1-1     By:  Dunnam, Swinford, Gallego                        H.B. No. 2922
 1-2          (Senate Sponsor - Sibley)
 1-3           (In the Senate - Received from the House May 5, 1999;
 1-4     May 6, 1999, read first time and referred to Committee on State
 1-5     Affairs; May 14, 1999, reported favorably by the following vote:
 1-6     Yeas 8, Nays 0; May 14, 1999, sent to printer.)
 1-7                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-8                                   AN ACT
 1-9     relating to the offense of obstructing a railroad crossing with a
1-10     train.
1-11           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-12           SECTION 1.  Sections 471.007(a)-(d), Transportation Code, are
1-13     amended to read as follows:
1-14           (a)  A railway company commits an offense if a train of the
1-15     railway company obstructs for more than 10 minutes a street,
1-16     railroad crossing, or public highway [An officer, agent, servant,
1-17     or receiver of a railway company commits an offense if the person
1-18     wilfully obstructs for more than five minutes a street, railroad
1-19     crossing, or public highway by permitting a train to stand on the
1-20     crossing].
1-21           (b)  An offense under this section is a misdemeanor
1-22     punishable by a fine of not less than $100 [$5] or more than $300
1-23     [$100].
1-24           (c)  An officer charging a railway company [making an arrest]
1-25     for an offense under this section shall prepare in duplicate a
1-26     citation to appear in court and attach one copy of the citation to
1-27     the train or deliver the copy to an employee or other agent of the
1-28     railway company.  The citation must show [showing]:
1-29                 (1)  the name of the railway company [and address of
1-30     the person];
1-31                 (2)  the offense charged; and
1-32                 (3)  the time and place that a representative of the
1-33     railway company [the person] is to appear in court.
1-34           (d)  It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
1-35     the train obstructs the street, railroad crossing, or public
1-36     highway because of an act of God or breakdown of the train  [The
1-37     conductor of the train is an agent for service of the citation.
1-38     The person served the citation gives a written promise to appear in
1-39     court by signing the citation in duplicate.  The arresting officer
1-40     shall keep the original, and the person signing shall keep the
1-41     copy.  The officer shall release the person from custody after the
1-42     person signs the citation].
1-43           SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by this Act applies
1-44     only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
1-45     Act.  For the purposes of this section, an offense is committed
1-46     before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense
1-47     occurs before that date.
1-48           (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
1-49     Act is governed by the law in effect when the offense was
1-50     committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
1-51     purpose.
1-52           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1999.
1-53           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the
1-54     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
1-55     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
1-56     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
1-57     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.
1-58                                  * * * * *