By Lewis of Tarrant                                   H.B. No. 2932
         77R11735 AJA-D                           
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to a discount on the premium surcharge for a motor vehicle
 1-3     equipped with a breath alcohol detection device.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1. Article 5.03-1, Insurance Code, is amended to read
 1-6     as follows:
 1-7           Art. 5.03-1.  PREMIUM SURCHARGE
 1-8           Sec. 1.  SURCHARGE AUTHORIZED. A premium surcharge in an
 1-9     amount to be prescribed by the commissioner [State Board of
1-10     Insurance] shall be assessed by an insurer described by [defined
1-11     in] Article 5.01 of this code[, Texas Insurance Code,] against an
1-12     insured for no more than three years immediately following the date
1-13     of conviction of the insured of an offense committed while
1-14     operating a motor vehicle under Section 49.04 or 49.07, Penal Code,
1-15     or an offense under Section 49.08, Penal Code.  The premium
1-16     surcharge shall be applied only to private passenger automobile
1-17     policies as defined by the commissioner [State Board of Insurance].
1-18           Sec. 2.  SUBSEQUENT CONVICTION. If an insured assessed a
1-19     premium surcharge as a result of a conviction of an offense
1-20     described by [as set out in] Section 1 of this article is
1-21     subsequently convicted of [a violation of] one of those offenses
1-22     [statutes] during the period the insured [he] is assessed the
1-23     premium surcharge, the period for which the premium surcharge shall
1-24     be imposed is increased by three additional consecutive years for
 2-1     each conviction.
 2-2           Sec. 3.  SURCHARGE REDUCTION AUTHORIZED. (a)  In this
 2-3     section, "motor vehicle ignition interlock device" means a device
 2-4     that uses a deep-lung breath analysis mechanism to make impractical
 2-5     the operation of a motor vehicle if ethyl alcohol is detected in
 2-6     the breath of the operator of the vehicle.
 2-7           (b)  An insurer may reduce the premium surcharge prescribed
 2-8     under this article by up to 50 percent for an insured whose insured
 2-9     motor vehicle is equipped with a motor vehicle ignition interlock
2-10     device as required by a court order following the insured's
2-11     conviction of an offense described by Section 1 of this article.
2-12     The insured is entitled to a discount under this section only for
2-13     the period that the vehicle is equipped with the device.
2-14           (c)  An insurer may endorse a policy to restrict coverage
2-15     under the policy to the motor vehicle that is equipped with a motor
2-16     vehicle ignition interlock device.
2-17           SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.