By Van de Putte                                 H.B. No. 2685

      75R8753 T                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to certain prohibited activities in the food stamp

 1-3     program.

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

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 33.011(d), Human Resources Code, is

 1-6     amended to read as follows:

 1-7           (d)  When cash, exchange value or food stamp benefit permits

 1-8     of various values are obtained in violation of this section

 1-9     pursuant to one scheme or continuing course of conduct, whether

1-10     from the same of several sources, the conduct may be considered as

1-11     one offense and the values aggregated in determining the grade of

1-12     the offense.

1-13           SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies

1-14     only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this

1-15     Act.  For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before

1-16     the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs

1-17     before the effective date.

1-18           (b)  An offense committee before the effective date of this

1-19     Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,

1-20     and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

1-21           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-22           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-23     crowded condition of this calendars in both houses create an

1-24     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-1     constitutional rule requiring bills to read on three several days

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