82R6606 SMH-D
 
  By: Deuell S.B. No. 1516
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the collection of artifacts from public waterways.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Subchapter C, Chapter 191, Natural Resources
  Code, is amended by adding Section 191.060 to read as follows:
         Sec. 191.060.  COLLECTION OF ARTIFACTS FROM PUBLIC
  WATERWAYS. (a)  In this section, "artifact" means an artifact,
  including a stone implement, pottery or pottery shards, a bone tool
  other than a tool made of human bone, or another item made by
  prehistoric or historic American Indians or aborigines or early
  settlers of land in this state.
         (b)  The committee may issue a permit to a private individual
  to collect artifacts from public waterways in this state other than
  a waterway located in a state park or in land administered by the
  federal government. Except as otherwise provided by this section,
  a private individual must hold a permit issued by the committee to
  collect artifacts from public waterways in this state.
         (c)  To be eligible for a permit, a private individual:
               (1)  must be at least 16 years of age;
               (2)  may not have been convicted of a misdemeanor
  during the preceding five years; and
               (3)  may not have been convicted of a felony.
         (d)  A private individual who is younger than 16 years of age
  is not required to hold a permit to collect artifacts from public
  waterways in this state if the individual engages in the collection
  of artifacts from public waterways in this state only while the
  individual is in the company of a holder of a permit issued under
  this section.
         (e)  A permit issued under this section must be renewed
  annually. The committee may charge a fee not to exceed $75 for
  renewing a permit.
         (f)  A private individual may collect artifacts only from the
  surface of the undisturbed portions of gravel bars on and the
  shorelines of all rivers, creeks, lakes, and waterways owned or
  administered by this state other than a waterway located in a state
  park or in land administered by the federal government. Artifacts
  may be collected only by hand, by the use of a stick or pole to flip
  stones or other obstacles, or by the use of a hand-held sifter no
  larger than 24 inches by 18 inches. A private individual may not
  collect artifacts by means of a shovel, trowel, rake, spade, hoe, or
  other implement the purpose of which is to remove, dislocate, or
  overturn soil.
         (g)  A private individual must report to the committee
  regularly in accordance with guidelines adopted by the committee
  regarding any artifacts found by the individual. The committee may
  provide for filing reports under this subsection electronically and
  may require an individual who files a report electronically to
  submit a digital photograph of any artifact found. The committee
  shall maintain a database of the reports filed under this
  subsection.
         (h)  This state is entitled to purchase any artifact found by
  a private individual in a public waterway in this state for the
  artifact's fair market value if the committee determines that the
  public interest would be served by this state acquiring ownership
  of the artifact. If the committee makes such a determination, the
  committee shall notify the individual. If this state purchases an
  artifact, the artifact becomes the permanent property of this
  state.
         (i)  The committee may assign to an archeologist the
  responsibility to receive reports under Subsection (g), maintain a
  database of reports filed under that subsection, and make initial
  determinations under Subsection (h) on behalf of the committee for
  a designated public waterway.
         (j)  If the committee does not notify a private individual
  who has found an artifact before the first anniversary of the date
  the individual reported the finding to the committee that the
  committee has determined that the public interest would be served
  by this state acquiring ownership of the artifact, the individual
  is the exclusive owner of the artifact with all of the rights and
  privileges of private personal property ownership, except as
  provided by this subsection.  A state agency is entitled to borrow
  for study an artifact found by a private individual on a public
  waterway before or after a determination is made under Subsection
  (h). A state agency may not borrow an artifact for more than one
  year. A state agency that borrows an artifact shall pay the
  expenses of shipping and handling the artifact.
         (k)  A private individual who engages in the collection of
  artifacts on public waterways must report to the committee:
               (1)  any discovery of human remains, including a tool
  or other artifact made of human bone, or a burial site on a public
  waterway;
               (2)  any newly discovered or unrecorded archeological
  site; or
               (3)  any illegal collection of artifacts on public
  waterways observed, including collection of artifacts:
                     (A)  without a permit; or
                     (B)  by illegal means, including;
                           (i)  digging or excavating;
                           (ii)  using a propeller of a vessel to remove
  sediment from a site; or
                           (iii)  using a power hose to uncover
  artifacts.
         (l)  A holder of a permit issued under this section shall
  cooperate in a reasonable and open manner with any archeologist or
  historian employed by the committee or another state agency.
         (m)  It is a defense to prosecution for an offense under this
  chapter involving the collection of artifacts from a public
  waterway in this state before September 1, 2011, that the private
  individual who collected the artifacts:
               (1)  collected them in the manner provided by
  Subsection (f); and
               (2)  holds a permit issued under this section.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.