By Wentworth                                    S.B. No. 1149

      75R7720 CBH-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to a prohibition on telecommunications utilities

 1-3     discriminating in the placement of  advertisements in telephone

 1-4     directories.

 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-6           SECTION 1.  Subtitle G, Title III, Public Utility Regulatory

 1-7     Act of 1995 (Article 1446c-0, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is

 1-8     amended by adding  Section 3.312 to read as follows:

 1-9           Sec. 3.312.  PREFERENCE OR PREJUDICE RELATING TO ADVERTISING

1-10     IN TELEPHONE DIRECTORY.  (a)  A telecommunications utility or an

1-11     affiliate of the  utility that publishes a residential or business

1-12     telephone directory that is distributed to the public and that

1-13     contains paid advertisements for other persons may not make or

1-14     grant a preference or advantage to a person relating to the

1-15     placement of an advertisement or to the order in which an

1-16     advertisement appears.

1-17           (b)  The commission may adopt rules to implement and enforce

1-18     this section.

1-19           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, and

1-20     applies to a telephone directory published on or after that date.

1-21     A telephone directory published before that date is governed by the

1-22     law in effect when the telephone directory was published, and that

1-23     law is continued in effect for that purpose.

1-24           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

 2-1     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-2     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-3     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-4     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.