By Van de Putte H.B. No. 1286
75R3114 PEP-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the creation of the offense of manufacturing marihuana
1-3 and the prosecution of and punishment for the offenses of delivery
1-4 or possession of marihuana.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Sections 481.002(25) and (26), Health and Safety
1-7 Code, are amended to read as follows:
1-8 (25) "Manufacture" means the production, preparation,
1-9 propagation, compounding, conversion, or processing of a controlled
1-10 substance [other than marihuana], directly or indirectly by
1-11 extraction from substances of natural origin, independently by
1-12 means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and
1-13 chemical synthesis, and includes the packaging or repackaging of
1-14 the substance or labeling or relabeling of its container. However,
1-15 the term does not include the preparation, compounding, packaging,
1-16 or labeling of a controlled substance:
1-17 (A) by a practitioner as an incident to the
1-18 practitioner's administering or dispensing a controlled substance
1-19 in the course of professional practice; or
1-20 (B) by a practitioner, or by an authorized agent
1-21 under the supervision of the practitioner, for or as an incident to
1-22 research, teaching, or chemical analysis and not for delivery.
1-23 (26) "Marihuana" means the plant Cannabis sativa L.,
1-24 whether growing or not, the seeds of that plant, and every
2-1 compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of
2-2 that plant or its seeds. The term does not include the following
2-3 material, unless the material is not completely separated from the
2-4 plant:
2-5 (A) the resin extracted from a part of the plant
2-6 or a compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or
2-7 preparation of the resin;
2-8 (B) the mature stalks of the plant or fiber
2-9 produced from the stalks;
2-10 (C) oil or cake made from the seeds of the
2-11 plant;
2-12 (D) a compound, manufacture, salt, derivative,
2-13 mixture, or preparation of the mature stalks, fiber, oil, or cake;
2-14 or
2-15 (E) the sterilized seeds of the plant that are
2-16 incapable of germination.
2-17 SECTION 2. Section 481.120(b), Health and Safety Code, is
2-18 amended to read as follows:
2-19 (b) An offense under Subsection (a) is:
2-20 (1) a Class B misdemeanor if the amount of marihuana
2-21 delivered is one-fourth ounce or less and the person committing the
2-22 offense does not receive remuneration for the marihuana;
2-23 (2) a Class A misdemeanor if the amount of marihuana
2-24 delivered is one-fourth ounce or less and the person committing the
2-25 offense receives remuneration for the marihuana;
2-26 (3) a state jail felony if the amount of marihuana
2-27 delivered is four ounces [five pounds] or less but more than
3-1 one-fourth ounce;
3-2 (4) a felony of the third degree if the amount of
3-3 marihuana delivered is five pounds or less but more than four
3-4 ounces;
3-5 (5) a felony of the second degree if the amount of
3-6 marihuana delivered is 50 pounds or less but more than five pounds;
3-7 (6) [(5)] a felony of the first degree if the amount
3-8 of marihuana delivered is 2,000 pounds or less but more than 50
3-9 pounds; and
3-10 (7) [(6)] punishable by imprisonment in the
3-11 institutional division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
3-12 for life or for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 15
3-13 [10] years, and a fine not to exceed $250,000 [$100,000], if the
3-14 amount of marihuana delivered is more than 2,000 pounds.
3-15 SECTION 3. Subchapter D, Chapter 481, Health and Safety
3-16 Code, is amended by adding Section 481.1201 to read as follows:
3-17 Sec. 481.1201. OFFENSE: MANUFACTURE OF MARIHUANA.
3-18 (a) Except as authorized by this chapter, a person commits an
3-19 offense if the person knowingly manufactures marihuana.
3-20 (b) An offense under Subsection (a) is:
3-21 (1) a state jail felony if the amount of marihuana
3-22 manufactured is five plants or less;
3-23 (2) a felony of the third degree if the amount of
3-24 marihuana manufactured is 50 plants or less but more than five
3-25 plants;
3-26 (3) a felony of the second degree if the amount of
3-27 marihuana manufactured is 2,000 plants or less but more than 50
4-1 plants; and
4-2 (4) punishable by imprisonment in the institutional
4-3 division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life or
4-4 for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 15 years, and a
4-5 fine not to exceed $250,000, if the amount of marihuana
4-6 manufactured is more than 2,000 plants.
4-7 (c) In this section, "plant" means a single marihuana stalk
4-8 that measures not less than three inches in height.
4-9 SECTION 4. Section 481.121, Health and Safety Code, is
4-10 amended to read as follows:
4-11 Sec. 481.121. OFFENSE: POSSESSION OF MARIHUANA.
4-12 (a) Except as authorized by this chapter, a person commits an
4-13 offense if the person knowingly or intentionally possesses [a
4-14 usable quantity of] marihuana.
4-15 (b) An offense under Subsection (a) is:
4-16 (1) a Class B misdemeanor if the amount of marihuana
4-17 possessed is two ounces or less;
4-18 (2) a Class A misdemeanor if the amount of marihuana
4-19 possessed is four ounces or less but more than two ounces;
4-20 (3) a state jail felony if the amount of marihuana
4-21 possessed is five pounds or less but more than four ounces;
4-22 (4) a felony of the third degree if the amount of
4-23 marihuana possessed is 50 pounds or less but more than 5 pounds;
4-24 (5) a felony of the second degree if the amount of
4-25 marihuana possessed is 2,000 pounds or less but more than 50
4-26 pounds; [and]
4-27 (6) a felony of the first degree if the amount of
5-1 marihuana possessed is 4,000 pounds or less but more than 2,000
5-2 pounds; and
5-3 (7) punishable by imprisonment in the institutional
5-4 division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for life or
5-5 for a term of not more than 99 years or less than 15 [5] years, and
5-6 a fine not to exceed $250,000 [$50,000], if the amount of marihuana
5-7 possessed is more than 4,000 [2,000] pounds.
5-8 (c) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under
5-9 Subsection (b)(1) that the quantity of marihuana possessed was not
5-10 a usable amount.
5-11 SECTION 5. The change in law made by this Act applies only
5-12 to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
5-13 For purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
5-14 effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
5-15 before the effective date. An offense committed before the
5-16 effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect when the
5-17 offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect
5-18 for this purpose.
5-19 SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
5-20 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
5-21 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-22 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-23 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-24 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.