By: Huffman	S.B. No. 2247
	(In the Senate - Filed May 4, 2021; May 5, 2021, read first
	time and referred to Committee on Finance; May 11, 2021, reported
	favorably by the following vote:  Yeas 10, Nays 2; May 11, 2021,
	sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the removal of a fee for the issuance of an original,
	duplicate, modified, or renewed license to carry a handgun.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Section 411.0625(c), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(c)  The department shall adopt rules to establish a
	procedure by which a resident of the state may apply for and be
	issued a Capitol access pass.  Rules adopted under this section
	must include provisions for eligibility, application, approval,
	issuance, and renewal that:
	(1)  require the department to conduct the same
	background check on an applicant for a Capitol access pass that is
	conducted on an applicant for a license to carry a handgun under
	Subchapter H;
	(2)  enable the department to conduct the background
	check described by Subdivision (1); and
	(3)  establish application and renewal fees in amounts
	sufficient to cover the cost of administering this section[, not to
	exceed the amounts of similar fees required under Section 411.174
	for a license to carry a handgun].
	SECTION 2.  Section 411.173(a), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(a)  The department by rule shall establish a procedure for a
	person who meets the eligibility requirements of this subchapter
	other than the residency requirement established by Section
	411.172(a)(1) to obtain a license under this subchapter if the
	person is a legal resident of another state or if the person
	relocates to this state with the intent to establish residency in
	this state. [The procedure must include payment of a fee in an
	amount sufficient to recover the average cost to the department of
	obtaining a criminal history record check and investigation on a
	nonresident applicant.] A license issued in accordance with the
	procedure established under this subsection:
	(1)  remains in effect until the license expires under
	Section 411.183; and
	(2)  may be renewed under Section 411.185.
	SECTION 3.  Section 411.174(a), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(a)  An applicant for a license to carry a handgun must
	submit to the director's designee described by Section 411.176:
	(1)  a completed application on a form provided by the
	department that requires only the information listed in Subsection
	(b);
	(2)  one or more photographs of the applicant that meet
	the requirements of the department;
	(3)  a certified copy of the applicant's birth
	certificate or certified proof of age;
	(4)  proof of residency in this state;
	(5)  two complete sets of legible and classifiable
	fingerprints of the applicant taken by a person appropriately
	trained in recording fingerprints who is employed by a law
	enforcement agency or by a private entity designated by a law
	enforcement agency as an entity qualified to take fingerprints of
	an applicant for a license under this subchapter;
	(6)  [a nonrefundable application and license fee of
	$40 paid to the department;
	[(7)]  evidence of handgun proficiency, in the form and
	manner required by the department;
	(7) [(8)]  an affidavit signed by the applicant stating
	that the applicant:
	(A)  has read and understands each provision of
	this subchapter that creates an offense under the laws of this state
	and each provision of the laws of this state related to use of
	deadly force; and
	(B)  fulfills all the eligibility requirements
	listed under Section 411.172; and
	(8) [(9)]  a form executed by the applicant that
	authorizes the director to make an inquiry into any noncriminal
	history records that are necessary to determine the applicant's
	eligibility for a license under Section 411.172(a).
	SECTION 4.  Section 411.179, Government Code, is amended by
	amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsection (f) to read as
	follows:
	(e)  [In this subsection, "veteran" has the meaning assigned
	by Section 411.1951.]  The department shall include the designation
	"VETERAN" on the face of any original, duplicate, modified, or
	renewed license under this subchapter or on the reverse side of the
	license, as determined by the department, if the license is issued
	to a veteran who:
	(1)  requests the designation; and
	(2)  provides proof sufficient to the department of the
	veteran's military service and honorable discharge.
	(f)  For purposes of Subsection (e), "veteran" means a person
	who:
	(1)  has served in:
	(A)  the army, navy, air force, coast guard, or
	marine corps of the United States;
	(B)  the Texas military forces as defined by
	Section 437.001; or
	(C)  an auxiliary service of one of those branches
	of the armed forces; and
	(2)  has been honorably discharged from the branch of
	the service in which the person served.
	SECTION 5.  Section 411.181(h), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(h)  If a license holder is required under this section to
	apply for a duplicate license and the license expires not later than
	the 60th day after the date of the loss, theft, or destruction of
	the license, the applicant may renew the license with the modified
	information included on the new license. [The applicant must pay
	only the nonrefundable renewal fee.]
	SECTION 6.  Section 411.185(a), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(a)  To renew a license, a license holder must, on or before
	the date the license expires, submit to the department by mail or,
	in accordance with the procedure adopted under Subsection (f), on
	the Internet:
	(1)  a renewal application on a form provided by the
	department;
	[(2)  payment of a nonrefundable renewal fee of $40;]
	and
	(2) [(3)]  the informational form described by
	Subsection (c) signed or electronically acknowledged by the
	applicant.
	SECTION 7.  Sections 411.186(a) and (c), Government Code,
	are amended to read as follows:
	(a)  The department shall revoke a license under this section
	if the license holder:
	(1)  was not entitled to the license at the time it was
	issued;
	(2)  made a material misrepresentation or failed to
	disclose a material fact in an application submitted under this
	subchapter;
	(3)  subsequently becomes ineligible for a license
	under Section 411.172, unless the sole basis for the ineligibility
	is that the license holder is charged with the commission of a Class
	A or Class B misdemeanor or equivalent offense, or of an offense
	under Section 42.01, Penal Code, or equivalent offense, or of a
	felony under an information or indictment;
	(4)  is convicted of an offense under Section 46.035,
	Penal Code; or
	(5)  is determined by the department to have engaged in
	conduct constituting a reason to suspend a license listed in
	Section 411.187(a) after the person's license has been previously
	suspended twice for the same reason[; or
	[(6)  submits an application fee that is dishonored or
	reversed if the applicant fails to submit a cashier's check or money
	order made payable to the "Department of Public Safety of the State
	of Texas" in the amount of the dishonored or reversed fee, plus $25,
	within 30 days of being notified by the department that the fee was
	dishonored or reversed].
	(c)  A license holder whose license is revoked for a reason
	listed in Subsection (a) [Subsections (a)(1)-(5)] may reapply as a
	new applicant for the issuance of a license under this subchapter
	after the second anniversary of the date of the revocation if the
	cause for revocation does not exist on the date of the second
	anniversary.  If the cause for revocation exists on the date of the
	second anniversary after the date of revocation, the license holder
	may not apply for a new license until the cause for revocation no
	longer exists and has not existed for a period of two years.
	SECTION 8.  Section 411.190(c), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(c)  In the manner applicable to a person who applies for a
	license to carry a handgun, the department shall conduct a
	background check of a person who applies for certification as a
	qualified handgun instructor or approved online course provider.
	If the background check indicates that the applicant for
	certification would not qualify to receive a handgun license, the
	department may not certify the applicant as a qualified handgun
	instructor or approved online course provider. If the background
	check indicates that the applicant for certification would qualify
	to receive a handgun license, the department shall provide handgun
	instructor or online course provider training to the applicant.
	The applicant shall pay a fee of $100 to the department for the
	training. The applicant must take and successfully complete the
	training offered by the department and pay the training fee before
	the department may certify the applicant as a qualified handgun
	instructor or approved online course provider. The department
	shall issue a license to carry a handgun under the authority of this
	subchapter to any person who is certified as a qualified handgun
	instructor or approved online course provider [and who pays to the
	department a fee of $40 in addition to the training fee]. The
	department by rule may prorate or waive the training fee for an
	employee of another governmental entity.
	SECTION 9.  Sections 411.201(d) and (h), Government Code,
	are amended to read as follows:
	(d)  An applicant for a license who is an active or retired
	judicial officer must submit to the department:
	(1)  a completed application, including all required
	affidavits, on a form prescribed by the department;
	(2)  one or more photographs of the applicant that meet
	the requirements of the department;
	(3)  two complete sets of legible and classifiable
	fingerprints of the applicant, including one set taken by a person
	employed by a law enforcement agency who is appropriately trained
	in recording fingerprints;
	(4)  evidence of handgun proficiency, in the form and
	manner required by the department for an applicant under this
	section;
	[(5)  a nonrefundable application and license fee of
	$25;] and
	(5) [(6)]  if the applicant is a retired judicial
	officer, a form executed by the applicant that authorizes the
	department to make an inquiry into any noncriminal history records
	that are necessary to determine the applicant's eligibility for a
	license under this subchapter.
	(h)  The department shall issue a license to carry a handgun
	under the authority of this subchapter to a United States attorney
	or an assistant United States attorney, or to an attorney elected or
	employed to represent the state in the prosecution of felony cases,
	who meets the requirements of this section for an active judicial
	officer. [The department shall waive any fee required for the
	issuance of an original, duplicate, or renewed license under this
	subchapter for an applicant who is a United States attorney or an
	assistant United States attorney or who is an attorney elected or
	employed to represent the state in the prosecution of felony
	cases.]
	SECTION 10.  Section 118.011(b), Local Government Code, is
	amended to read as follows:
	(b)  The county clerk may set and collect the following fee
	from any person:
	(1)  Returned Check (Sec. 118.0215)  . . . . . . not
	less than $15 or more than $30
	(2)  Records Management and Preservation Fee (Sec.
	118.0216) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . not more than $10
	(3)  [Mental Health Background Check for License to
	Carry a Handgun (Sec. 118.0217)  . . . . . not more than $2
	[(4)]  Marriage License for Out-of-State Applicants
	(Sec. 118.018) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $100
	SECTION 11.  The following provisions are repealed:
	(1)  Sections 411.181(d) and (i), 411.186(d), 411.194,
	411.195, 411.1951, 411.1953, 411.1954, 411.199(d), 411.1991(c),
	411.1992(d), 411.1993(e), and 411.1994(d), Government Code; and
	(2)  Section 118.0217, Local Government Code.
	SECTION 12.  The change in law made by this Act applies only
	to an applicant for an original, duplicate, modified, or renewed
	license to carry a handgun under Subchapter H, Chapter 411,
	Government Code, as amended by this Act, who submits the
	application on or after the effective date of this Act.
	SECTION 13.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
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