By Wise                                               H.B. No. 2193
         76R7083 GWK-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the punishment for the offense of possessing or
 1-3     promoting child pornography.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Sections 43.26(d) and (g), Penal Code, are
 1-6     amended to read as follows:
 1-7           (d)  An offense under Subsection (a)  is a felony of the
 1-8     third degree, unless the visual material possessed by the actor is
 1-9     an image transmitted to a computer by telephone line, cable,
1-10     satellite transmission, or other method, in which event the offense
1-11     is a felony of the second degree.
1-12           (g)  An offense under Subsection (e) is a felony of the third
1-13     degree, unless the visual material promoted by the actor or
1-14     possessed by the actor with intent to promote is an image
1-15     transmitted to a computer by telephone line, cable, satellite
1-16     transmission, or other method, in which event the offense is a
1-17     felony of the second degree.
1-18           SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
1-19     only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
1-20     Act.  For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
1-21     the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
1-22     before the effective date.
1-23           (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
1-24     Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
 2-1     and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
 2-2           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
 2-3           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
 2-4     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
 2-5     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
 2-6     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
 2-7     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.