HBA-NMO H.B. 1771 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1771 By: Hawley Criminal Jurisprudence 4/23/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current law provides that a person commits a Class A misdemeanor if the person commits criminal trespass while carrying a deadly weapon. Because potentially dangerous situations arise when armed trespassers are confronted by owners or inhabitants of property, the law may need to provide an increased penalty for this offense. H.B. 1771 provides that a person commits a state jail felony if the person commits criminal trespass while carrying a deadly weapon. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 30.05(d), Penal Code, to provide that an offense under this section (criminal trespass) is a state jail felony, rather than a Class A misdemeanor, if the actor carries a deadly weapon on or about the actor's person during the commission of the offense. SECTION 2. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 4. Emergency clause.