1-1     By:  Brown, Barrientos                                 S.B. No. 907

 1-2           (In the Senate - Filed March 3, 1997; March 6, 1997, read

 1-3     first time and referred to Committee on Criminal Justice;

 1-4     April 4, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 6,

 1-5     Nays 0; April 4, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the statute of limitations for the purpose of

 1-9     prosecuting certain offenses under the Tax Code.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Article 12.01, Code of Criminal Procedure, is

1-12     amended to read as follows:

1-13           Art. 12.01.  FELONIES.  Except as provided in Article 12.03,

1-14     felony indictments may be presented within these limits, and not

1-15     afterward:

1-16                 (1)  no limitation:  murder and manslaughter;

1-17                 (2)  ten years from the date of the commission of the

1-18     offense:

1-19                       (A)  theft of any estate, real, personal or

1-20     mixed, by an executor, administrator, guardian or trustee, with

1-21     intent to defraud any creditor, heir, legatee, ward, distributee,

1-22     beneficiary or settlor of a trust interested in such estate;

1-23                       (B)  theft by a public servant of government

1-24     property over which he exercises control in his official capacity;

1-25                       (C)  forgery or the uttering, using or passing of

1-26     forged instruments; or

1-27                       (D)  sexual assault under  Section 22.011(a)(2)

1-28     of the Penal Code; indecency with a child;

1-29                 (3)  seven years from the date of the commission of the

1-30     offense:

1-31                       (A)  misapplication of fiduciary property or

1-32     property of a financial institution;

1-33                       (B)  securing execution of document by deception;

1-34     or

1-35                       (C)  violations under Sections 153.403(20)-(33),

1-36     Tax Code;

1-37                 (4)  five years from the date of the commission of the

1-38     offense:

1-39                       (A)  theft, burglary, robbery;

1-40                       (B)  arson; or

1-41                       (C)  sexual assault, except as provided in

1-42     Subsection (2)(D) of this article; or

1-43                 (5)  three years from the date of the commission of the

1-44     offense:  all other felonies.

1-45           SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act does not apply

1-46     to an offense if the prosecution of the offense became barred by

1-47     limitation before the effective date of this Act.  The prosecution

1-48     of that offense remains barred as though this Act had not taken

1-49     effect.     

1-50           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-51           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-52     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-53     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-54     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-55     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

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