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.

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