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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the prosecution and punishment of the offense of |
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cruelty to nonlivestock animals. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Chapter 42, Code of Criminal Procedure, is |
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amended by adding Article 42.0365 to read as follows: |
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Art. 42.0365. PSYCHOLOGICAL COUNSELING FOR CRUELTY TO |
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NONLIVESTOCK ANIMALS. A court sentencing a defendant for an |
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offense under Section 42.092, Penal Code, shall order the defendant |
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to participate in psychological counseling for a period to be |
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determined by the court. |
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SECTION 2. Section 42.092(a)(2), Penal Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(2) "Animal" means a [domesticated] living creature, |
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including any domesticated living creature and any [stray or feral |
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cat or dog, and a] wild living creature [previously captured]. The |
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term does not include [an uncaptured wild living creature or] a |
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livestock animal. |
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SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is |
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governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, |
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and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For |
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purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the |
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effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred |
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before that date. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |