HBA-NMO H.B. 3496 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3496
By: Dunnam
Criminal Jurisprudence
4/16/1999
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law prohibits a person from operating a motor vehicle in this state
unless the person holds a driver's license.  H.B. 3496 provides that
violation of this prohibition is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not
exceed $200; except if it is shown at the trial of the offense  that the
defendant has been convicted in the 12 months preceding the offense of an
offense for which a person's driver's license could have been suspended, in
which case, the offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less
than $100 or more than $500, and confinement in county jail for a term of
not less than 72 hours or more than six months. 

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 521.021, Transportation Code, by creating
Subsection (a) from existing text, and adding Subsections (b) and (c),  as
follows: 
 
(b) Provides that a person commits an offense if the person operates a
motor vehicle on a highway in this state without a driver's license.
Provides that an offense under this section is a misdemeanor punishable by
a fine not to exceed $200, except as provided by Subsection (c).  
 
(c) Provides that an offense under this section,  if it is shown at the
trial of the offense that the person has been convicted in the 12 months
preceding the offense of an offense for which a person's driver's license
could have been suspended, is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not
less than $100 or more than $500, and confinement in county jail for a term
of not less than 72 hours or more than six months. 
 
SECTION 2.  Effective date: September 1, 1999.
Makes application of this Act prospective.
 
SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.