85R8896 MCK-D By: Hancock S.B. No. 954 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to the authority of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to offer a civil penalty in lieu of suspending a permit or license. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 11.64(a), Alcoholic Beverage Code, is amended to read as follows: (a) When the commission or administrator is authorized to suspend a permit or license under this code, the commission or administrator shall give the permittee or licensee the opportunity to pay a civil penalty rather than have the permit or license suspended, unless the basis for the suspension is a violation of Section 11.61(b)(14), 22.12, 28.11, 32.17(a)(2), 32.17(a)(3), 61.71(a)(5), 61.71(a)(6), 61.74(a)(14), 69.13, 71.09, 101.04, 101.63, 104.01(a)(4), 106.03, 106.06, or 106.15, the sale or offer for sale of an alcoholic beverage during hours prohibited by Chapter 105, consumption or the permitting of consumption of an alcoholic beverage on the person's licensed or permitted premises during hours prohibited by Chapter 105 or Section 32.17(a)(7), or an offense relating to prostitution, trafficking of persons, [or] gambling, or controlled substances or drugs, in which case the commission or administrator shall determine whether the permittee or licensee may have the opportunity to pay a civil penalty rather than have the permit or license suspended. The commission shall adopt rules addressing when suspension may be imposed pursuant to this section without the opportunity to pay a civil penalty. In adopting rules under this subsection, the commission shall consider the type of license or permit held, the type of violation, any aggravating or ameliorating circumstances concerning the violation, and any past violations of this code by the permittee or licensee. In cases in which a civil penalty is assessed, the commission or administrator shall determine the amount of the penalty. The amount of the civil penalty may not be less than $150 or more than $25,000 for each day the permit or license was to have been suspended. If the licensee or permittee does not pay the penalty before the sixth day after the commission or administrator notifies him of the amount, the commission or administrator shall impose the suspension. SECTION 2. Section 11.64(a), Alcoholic Beverage Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to the imposition of a penalty for a violation that occurs on or after the effective date of this Act. The imposition of a penalty for a violation that occurs before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose. SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.