HBA-DMD C.S.H.B. 2323 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 2323
By: Jones, Charles
Public Safety
4/23/1999
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, there is some confusion among motorists as to whether it is
legal to carry a concealed handgun in a person's vehicle. C.S.H.B. 2323
sets forth that the provision of Section 46.02 (Unlawful Carrying Weapons),
Penal Code, prohibiting the carrying of a handgun does not apply to a
person who is at least 21 years of age, has not been convicted of a felony,
who was carrying the handgun in a motor vehicle that the person was
operating, and who locked the handgun in a container in the vehicle or who
rendered the handgun inoperable. 

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 46.15, Penal Code, by adding Subsections (e) and
(f), as follows: 

(e) Sets forth that the provision of Section 46.02 (Unlawful Carrying
Weapons), Penal Code, prohibiting the carrying of a handgun does not apply
to a person who at the time of the commission of the offense was at least
21 years of age, had not previously been convicted of a felony and was not
serving a period of community supervision in connection with a felony, was
carrying a concealed handgun in a motor vehicle that the person was
operating, and had an established procedure for securing the handgun in the
vehicle in a locked container or storage compartment or for temporarily
rendering the handgun inoperable by any reasonable means at any time the
person was not in the vehicle.   

(f) Defines "motor vehicle" and "concealed handgun" in this section. 

SECTION 2. Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 3.Effective date: September 1, 1999.  

SECTION 4.Emergency clause. 

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

This substitute differs from the original bill in SECTION 1 (proposed
Section 46.15, Penal Code), by specifying that temporarily rendering a
handgun inoperable by any reasonable means, rather than temporarily
rendering the handgun inoperable by a trigger lock or other means, at any
time the person was not in the vehicle is one of the enumerated provisions
exempting a person from Section 46.02 (Unlawful Carrying Weapons), Penal
Code.