By: Darby (Senate Sponsor - Flores) H.B. No. 2038

(In the Senate - Received from the House April 25, 2019; April 30, 2019, read first time and referred to Committee on Water & Rural Affairs; May 15, 2019, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 15, 2019, sent to printer.) Click here to see the committee vote

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to certain offenses relating to disturbing or taking marl, sand, gravel, shell, or mudshell or disturbing oyster beds or fishing waters; increasing the criminal penalty.

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

SECTION 1. Section 86.022, Parks and Wildlife Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 86.022. PENALTY. (a) A person who violates Section 86.002 [or 86.018] commits an offense that is a Class B [C] Parks and Wildlife Code misdemeanor.

(b) A person who violates Section 86.018 commits an offense that is a Class C Parks and Wildlife Code misdemeanor.

SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.

SECTION 3. 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, 2019.

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