1-1     By:  Bosse (Senate Sponsor - Whitmire)                 H.B. No. 546

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 29, 1997;

 1-3     April 30, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on

 1-4     Jurisprudence; May 13, 1997, reported favorably by the following

 1-5     vote:  Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 13, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the civil liability of charitable organizations

 1-9     providing neighborhood crime prevention or patrol services.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Section 84.003(1), Civil Practice and Remedies

1-12     Code, is amended to read as follows:

1-13                 (1)  "Charitable organization" means:

1-14                       (A)  any organization exempt from federal income

1-15     tax under Section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986  by

1-16     being listed as an exempt organization in Section 501(c)(3) or

1-17     501(c)(4) of the code, if it is a nonprofit corporation,

1-18     foundation, community chest, or fund organized and operated

1-19     exclusively for charitable, religious, prevention of cruelty to

1-20     children or animals, youth sports and youth recreational,

1-21     neighborhood crime prevention or patrol, or educational purposes,

1-22     excluding private primary or secondary schools, alumni associations

1-23     and related on-campus organizations, or is organized and operated

1-24     exclusively for the promotion of social welfare by being primarily

1-25     engaged in promoting the common good and general welfare of the

1-26     people in a community;

1-27                       (B)  any bona fide charitable, religious,

1-28     prevention of cruelty to children or animals, youth sports and

1-29     youth recreational, neighborhood crime prevention or patrol, or

1-30     educational organization, excluding alumni associations and related

1-31     on-campus organizations, or other organization organized and

1-32     operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare by being

1-33     primarily engaged in promoting the common good and general welfare

1-34     of the people in a community, and that:

1-35                             (i)  is organized and operated exclusively

1-36     for one or more of the above purposes;

1-37                             (ii)  does not engage in activities which

1-38     in themselves are not in furtherance of the purpose or purposes;

1-39                             (iii)  does not directly or indirectly

1-40     participate or intervene in any political campaign on behalf of or

1-41     in opposition to any candidate for public office;

1-42                             (iv)  dedicates its assets to achieving the

1-43     stated purpose or purposes of the organization;

1-44                             (v)  does not allow any part of its net

1-45     assets on dissolution of the organization to inure to the benefit

1-46     of any group, shareholder, or individual; and

1-47                             (vi)  normally receives more than one-third

1-48     of its support in any year from private or public gifts, grants,

1-49     contributions, or membership fees; or

1-50                       (C)  a homeowners association as defined by

1-51     Section 528(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

1-52           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, and

1-53     applies only to a cause of action that accrues on or after that

1-54     date.  An action that accrued before the effective date of this Act

1-55     is governed by the law applicable to the action immediately before

1-56     the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect

1-57     for that purpose.

1-58           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-59     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-60     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-61     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-62     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

1-63                                  * * * * *