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79R14167 DWS-D


By:  Howard, Eissler                                              H.B. No. 219

Substitute the following for H.B. No. 219:                                    

By:  Allen of Dallas                                          C.S.H.B. No. 219



A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to a sign advertising or identifying a sexually oriented 
business; providing civil and criminal penalties.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:                        
	SECTION 1.  The purposes of this Act are to mitigate the 
adverse secondary effects of sexually oriented businesses, improve 
traffic safety, limit harm to minors, reduce prostitution, crime, 
juvenile delinquency, and deterioration in property values, and 
encourage neighborhood improvement efforts.
	SECTION 2.  Chapter 46, Business & Commerce Code, as added by 
Chapter 402, Acts of the 78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003, 
is amended by adding Section 46.005 to read as follows:
	Sec. 46.005.  SIGNS.  (a)  In this section:                             
		(1)  "Nude" means:                                                     
			(A)  entirely unclothed; or                                           
			(B)  clothed in a manner that leaves uncovered or 
visible through less than fully opaque clothing any portion of the 
breasts below the top of the areola of the breasts, if the person is 
female, or any portion of the genitals or buttocks.
		(2)  "Obscene" has the meaning assigned by Section 
43.21, Penal Code.
	(b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c), a person may not 
place or maintain an outdoor sign advertising or identifying a 
sexually oriented business.
	(c)  A person may place and maintain not more than two 
on-premise signs, as defined by Section 216.002, Local Government 
Code, identifying a sexually oriented business.  Each sign may not 
exceed 40 square feet in size and may include only the business's 
name, street address, telephone number, and operating hours.  A 
sign authorized by this subsection may not contain obscene material 
or a depiction of a nude person.
	(d)  A person who violates this section commits an offense.  
An offense under this subsection is a Class B misdemeanor.
	(e)  A person who violates this section is liable to the 
state for a civil penalty.  The attorney general may sue to collect 
the penalty.  The amount of the civil penalty is not less than $500 
or more than $1,000 for each violation, depending on the 
seriousness of the violation.  A separate penalty may be collected 
for each day a continuing violation occurs.
	SECTION 3.  A sign that exists on the effective date of this 
Act and that does not comply with Section 46.005, Business &
Commerce Code, as added by this Act, may be maintained until August 
31, 2008.  After August 31, 2008, the sign must comply with that 
section.
	SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives 
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as 
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this 
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this 
Act takes effect September 1, 2005.