By Dunnam H.B. No. 1854 77R5729 DWS-F A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the penalty for operation of a motor vehicle by a 1-3 person who does not hold a driver's license. 1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-5 SECTION 1. Section 521.021, Transportation Code, is amended 1-6 to read as follows: 1-7 Sec. 521.021. LICENSE REQUIRED. (a) A person, other than a 1-8 person expressly exempted under this chapter, may not operate a 1-9 motor vehicle on a highway in this state unless the person holds a 1-10 driver's license issued under this chapter. 1-11 (b) If it is shown on the trial of an offense under this 1-12 section that, within the year preceding the date of the offense for 1-13 which the defendant is being tried, the defendant was convicted of 1-14 an offense for which the defendant's driver's license could have 1-15 been suspended, instead of the penalty provided by Section 521.461 1-16 the offense is a misdemeanor punishable by: 1-17 (1) a fine of not less than $100 or more than $500; 1-18 (2) confinement in county jail for a term of not less 1-19 than 72 hours or more than six months; or 1-20 (3) both the fine and the confinement. 1-21 SECTION 2. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 2001, and 1-22 applies only to the punishment for an offense occurring on or after 1-23 that date. For the purposes of this section, an offense is 1-24 committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of 2-1 the offense occurs before that date. 2-2 (b) Punishment for an offense committed before the effective 2-3 date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the offense 2-4 was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that 2-5 purpose.