88R14963 JSC-D

By: Rosenthal H.B. No. 4817

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to a handgun safety course required for the transfer of a handgun.

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

SECTION 1. Chapter 411, Government Code, is amended by adding Subchapter H-1 to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER H-1. HANDGUN SAFETY

Sec. 411.221. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Handgun" has the meaning assigned by Section 46.01, Penal Code.

(2) "Qualified handgun instructor" has the meaning assigned by Section 411.171.

Sec. 411.222. HANDGUN SAFETY COURSE. (a) The director by rule shall establish minimum standards for a handgun safety course that a person may complete to receive a certificate of completion from the department under this section. The course must be administered by a qualified handgun instructor.

(b) The department shall issue a certificate of completion to a person who completes the handgun safety course under Subsection (a).

(c) A person is responsible for paying to the course provider the costs of a handgun safety course under this section.

SECTION 2. Section 46.06(a), Penal Code, is amended to read as follows:

(a) A person commits an offense if the person:

(1) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to any person knowing that the person to whom the handgun is to be delivered intends to use it unlawfully or in the commission of an unlawful act;

(2) intentionally or knowingly sells, rents, leases, or gives or offers to sell, rent, lease, or give to any child younger than 18 years of age any firearm, club, or location-restricted knife;

(3) intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly sells a firearm or ammunition for a firearm to any person who is intoxicated;

(4) knowingly sells a firearm or ammunition for a firearm to any person who has been convicted of a felony before the fifth anniversary of the later of the following dates:

(A) the person's release from confinement following conviction of the felony; or

(B) the person's release from supervision under community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision following conviction of the felony;

(5) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to any person knowing that an active protective order is directed to the person to whom the handgun is to be delivered;

(6) knowingly purchases, rents, leases, or receives as a loan or gift from another a handgun while an active protective order is directed to the actor; [or]

(7) while prohibited from possessing a firearm under state or federal law, knowingly makes a material false statement on a form that is:

(A) required by state or federal law for the purchase, sale, or other transfer of a firearm; and

(B) submitted to a [licensed] firearms dealer licensed under[, as defined by] 18 U.S.C. Section 923; or

(8) sells, rents, leases, loans, or gives a handgun to any person without first verifying that the person possesses a certificate of completion issued by the Department of Public Safety under Section 411.222, Government Code.

SECTION 3. The public safety director of the Department of Public Safety shall adopt the rules necessary to implement Section 411.222, Government Code, as added by this Act, not later than December 1, 2023.

SECTION 4. Section 46.06(a), Penal Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to an offense committed on or after January 1, 2024. An offense committed before January 1, 2024, 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 January 1, 2024, if any element of the offense occurred before that date.

SECTION 5. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails over another Act of the 88th Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted codes.

SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.