The 2019 session of the Texas Legislature was quite effective with the implementation of 820 new laws that became effective September 1, 2019 or sooner. The laws impact everything from abortion, treatment of female inmates in state prisons, lemonade stands, hemp treatment and the new smoking age risen to 21. Another big enacted law is the passage of the $250 billion state budget that will fund public schools, teacher salaries and early childhood intervention programs.
Some of the most important laws that may impact you are discussed below.
Drug, Alcohol and Tobacco Laws
Texans will now be allowed to bring beer-to-go with them from breweries.
An updated law will punish hazing and forced consumption of drugs or alcohol that lead to intoxication. Victims of hazing who report this conduct may be able to receive immunity from liability.
A new law will require hit-and-run drivers to serve at least 120 days in jail if probation is granted in their case.
Individuals charged with a first driving while intoxicated offense will be able to receive deferred adjudication, a move meant to incentivize defendants to receive court-ordered treatment instead of pleading guilty and receiving a criminal sentence.
Texas became the 15th state to raise the legal age to purchase cigarettes, vaping products and tobacco products to 21.
Product Laws
Minors will no longer be allowed to purchase cough syrup. Businesses will be required to check the identification of anyone purchasing cough suppressants.
Driving Laws
The Driver Responsibility Program, which resulted in additional fines to repeat traffic offenders and caused many Texas residents to lose their driver’s license, has been shut down. The passage of this law will allow thousands of Texans to get their driver’s licenses back.
Medical Billing and Other Medical Laws
A new law tries to prevent Texan residents from being surprised with unanticipated medical bills when their health care provider and insurance company are not in agreement about the payment.
Abortion providers in the states will be defunded. State and local governments will be prohibited from partnering with agencies that perform abortions, even when these providers contract for services that are not related to abortions.
The law to dispose of the Driver Responsibility Program provides alternative funding sources for trauma care, which the program previously helped paid for.
Home Disclosures
A new Texas law will require homeowners in a 500-year floodplain, in a flood pool or near a reservoir to disclose whether the home has flooded during a catastrophic event.
Consumer Laws
Telemarketers will be prohibited from calling Texas residents by using fake numbers that appear on their caller id. Violating this law will now be considered a crime in Texas. The punishment for stealing packages off of people’s porches have been increased.
The act of skimming credit cards from gas station pumps and other locations has been criminalized as a separate crime. Gas station merchants who discover a device of this nature will be required to immediately disable the gas pump and notify law enforcement.
Gun Laws
A new gun law will allow people to carry a gun on them in the week following the governor’s announcement of a natural disaster in the state. They can carry the gun even if they are unlicensed.
The limit on the number of teachers, administrators and marshals who are allowed to bring a gun on campus has been removed.
School employees will be allowed to store guns in locked vehicles on campus. Property associations cannot enforce rules that limit the ownership of firearms.
Legislation that prohibited carrying a gun from a house of worship was removed.
All Laws
You can see a complete rundown on the new laws here and read about the most recent laws that were passed during the Texas legislation. A summary of all of the laws is in the chart below:
https://capitol.texas.gov/Reports/Report.aspx?LegSess=86R&ID=effectivesept1
