bill rewriting the penalty ladder for littering

The text as introduced · 688 words

By: Miles
S.B. No. 2917

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the penalties for certain littering offenses.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Sections 365.012(d), (e), (f), (h), and (s),

Health and Safety Code, are amended to read as follows:

(d) An offense under Subsection (a), (b), or (c) is a Class C

misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $2,000, except that

the offense is:

(1) a Class B misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to

exceed $5,000 if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the

defendant has previously been convicted one time of an offense

under Subsection (a), (b), or (c) and the litter or solid waste to

which the offense applies weighs five pounds or more or has a volume

of five gallons or more;

(2) a Class A misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to

exceed $10,000 if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the

defendant has previously been convicted two times of an offense

under Subsection (a), (b), or (c) and the litter or solid waste to

which the offense applies weighs five pounds or more or has a volume

of five gallons or more; or

(3) a Class A misdemeanor punishable by a fine equal to

the amount of the fine for the preceding conviction plus $10,000 if

it is shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant has

previously been convicted more than two times of an offense under

Subsection (a), (b), or (c) and the litter or solid waste to which

the offense applies weighs five pounds or more or has a volume of

five gallons or more [ if the litter or other solid waste to which

the offense applies weighs five pounds or less or has a volume of

five gallons or less ].

(e) A fine under Subsection (d)(3) may not exceed $50,000

[ An offense under Subsection (a), (b), or (c) is a Class B

misdemeanor if the litter or other solid waste to which the offense

applies weighs more than five pounds but less than 500 pounds or has

a volume of more than five gallons but less than 100 cubic feet ].

(f) An offense under Subsection (a-1) [ this section ] is a

Class A misdemeanor if:

(1) the litter or other solid waste to which the

offense applies weighs 500 pounds or more but less than 1,000 pounds

or has a volume of 100 cubic feet or more but less than 200 cubic

feet; or

(2) the litter or other solid waste is disposed for a

commercial purpose and weighs more than five pounds but less than

200 pounds or has a volume of more than five gallons but less than

200 cubic feet.

(h) If it is shown on the trial of the defendant for an

offense under Subsection (a-1) [ this section ] that the defendant

has previously been convicted of an offense under Subsection (a-1)

[ this section ], the punishment for the offense is increased to the

punishment for the next highest category.

(s) On conviction of an offense under this section, the

court shall require the defendant, in addition to any fine or other

penalty, to :

(1) perform community service as provided by Article

42A.304(e), Code of Criminal Procedure ; and

(2) reimburse the county or municipality, as

applicable, for any costs incurred in cleaning up the litter or

other solid waste that is the subject of the offense .

SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to

an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An

offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed

by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the

former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of

this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of

this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.