83R10711 ADM-D

By: Davis of Dallas H.B. No. 3288

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to drug testing of a person seeking to obtain or renew a concealed handgun license.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 411.172(a), Government Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) A person is eligible for a license to carry a concealed handgun if the person:

(1) is a legal resident of this state for the six-month period preceding the date of application under this subchapter or is otherwise eligible for a license under Section 411.173(a);

(2) is at least 21 years of age;

(3) has not been convicted of a felony;

(4) is not charged with the commission of a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense, or of an offense under Section 42.01, Penal Code, or equivalent offense, or of a felony under an information or indictment;

(5) is not a fugitive from justice for a felony or a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense;

(6) is not a chemically dependent person;

(7) is not incapable of exercising sound judgment with respect to the proper use and storage of a handgun;

(8) has not, in the five years preceding the date of application, been convicted of a Class A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense or of an offense under Section 42.01, Penal Code, or equivalent offense;

(9) is fully qualified under applicable federal and state law to purchase a handgun;

(10) has not been finally determined to be delinquent in making a child support payment administered or collected by the attorney general;

(11) has not been finally determined to be delinquent in the payment of a tax or other money collected by the comptroller, the tax collector of a political subdivision of the state, or any agency or subdivision of the state;

(12) is not currently restricted under a court protective order or subject to a restraining order affecting the spousal relationship, other than a restraining order solely affecting property interests;

(13) has not, in the 10 years preceding the date of application, been adjudicated as having engaged in delinquent conduct violating a penal law of the grade of felony; [and]

(14) has not made any material misrepresentation, or failed to disclose any material fact, in an application submitted pursuant to Section 411.174; and

(15) is not ineligible for the license based on a drug test under Section 411.1721.

SECTION 2. Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code, is amended by adding Section 411.1721 to read as follows:

Sec. 411.1721. DRUG TESTING AND ELIGIBILITY. (a) In this section, "controlled substance" has the meaning assigned by Chapter 481, Health and Safety Code.

(b) In addition to complying with the requirements of Section 411.174 or 411.185, an applicant for the issuance or renewal of a license to carry a concealed handgun must submit to a drug test at the applicant's expense to establish the applicant's eligibility for the license. The applicant must have the drug test results submitted directly to the department.

(c) A person whose drug test conducted under this section indicates the presence in the person's body of a controlled substance not prescribed for the person by a health care practitioner is ineligible for a license to carry a concealed handgun until the first anniversary of the date the results of the person's drug test were submitted to the department under this section. A person who is determined to be ineligible under this section may not apply for the issuance of a new license to carry a concealed handgun until the person completes an educational program, approved by the department, that is designed to educate a person on the dangers of drug abuse.

(d) Before revoking or denying a license to carry a concealed handgun under this section, the department must:

(1) notify the person of the results of the drug test and the department's proposed determination of ineligibility;

(2) confirm the results of the drug test through a second drug test or other appropriate method; and

(3) provide the person with an opportunity for a public hearing concerning the results of the drug test.

SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only to an application to obtain or renew a license to carry a concealed handgun submitted on or after the effective date of this Act. An application submitted before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the application was submitted, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.