1-1     By:  Tillery (Senate Sponsor - Cain)                   H.B. No. 707
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 5, 1999;
 1-3     May 6, 1999, read first time and referred to Committee on State
 1-4     Affairs; May 14, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-5     Yeas 8, Nays 0; May 14, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-7                                   AN ACT
 1-8     relating to dismissal of an inspection certificate violation.
 1-9           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-10           SECTION 1.  Section 548.605, Transportation Code, is amended
1-11     to read as follows:
1-12           Sec. 548.605. DISMISSAL OF CHARGE;  ADMINISTRATIVE FEE. (a)
1-13     In this section, "working day" means any day other than a Saturday,
1-14     a Sunday, or a  holiday on which county offices are closed.
1-15           (b)  The court shall [may]:
1-16                 (1)  dismiss a charge of driving with an expired
1-17     inspection certificate if:
1-18                       (A)  the defendant remedies the defect within 10
1-19     working days; and
1-20                       (B)  the inspection certificate has not been
1-21     expired for more than 60 days; and
1-22                 (2)  assess an administrative fee not to exceed $10
1-23     when the charge of driving with an expired inspection certificate
1-24     has been remedied.
1-25           (c)  Notwithstanding Subsection (b)(1)(B), the court may
1-26     dismiss a charge of driving with an expired inspection certificate
1-27     that has been expired for more than 60 days.
1-28           SECTION 2.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
1-29     The change in law made by this Act applies only to an offense
1-30     committed on or after the effective date of this Act.  For purposes
1-31     of this section, an offense is committed before the effective date
1-32     of this Act if any element of the offense occurs before that date.
1-33           (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
1-34     Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
1-35     and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
1-36           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the
1-37     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-38     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-39     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-40     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
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