| |
| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to motor vehicle windshield sunscreening devices. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Section 547.613, Transportation Code, is amended |
|
|
by amending Subsections (b) and (e) to read as follows: |
|
|
(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to: |
|
|
(1) a windshield that has a sunscreening device that: |
|
|
(A) in combination with the windshield has a |
|
|
light transmission of 25 percent or more; |
|
|
(B) in combination with the windshield has a |
|
|
luminous reflectance of 25 percent or less; |
|
|
(C) is not red, blue, or amber; and |
|
|
(D) does not extend downward beyond the AS-1 line |
|
|
or more than five inches from the top of the windshield, whichever |
|
|
is closer to the top of the windshield; |
|
|
(2) a wing vent or a window that is to the left or right |
|
|
of the vehicle operator if the vent or window has a sunscreening |
|
|
device that in combination with the vent or window has: |
|
|
(A) a light transmission of 25 percent or more; |
|
|
and |
|
|
(B) a luminous reflectance of 25 percent or less; |
|
|
(2-a) a side window that is to the rear of the vehicle |
|
|
operator; |
|
|
(3) a rear window, if the motor vehicle is equipped |
|
|
with an outside mirror on each side of the vehicle that reflects to |
|
|
the vehicle operator a view of the highway for a distance of at |
|
|
least 200 feet from the rear; |
|
|
(4) a rearview mirror; |
|
|
(5) an adjustable nontransparent sun visor that is |
|
|
mounted in front of a side window and not attached to the glass; |
|
|
(6) a direction, destination, or termination sign on a |
|
|
passenger common carrier motor vehicle, if the sign does not |
|
|
interfere with the vehicle operator's view of approaching traffic; |
|
|
(7) a rear window wiper motor; |
|
|
(8) a rear trunk lid handle or hinge; |
|
|
(9) a luggage rack attached to the rear trunk; |
|
|
(10) a side window that is to the rear of the vehicle |
|
|
operator on a multipurpose vehicle; |
|
|
(11) a window that has a United States, state, or local |
|
|
certificate placed on or attached to it as required by law; |
|
|
(12) a rear or side window of a motor vehicle that is |
|
|
not registered in this state; |
|
|
(13) a window that complies with federal standards for |
|
|
window materials, including a factory-tinted or a pretinted window |
|
|
installed by the vehicle manufacturer, or a replacement window |
|
|
meeting the specifications required by the vehicle manufacturer; |
|
|
(14) a rear or side window of a vehicle that is: |
|
|
(A) used regularly to transport passengers for a |
|
|
fee; and |
|
|
(B) authorized to operate under license or permit |
|
|
by a local authority; |
|
|
(15) a vehicle that is maintained by a law enforcement |
|
|
agency and used for law enforcement purposes; or |
|
|
(16) a commercial motor vehicle as defined by Section |
|
|
644.001. |
|
|
(e) It is a defense to prosecution under Subsection (a) that |
|
|
[the defendant or a passenger in the vehicle] at the time of the |
|
|
violation: |
|
|
(1) the defendant or a passenger in the vehicle is |
|
|
required for a medical reason to be shielded from direct rays of the |
|
|
sun; |
|
|
(2) the defendant or passenger possesses a signed |
|
|
statement from a physician, as defined by Section 151.002, |
|
|
Occupations Code, or an optometrist, as defined by Section 351.002, |
|
|
Occupations Code, that: |
|
|
(A) identifies with reasonable specificity the |
|
|
defendant or passenger; and |
|
|
(B) states that, in the physician's or |
|
|
optometrist's professional opinion, the equipping of the vehicle |
|
|
with a sunscreening device is necessary to safeguard the health of |
|
|
the defendant or passenger; and |
|
|
(3) any part of the sunscreening device applied to the |
|
|
windshield below the AS-1 line does not alter the color or reduce |
|
|
light transmission by more than five percent. |
|
|
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 was |
|
|
committed before that date. |
|
|
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |