By: Harris S.B. No. 1593 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT 1-1 relating to the provision of measures for the protection of 1-2 employees, invitees, tenants and customers at certain retail 1-3 establishments. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Title 4, Civil Practices and Remedies Code, is 1-6 amended by adding Chapter 96 to read as follows: 1-7 CHAPTER 96. OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE SECURITY MEASURES 1-8 AT CERTAIN RETAIL ESTABLISHMENTS 1-9 Sec. 96.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: 1-10 (1) "multilevel shopping mall" means an enclosed 1-11 multilevel retail center, including its exterior grounds, surface 1-12 parking lots, multilevel parking garages, office buildings and 1-13 other associated structures and premises that: 1-14 (A) contains more than 1,200,000 square feet of 1-15 gross leasable area for retail purposes; and 1-16 (B) includes one or more multilevel parking 1-17 garages. 1-18 (2) "owner or operator of a multilevel shopping mall" 1-19 means the owner or operator of a multilevel shopping mall and the 1-20 employees and agents of such owner or operator. 1-21 Sec. 96.002. SECURITY MEASURES. (a) An owner or operator 1-22 of a multilevel shopping mall may establish and implement a 1-23 security plan that provides the following measures for the 2-1 protection of employees, invitees, tenants and customers at that 2-2 multilevel shopping mall: 2-3 (1) one peace officer on premises during regular 2-4 business hours; 2-5 (2) one security officer on premises per each 600,000 2-6 square feet of gross leasable area during regular business hours; 2-7 (3) one security officer on premises per each 1,000 2-8 parking spaces contained in a multilevel parking garage during 2-9 regular business hours; 2-10 (4) one security officer on premises per each 1,000 2-11 parking spaces contained in a multilevel parking garage during 2-12 regular business hours who is available upon request to escort 2-13 employees, invitees, tenants and customers; 2-14 (5) one security vehicle available for patrolling each 2-15 2,500 parking spaces contained in a multilevel parking structure; 2-16 (6) a communications system in effect 24 hours per 2-17 day, seven days a week; and 2-18 (7) a security advisory newsletter, designed to 2-19 communicate safety advice to employees, invitees, tenants and 2-20 customers, to be distributed or posted by the owner or operator of 2-21 the multilevel shopping mall at least once every three months; for 2-22 the purposes of this subsection, "peace officer" shall have the 2-23 same meaning as such term is defined in Article 2.12, Texas Code of 2-24 Criminal Procedure, as amended; "security officer" shall have the 2-25 same meaning as such term is defined in Article 4413 (29bb), 3-1 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes, as amended; and "regular business 3-2 hours" shall mean those hours of business adopted by the owner or 3-3 operator of a multilevel shopping mall for that mall. 3-4 (b) Any owner or operator of a multilevel shopping mall that 3-5 establishes a security plan under the provisions of this subsection 3-6 shall file a copy of such plan with both the police chief of any 3-7 municipality in which such mall is located and the sheriff of the 3-8 county in which such mall is located. Such filings are proof of 3-9 the establishment of a plan for the purposes of this Act. 3-10 Sec. 96.003. AFFIRMATIVE DEFENSE FOR MULTILEVEL SHOPPING 3-11 MALLS: EVIDENCE OF SAFETY MEASURES. It is an affirmative defense 3-12 in a cause of action that alleges that the owner or operator of a 3-13 multilevel shopping mall is liable for failure to provide adequate 3-14 security that at the time of the incident that is the basis for the 3-15 cause of action the owner or operator of the multilevel shopping 3-16 mall had established and substantially implemented the security 3-17 plan described by Section 96.002. 3-18 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995, and 3-19 Chapter 96, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, as added by the Act, 3-20 applies only to a cause of action that accrues on or after January 3-21 1, 1996. A cause of action that accrues before that date is 3-22 governed by the law in effect on the date that the cause accrued, 3-23 and the former law is continued in effect for the purpose. 3-24 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 3-25 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 4-1 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 4-2 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 4-3 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.