1-1 By: Van de Putte (Senate Sponsor - Nelson) H.B. No. 2685 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 27, 1997; 1-3 April 29, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on Health 1-4 and Human Services; May 14, 1997, reported favorably by the 1-5 following vote: Yeas 10, Nays 0; May 14, 1997, sent to printer.) 1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-7 AN ACT 1-8 relating to certain prohibited activities in the food stamp 1-9 program. 1-10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-11 SECTION 1. Section 33.011(d), Human Resources Code, is 1-12 amended to read as follows: 1-13 (d) When cash, exchange value or food stamp benefit permits 1-14 of various values are obtained in violation of this section 1-15 pursuant to one scheme or continuing course of conduct, whether 1-16 from the same of several sources, the conduct may be considered as 1-17 one offense and the values aggregated in determining the grade of 1-18 the offense. 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 purposes of this section, an offense is committed before 1-22 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs 1-23 before the effective date. 1-24 (b) An offense committee before the effective date of this 1-25 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, 1-26 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. 1-27 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997. 1-28 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the 1-29 crowded condition of this calendars in both houses create an 1-30 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 1-31 constitutional rule requiring bills to read on three several days 1-32 in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended. 1-33 * * * * *