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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to increasing the punishment for the offense of promotion |
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of prostitution. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 43.03(b), Penal Code, is amended to read |
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as follows: |
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(b) An offense under this section is a state jail felony |
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[Class A misdemeanor], except that the offense is: |
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(1) a felony of the third degree [state jail felony] if |
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the actor has been previously convicted of an offense under this |
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section; or |
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(2) a felony of the second degree if the actor engages |
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in conduct described by Subsection (a)(1) or (2) involving a person |
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younger than 18 years of age engaging in prostitution, regardless |
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of whether the actor knows the age of the person at the time of [the
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actor commits] the offense. |
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SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only to |
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an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An |
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offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed |
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by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the |
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former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of |
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this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of |
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this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date. |
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SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017. |