By Yarbrough                                     H.B. No. 631

      75R2301 ESH-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the criminal penalties for late filing of a report of

 1-3     political contributions and expenditures or a personal financial

 1-4     statement.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Section 254.041(b), Government Code, is amended

 1-7     to read as follows:

 1-8           (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c), an offense under

 1-9     this section is a Class B [C] misdemeanor.

1-10           SECTION 2.  Section 572.034(b), Government Code, is amended

1-11     to read as follows:

1-12           (b)  An offense under this section is a Class A [B]

1-13     misdemeanor.

1-14           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-15           SECTION 4.  (a)  The changes in law made by this Act apply

1-16     only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this

1-17     Act.  For the purposes of this section, an offense is committed

1-18     before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense

1-19     occurs before the effective date.

1-20           (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this

1-21     Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,

1-22     and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

1-23           SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-24     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-1     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-2     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-3     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.