By Harris S.B. No. 167 75R276 JMM-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the offense of failing to pay the wages of an employee. 1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-4 SECTION 1. Section 61.019, Labor Code, is amended by 1-5 amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read 1-6 as follows: 1-7 (b) An employer commits an offense if the employer: 1-8 (1) intends to avoid payment of wages owed to an 1-9 employee; 1-10 (2) intends to continue to employ the employee; and 1-11 (3) fails after demand to pay those wages. 1-12 (c) An employer commits a separate offense under Subsection 1-13 (b) for each pay period during which the employee earns wages that 1-14 the employer fails to pay. 1-15 (d) An offense under this section is a felony of the third 1-16 degree. 1-17 SECTION 2. (a) The change in law made to Section 61.019, 1-18 Labor Code, by this Act applies only to an offense committed on or 1-19 after the effective date of this Act. For purposes of this 1-20 section, an offense is committed before the effective date of this 1-21 Act if any element of the offense occurs before that date. 1-22 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this 1-23 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, 1-24 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. 2-1 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997. 2-2 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the 2-3 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 2-4 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 2-5 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 2-6 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.