HBA-MPM H.B. 3306 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3306 By: Thompson Public Health 4/17/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE There are medical conditions such as severe back and arthritic conditions and severe osteoporosis, which can make normal sexual relations physically harmful and even dangerous for persons suffering from the conditions. Sometimes a doctor will prescribe marital aids to persons with such conditions. Current law makes the possession of six or more of these aids a felony offense and provides an affirmative offense if the aids are kept for a bona fide medical, psychiatric, judicial, legislative, or law enforcement purpose; however, the law does not provide an exemption for persons who keep the aids with such intent. H.B. 3306 provides an exemption for persons such as sex therapists, sex educators, or counselors in sexuality, who have a legitimate reason for the possession of six or more marital aids. 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 43.23, Penal Code, to remove an obscene device from those items with which a person commits an offense, if, knowing its content and character, the person wholesale promotes or possesses it with intent to wholesale promote. Deletes the provision that a person possessing six or more obscene articles is presumed to possess them with intent to promote the same. Provides that it shall be lawful for a person licensed by the Texas Board of Medical Examiners, the Texas Examiners of Psychologists, the Texas State Board of Pharmacy, the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners, the Board of Nurse Examiners, the Board of Chiropractic Examiners, or a health practitioner certified as a sex therapist, sex educator or counselor in sexuality by the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Therapists, to sell, prescribe, and stock marital aids and other sexual devices which might otherwise be defined as obscene under this section. Prohibits possession of such aids and devices by a person engaged in the teaching of safe sexual practices for a recognized nonprofit educational organization from giving rise to any presumption of intent to promote or wholesale promote obscene devices under this section. Creates a defense to prosecution under this section that the obscene material or device was possessed by a person having scientific, educational, governmental, or other similar justification. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. Makes nonsubstantive changes.