1-1           By:  Harris                                      S.B. No. 884

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 3, 1997; March 5, 1997, read

 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on Jurisprudence;

 1-4     March 18, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 7,

 1-5     Nays 0; March 18, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to rules of statutory construction.

 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-10           SECTION 1.  Subchapter B, Chapter 311, Government Code, is

1-11     amended by adding Section 311.016 to read as follows:

1-12           Sec. 311.016.  "MAY," "SHALL," "MUST," ETC. The following

1-13     constructions apply unless the context in which the word or phrase

1-14     appears necessarily requires a different construction or unless a

1-15     different construction is expressly provided by statute:

1-16                 (1)  "May" creates discretionary authority or grants

1-17     permission or a power.

1-18                 (2)  "Shall" imposes a duty.

1-19                 (3)  "Must" creates or recognizes a condition

1-20     precedent.

1-21                 (4)  "Is entitled to" creates or recognizes a right.

1-22                 (5)  "May not" imposes a prohibition and is synonymous

1-23     with "shall not."

1-24                 (6)  "Is not entitled to" negates a right.

1-25                 (7)  "Is not required to" negates a duty or condition

1-26     precedent.

1-27           SECTION 2.  Section 311.025, Government Code, is amended by

1-28     adding Subsections (d) and (e) to read as follows:

1-29           (d)  In this section, the date of enactment is the date on

1-30     which the last legislative vote is taken on the bill enacting the

1-31     statute.

1-32           (e)  If the journals or other legislative records fail to

1-33     disclose which of two or more bills in conflict is latest in date

1-34     of enactment, the date of enactment of the respective bills is

1-35     considered to be, in order of priority:

1-36                 (1)  the date on which the last presiding officer

1-37     signed the bill;

1-38                 (2)  the date on which the governor signed the bill; or

1-39                 (3)  the date on which the bill became law by operation

1-40     of law.

1-41           SECTION 3.  Section 312.014, Government Code, is amended to

1-42     read as follows:

1-43           Sec. 312.014.  IRRECONCILABLE AMENDMENTS. (a)  If statutes

1-44     enacted at the same or different sessions of the legislature are

1-45     irreconcilable, the statute latest in date of enactment prevails.

1-46           (b)  If amendments to the same statute are enacted at the

1-47     same session of the legislature, one amendment without reference to

1-48     another, the amendments shall be harmonized, if possible, so that

1-49     effect may be given to each.  If the amendments are irreconcilable,

1-50     the latest in date of enactment prevails.

1-51           (c)  In determining whether amendments to the same statute

1-52     enacted at the same session of the legislature are irreconcilable,

1-53     text that is reenacted because of the requirement of Article III,

1-54     Section 36, of the Texas Constitution is not considered to be

1-55     irreconcilable with additions or omissions in the same text made by

1-56     another amendment.  Unless clearly indicated to the contrary, an

1-57     amendment that reenacts text in compliance with that constitutional

1-58     requirement does not indicate legislative intent that the reenacted

1-59     text prevail over changes in the same text made by another

1-60     amendment, regardless of the relative dates of enactment.

1-61           (d)  In this section, the date of enactment is the date on

1-62     which the last legislative vote is taken on the bill enacting the

1-63     statute.

1-64           (e)  If the journals or other legislative records fail to

 2-1     disclose which of two or more bills in conflict is latest in date

 2-2     of enactment, the date of enactment of the respective bills is

 2-3     considered to be, in order of priority:

 2-4                 (1)  the date on which the last presiding officer

 2-5     signed the bill;

 2-6                 (2)  the date on which the governor signed the bill; or

 2-7                 (3)  the date on which the bill became law by operation

 2-8     of law.

 2-9           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

2-10     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

2-11     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

2-12     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-13     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

2-14     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

2-15     passage, and it is so enacted.

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