By:  Cain                                             S.B. No. 1831

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

                                       AN ACT

 1-1     relating to sanitary facilities required on the premises of certain

 1-2     applicants for an alcoholic beverage license.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Section 61.43, Alcoholic Beverage Code, is

 1-5     amended to read as follows:

 1-6           Sec. 61.43.  DISCRETIONARY GROUNDS FOR REFUSAL:  DISTRIBUTOR

 1-7     OR RETAILER.  (a)  The county judge may refuse to approve an

 1-8     application for a license as a distributor or retailer if the

 1-9     county judge [he] has reasonable grounds to believe and finds that:

1-10                 (1)  the applicant has been finally convicted in a

1-11     court of competent jurisdiction for the violation of a provision of

1-12     this code during the two years immediately preceding the filing of

1-13     an [his] application;

1-14                 (2)  two years has not elapsed since the termination,

1-15     by pardon or otherwise, of a sentence imposed for conviction of a

1-16     felony;

1-17                 (3)  the applicant has violated or caused to be

1-18     violated a provision of this code or a rule or regulation of the

1-19     commission, for which a suspension was not imposed, during the

1-20     12-month period immediately preceding the filing of an [his]

1-21     application;

1-22                 (4)  the applicant failed to answer or falsely or

1-23     incorrectly answered a question in an [his] original or renewal

 2-1     application;

 2-2                 (5)  the applicant for a retail dealer's license does

 2-3     not have an adequate building available at the address for which

 2-4     the license is sought before conducting any activity authorized by

 2-5     the license;

 2-6                 (6)  the applicant or a person with whom the applicant

 2-7     [he] is residentially domiciled had an interest in a license or

 2-8     permit which was cancelled or revoked within the 12-month period

 2-9     immediately preceding the filing of an [his] application;

2-10                 (7)  the applicant failed or refused to furnish a true

2-11     copy of the [his] application to the commission's district office

2-12     in the district in which the premises sought to be licensed are

2-13     located;

2-14                 (8)  the premises on which beer is to be sold for

2-15     on-premises consumption does not have running water, if it is

2-16     available, or does not have separate free toilets for males and

2-17     females, properly identified, on the premises for which the license

2-18     is sought;

2-19                 (9)  the applicant for a retail dealer's license will

2-20     conduct [his] business in a manner contrary to law or in a place or

2-21     manner conducive to a violation of the law; or

2-22                 (10)  the place, building, or premises for which the

2-23     license is sought was used for selling alcoholic beverages in

2-24     violation of the law at any time during the six months immediately

2-25     preceding the filing of the application or was used, operated, or

 3-1     frequented during that time for a purpose or in a manner which was

 3-2     lewd, immoral, offensive to public decency, or contrary to this

 3-3     code.

 3-4           (b)  Subsection (a)(8) does not apply to an application under

 3-5     this section if the premises for which the application is submitted

 3-6     is part of a larger business complex with multiple tenant or

 3-7     commercial spaces, including a mall, that is open to the public and

 3-8     that offers the facilities required by Subsection (a)(8).

 3-9           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

3-10           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

3-11     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

3-12     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

3-13     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

3-14     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.

3-15                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1

3-16           Amend S.B. 1831 as follows:

3-17           (1)  On page 3, line 7, following Section 1 of the bill,

3-18     insert the following new section and renumber the subsequent

3-19     sections appropriately:

3-20           SECTION 2.  Sec. 438.034, Health and Safety Code, is amended

3-21     to read as follows:

3-22           Sec. 438.034.  EMPLOYEE CLEANLINESS.  A person handling food

3-23     or unsealed food containers shall:

3-24                 (1)  maintain personal cleanliness;

3-25                 (2)  wear clean outer garments;

 4-1                 (3)  keep the person's hands clean; and

 4-2                 (4)  either (A) wash the person's hands and exposed

 4-3     portions of their arms with soap and water before starting work,

 4-4     during work as often as necessary to avoid cross-contaminating food

 4-5     and to maintain cleanliness, after smoking, eating, and each visit

 4-6     to the toilet or (B) avoid bare-hand contact with exposed food by

 4-7     use of gloves or utensils and hand wash after smoking, eating, and

 4-8     each visit to the toilet.

 4-9                                                                 Goolsby