By Rodriguez                                    H.B. No. 2113

      75R3068 DAK-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the appearance at a justice or municipal court hearing

 1-3     for a child accused of committing certain misdemeanors of the

 1-4     parent, managing conservator, or guardian of the child; providing a

 1-5     penalty.

 1-6           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-7           SECTION 1.  Section 54.022, Family Code, is amended by adding

 1-8     Subsection (h) to read as follows:

 1-9           (h)  A person commits an offense if the person is a parent,

1-10     managing conservator, or a guardian who receives an order under

1-11     Subsection (e) to appear personally at the hearing with the child

1-12     and who fails to appear at the hearing.  An offense under this

1-13     subsection is a Class C misdemeanor.

1-14           SECTION 2.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-15           (b)  The change in law made by this Act applies only to the

1-16     failure to appear at a hearing for which an order to appear is

1-17     issued by a court on or after the effective date of this Act.

1-18           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-19     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-20     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-21     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-22     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.