IMF S.B. 884 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS STATE AFFAIRS S.B. 884 By: Harris 4-25-97 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND The statutory revision program, pursuant to Section 323.007, Government Code, permits the Legislative Council to formally revise statutes by topic or code. In order to provide for consistency in the interpretation of statutory terms such as "may," "shall," and "must," the Legislative Council has proposed that such terms be statutorily defined. A recent federal court case, in which the court determined that the term "may not," as used in Section 123.008, Human Resources Code, was permissive rather than prohibitive, demonstrates the need for statutory definitions. (Sharpstown Civil Ass'n v. Maxicare Home Services, Inc., No. H-94-1592 (S.D. Tex. 1995)). The legislature occasionally enacts conflicting bills, such as multiple amendments of the same statute. The common law and statutory rules of construction establish that if specific acts are irreconcilable, the most recently enacted one controls. However, the rules do not provide a mechanism for determining which of the acts is most recent if the journals or other legislative records do not provide specific information. PURPOSE As proposed, S.B. 884 sets forth definitions for certain legislative terms or phrases and rules of construction for certain irreconcilable statutes and amendments. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 311, Government Code (the "Code Construction Act"), by adding Section 311.016 to define "may," "shall," "must," "is entitled to," "may not," "is not entitled to," and "is not required to." SECTION 2. Amends Section 311.025, Government Code, by adding Subsections (d) and (e), to provide rules for determining which of two conflicting codified acts is later in date of enactment. SECTION 3. Amends Section 312.014, Government Code, to add rules for determining which of two conflicting uncodified acts is later in date of enactment. Makes conforming changes. SECTION 4. Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage.