmitted on frequencies allocated
4-23 under 47 C.F.R., Part 25, Subpart D, or 47 C.F.R., Part 74 of the
4-24 rules of the Federal Communications Commission; and
4-25 (B) is not scrambled or encrypted.
5-1 (d) If it is shown on the trial of the civil suit that the
5-2 defendant has been convicted of an offense under Section 16.05(b),
5-3 Penal Code, or that the defendant has been found liable in a civil
5-4 action under Subsection (c) of this section, the court shall impose
5-5 a civil penalty of $500 in addition to granting injunctive relief.
5-6 (e) A court may enforce an injunction issued under this
5-7 section, including a fine for contempt of court. A fine under this
5-8 subsection shall be not less than $500 for each violation of the
5-9 injunction.
5-10 SECTION 3. Section 17, Article 18.20, Code of Criminal
5-11 Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
5-12 Sec. 17. Exceptions. This article <(a) It is an exception
5-13 to the application of Section 16 that:>
5-14 <(1) an operator of a switchboard or an officer,
5-15 employee, or agent of a communication common carrier or provider of
5-16 wire or electronic communications service whose facilities are used
5-17 in the transmission of a wire or electronic communication
5-18 intercepts a communication or discloses or uses an intercepted
5-19 communication in the normal course of employment while engaged in
5-20 an activity that is a necessary incident to the rendition of
5-21 service or to the protection of the rights or property of the
5-22 provider or carrier of the communication, unless the interception
5-23 results from the communication common carrier's or provider of wire
5-24 or electronic communications service's use of service observing or
5-25 random monitoring for purposes other than mechanical or service
6-1 quality control checks;>
6-2 <(2) an officer, employee, or agent of a communication
6-3 common carrier or provider of wire or electronic communications
6-4 service provides information, facilities, or technical assistance
6-5 to an investigative or law enforcement officer who is authorized as
6-6 provided by this article to intercept a wire, oral, or electronic
6-7 communication;>
6-8 <(3) a person acting under color of law intercepts a
6-9 wire, oral, or electronic communication if the person is a party to
6-10 the communication or if one of the parties to the communication has
6-11 given prior consent to the interception; or>
6-12 <(4) a person not acting under color of law intercepts
6-13 a wire, oral, or electronic communication if the person is a party
6-14 to the communication or if one of the parties to the communication
6-15 has given prior consent to the interception unless the
6-16 communication is intercepted for the purpose of committing any
6-17 criminal or tortious act in violation of the constitution or laws
6-18 of the United States or of this state or for the purpose of
6-19 committing any other injurious act.>
6-20 <(b) Article 18.20 of this code> does not apply to conduct
6-21 described as an affirmative defense under Section 16.02<(c)(5)>,
6-22 Penal Code.
6-23 SECTION 4. Section 1, Article 18.21, Code of Criminal
6-24 Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
6-25 Sec. 1. Definitions. In this article:
7-1 (1) "Aural transfer," "communication common carrier,"
7-2 "electronic communication," "electronic communications service,"
7-3 "electronic communications system," "electronic storage," "pen
7-4 register," "readily accessible to the general public," and "user,"
7-5 have the meanings given those terms in Article 18.20 <means a
7-6 transfer containing the human voice at any point between and
7-7 including the point of origin and the point of reception>.
7-8 (2) "Authorized peace officer" means:
7-9 (A) a sheriff or a sheriff's deputy;
7-10 (B) a constable or deputy constable;
7-11 (C) a marshal or police officer of an
7-12 incorporated city, town, or village;
7-13 (D) a ranger or officer commissioned by the
7-14 Public Safety Commission or the director of the Department of
7-15 Public Safety;
7-16 (E) an investigator of the district attorney's,
7-17 criminal district attorney's, or county attorney's office;
7-18 (F) a law enforcement agent of the Alcoholic
7-19 Beverage Commission; or
7-20 (G) a law enforcement officer commissioned by
7-21 the Parks and Wildlife Commission.
7-22 (3) "Communications common carrier" means a
7-23 communication common carrier <person engaged as a common carrier
7-24 for hire in the transmission of wire or electronic communications>.
7-25 (4) "Department" means the Department of Public
8-1 Safety.
8-2 <(5) "Electronic communication" means a transfer of
8-3 signs, signals, writing, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of
8-4 any nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio,
8-5 electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or photo-optical system. The
8-6 term does not include:>
8-7 <(A) the radio portion of a cordless telephone
8-8 communication that is transmitted between the cordless telephone
8-9 handset and its base unit;>
8-10 <(B) a wire or oral communication;>
8-11 <(C) a communication made through a tone-only
8-12 paging device; or>
8-13 <(D) a communication from a tracking device.>
8-14 <(6) "Electronic communications service" means a
8-15 service that provides to users of the service the ability to send
8-16 or receive wire or electronic communications.>
8-17 <(7) "Electronic communications system" means a wire,
8-18 radio, electromagnetic, photo-optical or photoelectronic facility
8-19 for the transmission of wire or electronic communications, and any
8-20 computer facility or related electronic equipment for the
8-21 electronic storage of those communications.>
8-22 <(8) "Electronic storage" means:>
8-23 <(A) a temporary, intermediate storage of a wire
8-24 or electronic communication that is incidental to the electronic
8-25 transmission of the communication; or>
9-1 <(B) storage of a wire or electronic
9-2 communication by an electronic communications service for purposes
9-3 of backup protection of the communication.>
9-4 <(9) "Pen register" means a mechanical or electronic
9-5 device that attaches to a telephone line and is capable of
9-6 recording outgoing numbers dialed from that line but is not capable
9-7 of recording the origin of an incoming communication to that line
9-8 or the content of a communication carried between that line and
9-9 another line.>
9-10 <(10) "Readily accessible to the general public"
9-11 means, with respect to a radio communication, a communication that
9-12 is not:>
9-13 <(A) scrambled or encrypted;>
9-14 <(B) transmitted using modulation techniques
9-15 whose essential parameters have been withheld from the public with
9-16 the intention of preserving the privacy of the communication; or>
9-17 <(C) transmitted over frequencies reserved for
9-18 private use and licensed for private use under federal or state
9-19 law, other than a tone-only paging device communication.>
9-20 (5) <(11)> "Remote computing service" means the
9-21 provision to the public of computer storage or processing services
9-22 by means of an electronic communications system.
9-23 (6) <(12)> "Supervisory official" means:
9-24 (A) an investigative agent or an assistant
9-25 investigative agent who is in charge of an investigation;
10-1 (B) an equivalent person at an investigating
10-2 agency's headquarters or regional office; and
10-3 (C) the principal prosecuting attorney of the
10-4 state or of a political subdivision of the state or the first
10-5 assistant or chief assistant prosecuting attorney in the office of
10-6 either.
10-7 (7) <(13)> "Tracking device" means an electronic or
10-8 mechanical device that permits only tracking the movement of a
10-9 person or object.
10-10 (8) <(14)> "Trap and trace device" means a <mechanical
10-11 or electronic> device that captures the <attaches to a telephone
10-12 line and is capable of recording an> incoming electronic or other
10-13 impulses which identify <impulse that identifies> the originating
10-14 number of an instrument or device from which a wire or electronic
10-15 communication was transmitted. The term does not include a device
10-16 or telecommunications network used in providing either:
10-17 (A) <(1)> a caller identification service
10-18 authorized by the Public Utility Commission of Texas under Section
10-19 87C, Public Utility Regulatory Act (Article 1446c, Vernon's Texas
10-20 Civil Statutes); or
10-21 (B) <(2)> the services referenced in Subsection
10-22 (g), Section 87C, Public Utility Regulatory Act (Article 1446c,
10-23 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
10-24 <(15) "User" means a person who uses an electronic
10-25 communications service and is authorized by the provider of the
11-1 service to use the service.>
11-2 <(16) "Wire communication" means an aural transfer
11-3 made in whole or in part through the use of facilities for the
11-4 transmission of communications by the aid of wire, cable, or other
11-5 like connection between the point of origin and the point of
11-6 reception, including the use of such a connection in a switching
11-7 station, furnished or operated by a person authorized to engage in
11-8 providing or operating the facilities for the transmission of
11-9 communications as a communications common carrier. The term
11-10 includes the electronic storage of a wire communication but does
11-11 not include the radio portion of a cordless telephone communication
11-12 that is transmitted between the cordless telephone handset and its
11-13 base unit.>
11-14 SECTION 5. Section 3, Article 18.21, Code of Criminal
11-15 Procedure, is amended to read as follows:
11-16 Sec. 3. Emergency pen register and trap and trace
11-17 installation. (a) An authorized peace officer, designated by <the
11-18 director of the department or by> the district or criminal district
11-19 attorney of the county where the installation will be used, may
11-20 install and use a pen register or trap and trace device if the
11-21 peace officer reasonably believes that:
11-22 (1) an emergency requiring the installation of a pen
11-23 register or trap and trace device before an order authorizing the
11-24 installation and use can, with due diligence, be obtained, exists
11-25 involving immediate danger of death or serious injury to any
12-1 person; and
12-2 (2) there are grounds under this article on which an
12-3 order could be entered to authorize the installation and use of a
12-4 pen register or trap and trace device.
12-5 (b) If an authorized peace officer installs a pen register
12-6 or trap and trace device under Subsection (a) of this section, the
12-7 peace officer shall apply for and <must> obtain an order approving
12-8 installation and use within 48 hours after initiating the
12-9 installation <occurred>. If authorization is not obtained within
12-10 <those> 48 hours, the officer shall immediately terminate use of
12-11 the pen register or <the> trap and trace device <shall immediately
12-12 terminate> at the end <lapse> of the 48 hours or at the time the
12-13 order is denied, whichever is earlier.
12-14 (c) <The knowing installation or use by an authorized peace
12-15 officer of a pen register or trap and trace device under this
12-16 section without application for the authorizing order within 48
12-17 hours of the installation is not permitted and is not an exception
12-18 to the application of Section 16.03, Penal Code.>
12-19 <(d)> The state may not use as evidence in a <any
12-20 subsequent> criminal proceeding any information gained through the
12-21 use of a pen register or trap and trace device installed <issued>
12-22 under <Subsection (b) of> this section if authorization for the pen
12-23 register or trap and trace device is denied.
12-24 SECTION 6. Article 18.21, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
12-25 amended by adding Section 16 to read as follows:
13-1 Sec. 16. LIMITATION. A government agency authorized to
13-2 install and use a pen register under this chapter or under other
13-3 law shall use reasonably available technology to restrict the
13-4 recording or decoding of electronic or other impulses to the
13-5 dialing and signaling information utilized in call processing.
13-6 SECTION 7. Subsection (c), Section 16.02, Penal Code, is
13-7 amended to read as follows:
13-8 (c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
13-9 Subsection (b) that:
13-10 (1) an operator of a switchboard or an officer,
13-11 employee, or agent of a communication common carrier whose
13-12 facilities are used in the transmission of a wire or electronic
13-13 communication intercepts a communication or discloses or uses an
13-14 intercepted communication in the normal course of employment while
13-15 engaged in an activity that is a necessary incident to the
13-16 rendition of service or to the protection of the rights or property
13-17 of the carrier of the communication, unless the interception
13-18 results from the communication common carrier's use of service
13-19 observing or random monitoring for purposes other than mechanical
13-20 or service quality control checks;
13-21 (2) an officer, employee, or agent of a communication
13-22 common carrier provides information, facilities, or technical
13-23 assistance to an investigative or law enforcement officer who is
13-24 authorized as provided by this article to intercept a wire, oral,
13-25 or electronic communication;
14-1 (3) a person acting under color of law intercepts a
14-2 wire, oral, or electronic communication if the person is a party to
14-3 the communication or if one of the parties to the communication has
14-4 given prior consent to the interception;
14-5 (4) a person not acting under color of law intercepts
14-6 a wire, oral, or electronic communication if the person is a party
14-7 to the communication or if one of the parties to the communication
14-8 has given prior consent to the interception unless the
14-9 communication is intercepted for the purpose of committing any
14-10 criminal or tortious act in violation of the constitution or laws
14-11 of the United States or of this state or for the purpose of
14-12 committing any other injurious act;
14-13 (5) a person acting under color of law intercepts a
14-14 wire, oral, or electronic communication if:
14-15 (A) prior oral or written consent for the
14-16 interception has been given by a magistrate;
14-17 (B) an immediate life-threatening situation
14-18 exists;
14-19 (C) the person is a member of a law enforcement
14-20 unit specially trained to:
14-21 (i) respond to and deal with
14-22 life-threatening situations; or
14-23 (ii) install electronic, mechanical, or
14-24 other devices; and
14-25 (D) the interception ceases immediately on
15-1 termination of the life-threatening situation;
15-2 (6) an officer, employee, or agent of the Federal
15-3 Communications Commission intercepts a communication transmitted by
15-4 radio or discloses or uses an intercepted communication in the
15-5 normal course of employment and in the discharge of the monitoring
15-6 responsibilities exercised by the Federal Communications Commission
15-7 in the enforcement of Chapter 5, Title 47, United States Code;
15-8 (7) a person intercepts or obtains access to an
15-9 electronic communication that was made through an electronic
15-10 communication system that is configured to permit the communication
15-11 to be readily accessible to the general public;
15-12 (8) a person intercepts radio communication, other
15-13 than a cordless telephone communication transmitted between the
15-14 cordless telephone handset and the base unit, that is transmitted:
15-15 (A) by a station for the use of the general
15-16 public;
15-17 (B) to ships, aircraft, vehicles, or persons in
15-18 distress;
15-19 (C) by a governmental, law enforcement, civil
15-20 defense, private land mobile, or public safety communications
15-21 system that is readily accessible to the general public;
15-22 (D) by a station operating on an authorized
15-23 frequency within the bands allocated to the amateur, citizens band,
15-24 or general mobile radio services; or
15-25 (E) by a marine or aeronautical communications
16-1 system;
16-2 (9) a person intercepts a wire or electronic
16-3 communication the transmission of which causes harmful interference
16-4 to a lawfully operating station or consumer electronic equipment,
16-5 to the extent necessary to identify the source of the interference;
16-6 (10) a user of the same frequency intercepts a radio
16-7 communication made through a system that uses frequencies monitored
16-8 by individuals engaged in the provision or the use of the system,
16-9 if the communication is not scrambled or encrypted; or
16-10 (11) a provider of electronic communications service
16-11 records the fact that a wire or electronic communication was
16-12 initiated or completed in order to protect the provider, another
16-13 provider furnishing service towards the completion of the
16-14 communication, or a user of that service from fraudulent, unlawful,
16-15 or abusive use of the service.
16-16 SECTION 8. Section 16.03, Penal Code, is amended to read as
16-17 follows:
16-18 Sec. 16.03. Unlawful Use of Pen Register or Trap and Trace
16-19 Device. (a) A <Except as authorized by a court order obtained
16-20 under Article 18.21, Code of Criminal Procedure, or in an emergency
16-21 under the circumstances described and permitted under that article,
16-22 a> person commits an offense if the person intentionally or <he>
16-23 knowingly installs or uses <utilizes> a pen register or trap and
16-24 trace device <to record telephone numbers dialed from or to a
16-25 telephone instrument>.
17-1 (b) In this section, "authorized peace officer,"
17-2 "communications common carrier," "pen register," and "trap and
17-3 trace device" have the meanings assigned by Article 18.21, Code of
17-4 Criminal Procedure.
17-5 (c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
17-6 section <exception to the application of Subsection (a)> that the
17-7 installation or use was made:
17-8 (1) by an officer, employee, or agent of a
17-9 communications common carrier <installs or utilizes a device or
17-10 equipment> to record a number <the numbers> dialed from or to a
17-11 telephone instrument in the normal course of business of the
17-12 carrier for the purpose of:
17-13 (A) protecting<, for the protection of> property
17-14 or services provided by the carrier; or
17-15 (B) assisting another whom the person reasonably
17-16 believed to have been<, or assists> an authorized peace officer
17-17 acting lawfully <in executing an order issued> under Article 18.21,
17-18 Code of Criminal Procedure;<.>
17-19 (2) <(d) It is an exception to the application of
17-20 Subsection (a) that the installation or utilization of a pen
17-21 register or trap and trace device was made> by an officer, <agent,
17-22 or> employee, or agent of a lawful enterprise while engaged in an
17-23 activity that:
17-24 (A) was <is> a necessary incident to the
17-25 rendition of service or to the protection of property of or
18-1 services provided by the enterprise;<,> and
18-2 (B) was not made for the purpose of gathering
18-3 information for a law enforcement agency or private investigative
18-4 agency, other than information related to the theft of
18-5 communication or information services provided by the enterprise;
18-6 or
18-7 (3) by a person acting in compliance with the
18-8 emergency provisions of Article 18.21, Code of Criminal Procedure,
18-9 or under a court order obtained under that article.
18-10 (d) <(e)> An offense under this section is a state jail
18-11 felony.
18-12 SECTION 9. Subsection (e), Section 16.04, Penal Code, is
18-13 amended to read as follows:
18-14 (e) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
18-15 <exception to the application of> Subsection (b) that the conduct
18-16 was authorized by:
18-17 (1) the provider of the wire or electronic
18-18 communications service;
18-19 (2) the user of the wire or electronic communications
18-20 service; <or>
18-21 (3) the addressee or intended recipient of the wire or
18-22 electronic communication; or
18-23 (4) Article 18.21, Code of Criminal Procedure.
18-24 SECTION 10. Section 16.05, Penal Code, is amended to read as
18-25 follows:
19-1 Sec. 16.05. Illegal Divulgence of Public Communications.
19-2 (a) In this section:
19-3 (1) <,> "Electronic <electronic> communication,"
19-4 "electronic communications service," and "electronic communications
19-5 system" have the meanings given those terms in Article 18.20, Code
19-6 of Criminal Procedure.
19-7 (2) "Intended recipient" means the person to whom a
19-8 communication is addressed or directed or an agent of that person.
19-9 (b) A <Except as provided by Subsection (c), a> person who
19-10 provides electronic communications service to the public commits an
19-11 offense if, while an electronic communication is in transmission on
19-12 that service, the person <he> intentionally or knowingly divulges
19-13 the contents of the <a> communication to another who is not<, other
19-14 than a communication to that person or that person's agent, while
19-15 the communication is in transmission on that service, to any person
19-16 other than the addressee or> the intended recipient of the
19-17 communication <or the addressee's or intended recipient's agent>.
19-18 (c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
19-19 Subsection (b) that the actor divulged <A person who provides
19-20 electronic communications service to the public may divulge> the
19-21 contents of the <a> communication:
19-22 (1) as authorized by federal or state law;
19-23 (2) to another for the purpose for forwarding <a
19-24 person employed, authorized, or whose facilities are used to
19-25 forward> the communication to its <the communication's> destination
20-1 and the other was an employee, an authorized agent, or a person in
20-2 control of the facility used to forward the communication; or
20-3 (3) to a law enforcement agency if <the contents were
20-4 obtained by the service provider and> the contents reasonably
20-5 appeared to contain information relating <appear to pertain> to the
20-6 commission of a crime.
20-7 (d) An <Except as provided by Subsections (e) and (f), an>
20-8 offense under this section that involves a scrambled or encrypted
20-9 radio communication <Subsection (b)> is a state jail felony.
20-10 (e) An <If committed for a tortious or illegal purpose or to
20-11 gain a benefit, an> offense under this section <Subsection (b)>
20-12 that does not involve a scrambled or encrypted <involves a> radio
20-13 communication and that is committed unlawfully or to gain a benefit
20-14 <not scrambled or encrypted>:
20-15 (1) is a Class A misdemeanor if the communication is
20-16 not <the radio portion of a cellular telephone communication,> a
20-17 public land mobile radio service communication<,> or a paging
20-18 service communication; or
20-19 (2) is a Class C misdemeanor if the communication is
20-20 <the radio portion of a cellular telephone communication,> a public
20-21 land <and> mobile radio service <or> communication or a paging
20-22 service communication.
20-23 <(f)(1) A person who engages in conduct constituting an
20-24 offense under Subsection (b) that is not for a tortious or illegal
20-25 purpose or for the purpose of direct or indirect commercial
21-1 advantage or private commercial gain and involves a radio
21-2 communication that is transmitted on frequencies allocated under
21-3 Subpart D or Part 74 of the rules of the Federal Communications
21-4 Commission and that is not scrambled or encrypted shall be subject
21-5 to suit by the federal or state government in a court of competent
21-6 jurisdiction for appropriate injunctive relief. If it is shown on
21-7 the trial of the civil suit that the defendant has been convicted
21-8 of an offense under Subsection (b) or that the defendant has been
21-9 found liable in a civil action under Article 18.20, Code of
21-10 Criminal Procedure, in addition to granting injunctive relief the
21-11 court shall impose a civil penalty of $500 on the defendant.>
21-12 <(2) A court may use any means within the court's
21-13 authority to enforce an injunction issued under Subdivision (1) and
21-14 shall impose a fine as for contempt of court of not less than $500
21-15 for each violation of the injunction.>
21-16 SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
21-17 SECTION 12. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
21-18 only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
21-19 Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
21-20 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
21-21 before the effective date.
21-22 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
21-23 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
21-24 and the former law is continued in effect for this purpose.
21-25 SECTION 13. The importance of this legislation and the
22-1 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
22-2 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
22-3 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
22-4 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
22-5 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
22-6 passage, and it is so enacted.