HBA-CMT, NRS H.B. 402 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 402 By: Giddings Licensing & Administrative Procedures 3/9/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) is responsible for issuing many different beer and liquor permits, licenses, and certificates for the sale and distribution of alcohol. One type of permit authorized by the TABC is a medicinal permit that allows the holder to buy or dispense liquor at his or her pharmacy for medicinal purposes only with a prescription written by a physician. A corresponding permit is the physician's permit that allows a doctor to write prescriptions for liquor for medical purposes. Although no one has applied for either permit in several decades, the TABC must continue to carry information on each license, retain the ability to print permits, and retain specific function codes in its database. House Bill 402 eliminates the medicinal and physician's liquor permits. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 402 amends the Alcoholic Beverage Code to abolish the medicinal and physician's permits for buying or dispensing liquor. The bill repeals law authorizing the holder of a medicinal permit to buy or dispense liquor at the holder of a medicinal permit's pharmacy for medicinal purposes only. The bill repeals law authorizing the holder of a physician's permit to write prescriptions for liquor for medical purposes in accordance with certain restrictions. The bill repeals law related to a tax imposed on each liquor prescription filled by a pharmacist. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.