HBA-MPM H.B. 274 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 274 By: West, George Criminal Jurisprudence 3/24/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The Penal Code makes provisions for determining what is considered disorderly conduct in terms of unreasonable noisemaking. The decibel threshold, traditionally measured at the physical location of the complaint, is presently set at 85 decibels. Many individuals in unincorporated parts of a county do no have the protection of municipal ordinances restricting excessive noise and therefore rely on the applicable provisions of the Penal Code. H.B. 274 lowers the threshold at which noise is considered unreasonable in the code from 85 to 55 decibels. Furthermore, this bill sets forth certain exceptions if the noise is related to the ordinary and necessary operations or activities of an airport, an agricultural operation, businesses regulated by certain state governmental entities, or a sport shooting range. 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 42.01, Penal Code, to amend Subsections (a) and (c) and to add Subsection (e), as follows: (a) Makes conforming and nonsubstantive changes. (c) Decreases the decibel level of noise presumed unreasonable from 85 to 55 decibels, after which the person making the noise receives notice from a magistrate or peace officer that the noise is a public nuisance. (e) Sets forth the following exceptions to the application of Subsection (a)(5): -the noise is related to the ordinary and necessary operations or activities of an airport, -an agricultural operation as defined by Section 251.002, Agriculture Code, -businesses regulated by certain state governmental entities, or -a sport shooting range, as defined by Section 250.001, Local Government Code. Sets forth that exceptions also apply if the noise results from an activity that occurs and is allowed in a municipal area where commercial or entertainment purposes are permitted by zoning ordinance and the level of noise is permitted by the municipality's governing body. Section 251.002 (Definitions), Agriculture Code, defines an "agricultural operation" as one that includes but is not limited to the following activities: cultivating the soil; producing crops for human food, animal feed, planting seed, or fiber; floriculture; viticulture; horticulture; raising or keeping livestock or poultry; and planting cover crops or leaving land idle for the purpose of participating in any governmental program or normal crop or livestock rotation procedure. Section 251.001 (Restriction on Regulation of Sport Shooting Range), Local Government Code defines "sport shooting range" as a business establishment that is in existence on or before the effective date of this Act and operating an area for the discharge or other use of firearms for silhouette, skeet, trap, black powder, target, self-defense, or similar recreational shooting. SECTION 2. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 4. Emergency clause.