By Gutierrez                                    H.B. No. 1047

      75R3994 DWS-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to fines for violations of motor vehicle financial

 1-3     responsibility requirements.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 601.191, Transportation Code, is amended

 1-6     by amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsection (e) to

 1-7     read as follows:

 1-8           (b)  Except as provided by Subsections (c) and (d), an

 1-9     offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of

1-10     not less than $350 [$175] or more than $500 [$350].

1-11           (c)  If a person has been previously convicted of an offense

1-12     under this section, an offense under this section is a misdemeanor

1-13     punishable by a fine of not less than $500 [$350] or more than

1-14     $1,000.

1-15           (e)  From the amount collected as fines under this section

1-16     the municipality or county may retain half and shall send half to

1-17     the state comptroller at the times and in the manner prescribed by

1-18     the comptroller.

1-19           SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies

1-20     only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this

1-21     Act.  For the purposes of this section, an offense is committed

1-22     before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense

1-23     occurs before that date.

1-24           (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this

 2-1     Act is governed by the law in effect when the offense was

 2-2     committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that

 2-3     purpose.

 2-4           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

 2-5           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

 2-6     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-7     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-8     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-9     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.