H.B. No. 2543
 
 
 
 
AN ACT
  relating to the continuation and operation of the Texas Animal
  Health Commission; providing penalties.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 161.004, Agriculture Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read
  as follows:
         (a)  A person who is the owner or caretaker of livestock,
  exotic livestock, domestic fowl, or exotic fowl that die from a
  disease listed in Section 161.041 [of this code], or who owns or
  controls the land on which the livestock, exotic livestock,
  domestic fowl, or exotic fowl die or on which the carcasses are
  found, shall dispose of the carcasses in the manner required by the
  commission under this section[, within 24 hours after the carcasses
  are found:
               [(1)     bury the carcass of each animal by digging a grave
  five feet deep, placing the carcass in the grave, covering the
  carcass with lime, and filling the grave with dirt; or
               [(2)     set fire to the carcass of each animal and burn it
  until it is thoroughly consumed].
         (c)  The commission shall:
               (1)  determine the most effective methods of disposing
  of diseased carcasses, including methods other than burning or
  burial; and
               (2)  by rule prescribe the method or methods that a
  person may use to dispose of a carcass as required by Subsection
  (a).
         (d)  The commission by rule may delegate its authority under
  this section to the executive director.
         SECTION 2.  Section 161.021(d), Agriculture Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (d)  A person is not eligible for appointment as a public
  member of the commission if the person or the person's spouse:
               (1)  is registered, certified, or licensed by the
  commission;
               (2)  is employed by or participates in the management
  of a business entity or other organization regulated by the
  commission or receiving money [funds] from the commission;
               (3)  owns or controls, directly or indirectly, more
  than a 10 percent interest in a business entity or other
  organization regulated by [the commission] or receiving money
  [funds] from the commission; or
               (4)  uses or receives a substantial amount of tangible
  goods, services, or money [funds] from the commission, other than
  compensation or reimbursement authorized by law for commission
  membership, attendance, or expenses.
         SECTION 3.  Section 161.023, Agriculture Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
         (c)  A person appointed to the commission is entitled to
  reimbursement, as provided by the General Appropriations Act, for
  the travel expenses incurred in attending the training program,
  regardless of whether attendance at the program occurs before or
  after the person qualifies for the office.
         SECTION 4.  Section 161.027, Agriculture Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 161.027.  SUNSET PROVISION. The Texas Animal Health
  Commission is subject to Chapter 325, Government Code (Texas Sunset
  Act). Unless continued in existence as provided by that chapter,
  the commission is abolished September 1, 2019 [2007].
         SECTION 5.  Subchapter B, Chapter 161, Agriculture Code, is
  amended by adding Section 161.0275 to read as follows:
         Sec. 161.0275.  COMPLIANCE WITH SUNSET RECOMMENDATIONS.  (a)  
  The commission shall:
               (1)  comply with and implement the management action
  recommendations regarding the commission adopted by the Sunset
  Advisory Commission on August 8, 2006, as a result of its review of
  the commission; and
               (2)  report to the Sunset Advisory Commission not later
  than November 1, 2008, the information the commission requires
  regarding the commission's implementation of the recommendations
  under Subdivision (1).
         (b)  This section expires June 1, 2009.
         SECTION 6.  Section 161.028, Agriculture Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 161.028.  RESTRICTIONS ON COMMISSION APPOINTMENT,
  MEMBERSHIP, AND EMPLOYMENT.  (a)  In this section, "Texas trade
  association" means a cooperative and voluntarily joined statewide
  association of business or professional competitors in this state
  designed to assist its members and its industry or profession in
  dealing with mutual business or professional problems and in
  promoting their common interest.  The term does not include an
  association formed to benefit or promote a particular breed of
  livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, or exotic fowl [An
  employee or paid consultant of the Texas Poultry Federation or a
  statewide Texas trade association in the field of livestock
  production may not be a member of the commission or an employee of
  the commission who is exempt from the state's position
  classification plan or is compensated at or above the amount
  prescribed by the General Appropriations Act for step 1, salary
  group 17, of the position classification salary schedule].
         (b)  A person may not be a member of the commission and may
  not be a commission employee in a "bona fide executive,
  administrative, or professional capacity," as that phrase is used
  for purposes of establishing an exemption to the overtime
  provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29
  U.S.C. Section 201 et seq.), if:
               (1)  the person is an officer, employee, or paid
  consultant of a Texas trade association in the field of livestock
  production, exotic livestock production, domestic fowl production,
  or exotic fowl production; or
               (2)  the person's spouse is an officer, manager, or paid
  consultant of a [who is the spouse of a manager or paid consultant
  of the Texas Poultry Federation or a statewide] Texas trade
  association in the field of livestock production, exotic livestock
  production, domestic fowl production, or exotic fowl production
  [may not be a commission member and may not be a commission employee
  who is exempt from the state's position classification plan or is
  compensated at or above the amount prescribed by the General
  Appropriations Act for step 1, salary group 17, of the position
  classification salary schedule].
         (c)  [For the purposes of this section, a Texas trade
  association is a nonprofit, cooperative, and voluntarily joined
  association of business or professional competitors in this state
  designed to assist its members and its industry or profession in
  dealing with mutual business or professional problems and in
  promoting their common interest. A Texas trade association does
  not include an association formed to benefit or promote a
  particular breed of livestock or exotic livestock.
         [(d)]  A person may not serve as a member of the commission or
  act as the general counsel to the commission or the agency if the
  person is required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305,
  Government Code, because of the person's activities for
  compensation on behalf of a profession related to the operation of
  the commission.
         SECTION 7.  Sections 161.029(a) and (c), Agriculture Code,
  are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  It is a ground for removal from the commission if a
  member:
               (1)  does not have at the time of appointment the
  qualifications required by Section 161.021 [of this code];
               (2)  does not maintain during service on the commission
  the qualifications required by Section 161.021 [of this code];
               (3)  is ineligible for membership under [violates a
  prohibition established by] Section 161.028 [of this code];
               (4)  cannot discharge the member's duties for a
  substantial part of the term for which the member is appointed
  because of illness or disability; or
               (5)  is absent from more than half of the regularly
  scheduled commission meetings that the member is eligible to attend
  during a calendar year unless that absence is excused by a majority
  vote of the commission.
         (c)  If the executive director has knowledge that a potential
  ground for removal exists, the executive director shall notify the
  presiding officer of the commission of the potential ground. The
  presiding officer shall then notify the governor and the attorney
  general that a potential ground for removal exists. If the
  potential ground for removal involves the presiding officer, the
  executive director shall notify the next highest officer of the
  commission, who shall notify the governor and the attorney general
  that a potential ground for removal exists.
         SECTION 8.  Section 161.033, Agriculture Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 161.033.  PUBLIC INTEREST INFORMATION AND COMPLAINTS.
  (a) The commission shall maintain a system to promptly and
  efficiently act on complaints filed with the commission. The
  commission shall maintain information about parties to the
  complaint, the subject matter of the complaint, a summary of the
  results of the review or investigation of the complaint, and its
  disposition [prepare information of public interest describing the
  functions of the commission and the commission's procedures by
  which complaints are filed with and resolved by the commission.   The
  commission shall make the information available to the public and
  appropriate state agencies].
         (b)  The commission shall make information available
  describing its procedures for complaint investigation and
  resolution [by rule shall establish methods by which consumers and
  licensees or permittees are notified of the name, mailing address,
  and telephone number of the commission for the purpose of directing
  complaints to the commission. The commission may provide for that
  notification:
               [(1)     on each registration form, application, or
  written contract for services of an individual or entity regulated
  under this chapter; or
               [(2)     in a bill for service provided by an individual or
  entity regulated under this chapter].
         (c)  The commission shall periodically notify the parties to
  a complaint of the status of the complaint until its final
  disposition [keep a file about each written complaint filed with
  the commission that the commission has authority to resolve. The
  commission shall provide to the person filing the complaint and the
  persons or entities complained about the commission's policies and
  procedures pertaining to complaint investigation and resolution.
  The commission, at least quarterly and until final disposition of
  the complaint, shall notify the person filing the complaint and the
  persons or entities complained about of the status of the complaint
  unless the notice would jeopardize an undercover investigation.
         [(d)     The commission shall keep information about each
  complaint filed with the commission. The information shall
  include:
               [(1)  the date the complaint is received;
               [(2)  the name of the complainant;
               [(3)  the subject matter of the complaint;
               [(4)     a record of all persons contacted in relation to
  the complaint;
               [(5)     a summary of the results of the review or
  investigation of the complaint; and
               [(6)     for complaints for which the agency took no
  action, an explanation of the reason the complaint was closed
  without action].
         SECTION 9.  (a)  Section 161.034, Agriculture Code, is
  amended by adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as follows:
         (c)  Each meeting of the commission must be held in a
  location that provides adequate access to members of the public.
         (d)  The commission shall post audio archives of its meetings
  on the commission's Internet website.
         (b)  Section 161.034(d), Agriculture Code, as added by
  Subsection (a) of this section, applies only to a meeting of the
  Animal Health Commission held on or after September 1, 2007.
         SECTION 10.  Subchapter B, Chapter 161, Agriculture Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 161.0335, 161.0336, 161.039, and 161.040
  to read as follows:
         Sec. 161.0335.  TECHNOLOGY POLICY.  The commission shall
  implement a policy requiring the commission to use appropriate
  technological solutions to improve the commission's ability to
  perform its functions. The policy must ensure that the public is
  able to interact with the commission on the Internet.
         Sec. 161.0336.  INFORMATION RELATING TO COMPLAINT
  PROCEDURES.  The commission shall:
               (1)  post information about its complaint procedures on
  the home page of the Internet website maintained by the commission;
               (2)  post specific information on how to file a
  complaint, what types of information to provide with the complaint,
  and a description of the complaint process; and
               (3)  explain on that website what types of complaints
  the commission has authority to resolve, distinguishing those from
  complaints that the commission does not have authority to resolve.
         Sec. 161.039.  COMPLIANCE POLICY AND INTERNAL OPERATING
  PROCEDURES.  (a)  The commission by rule shall adopt agencywide
  compliance policies and internal operating procedures and convey
  those policies and procedures to all officers and employees of the
  commission.
         (b)  The commission by rule shall adopt clearly defined and
  uniform procedures addressing compliance with this chapter and
  commission rules. The compliance procedures shall include the
  commission's process for:
               (1)  receiving and consistently responding to
  complaints from the public and officers and employees of the
  commission;
               (2)  checking for previous violations whenever a
  complaint is filed;
               (3)  involving a supervisor in the approval of key
  compliance decisions; and
               (4)  regularly updating complainants on the status of
  their complaints.
         Sec. 161.040.  RULEMAKING AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
  PROCEDURES. (a) The commission shall develop and implement a policy
  to encourage the use of:
               (1)  negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter
  2008, Government Code, for the adoption of commission rules; and
               (2)  appropriate alternative dispute resolution
  procedures under Chapter 2009, Government Code, to assist in the
  resolution of internal and external disputes under the commission's
  jurisdiction.
         (b)  The commission's procedures relating to alternative
  dispute resolution must conform, to the extent possible, to any
  model guidelines issued by the State Office of Administrative
  Hearings for the use of alternative dispute resolution by state
  agencies.
         (c)  The commission shall designate a trained person to:
               (1)  coordinate the implementation of the policy
  adopted under Subsection (a);
               (2)  serve as a resource for any training needed to
  implement the procedures for negotiated rulemaking or alternative
  dispute resolution; and
               (3)  collect data concerning the effectiveness of those
  procedures, as implemented by the commission.
         SECTION 11.  Section 161.041, Agriculture Code, is amended
  by amending Subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) and adding
  Subsections (f) and (g) to read as follows:
         (a)  The commission shall protect all livestock, exotic
  livestock [domestic animals], [and] domestic fowl, and exotic fowl 
  from the following:
               (1)  tuberculosis;
               (2)  anthrax;
               (3)  glanders;
               (4)  infectious abortion;
               (5)  hemorrhagic septicemia;
               (6)  hog cholera;
               (7)  Malta fever;
               (8)  foot-and-mouth disease;
               (9)  rabies among animals other than canines;
               (10)  bacillary white diarrhea among fowl;
               (11)  equine infectious anemia; and
               (12)  other diseases recognized as communicable by the
  veterinary profession.
         (b)  The commission may act to eradicate or control any
  disease or agent of transmission for any disease that affects
  livestock, exotic livestock, [domestic animals,] domestic fowl, or
  exotic fowl, [or canines] regardless of whether the disease is
  communicable, even if the agent of transmission is an animal
  species that is not subject to the jurisdiction of the commission.
  The commission may adopt any rules necessary to carry out the
  purposes of this subsection, including rules concerning testing,
  movement, inspection, and treatment.
         (c)  A person commits an offense if the person knowingly
  fails to handle, in accordance with rules adopted by the
  commission, livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, or exotic
  fowl [an animal] infected with a disease listed in Subsection (a)
  [of this section].
         (d)  A person commits an offense if the person knowingly
  fails to identify or refuses to permit an agent of the commission to
  identify, in accordance with rules adopted by the commission,
  livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, or exotic fowl [an
  animal] infected with a disease listed in Subsection (a) [of this
  section].
         (f)  In complying with this section, the commission may not
  infringe on or supersede the authority of any other agency of this
  state, including the authority of the Parks and Wildlife Department
  relating to wildlife. If a conflict of authority occurs, the
  commission shall assume responsibility for disease control
  efforts, but work collaboratively with the other agency to enable
  each agency to effectively carry out its responsibilities.
         (g)  The commission's authority to control or eradicate an
  agent of transmission that is an animal species that is not subject
  to the jurisdiction of the commission is limited to instances when a
  disease that threatens livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl,
  or exotic fowl has been confirmed or is suspected to exist in that
  species and the commission determines that a serious threat to
  livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, or exotic fowl exists.
         SECTION 12.  Subchapter C, Chapter 161, Agriculture Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 161.0412 and 161.0416 to read as
  follows:
         Sec. 161.0412.  REGULATION AND REGISTRATION OF FERAL SWINE
  HOLDING FACILITIES. (a)  The commission may, for disease control
  purposes, require the registration of feral swine holding
  facilities.
         (b)  To prevent the spread of disease, the commission may
  require a person to register with the commission if the person
  confines feral swine in a holding facility for slaughter, sale,
  exhibition, hunting, or any other purpose specified by commission
  rule.
         (c)  Rules adopted under this section shall include
  registration requirements, provisions for the issuance,
  revocation, and renewal of a registration, disease testing,
  inspections, recordkeeping, construction standards, location
  limitations, and provisions relating to the treatment of swine in
  and movement of swine to or from a feral swine holding facility.
         (d)  Rules authorized by this section may be adopted only for
  disease-control purposes.
         Sec. 161.0416.  EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT. (a) The commission may
  prepare and plan for, respond to, and aid in the recovery from
  disaster events that may affect livestock, exotic livestock,
  domestic fowl, or exotic fowl, including disease outbreaks,
  hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wildfires, and acts of terrorism.
         (b)  The commission may assist with local emergency
  management planning. This subsection may not be construed to
  affect the commission's responsibility under any other law,
  including Chapter 418, Government Code, or any responsibility
  delegated to the commission by an emergency management authority of
  this state.
         SECTION 13.  Section 161.054, Agriculture Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         Sec. 161.054.  REGULATION OF MOVEMENT OF ANIMALS; EXCEPTION.  
  (a)  As a control measure, the commission by rule may regulate the
  movement of animals, including feral swine. The commission may
  restrict the intrastate movement of animals, including feral swine,
  even though the movement of the animals is unrestricted in
  interstate or international commerce. The commission may require
  testing, vaccination, or another epidemiologically sound procedure
  before or after animals are moved.
         (b)  The commission by rule may prohibit or regulate the
  movement of animals, including feral swine, into a quarantined
  herd, premise, or area.
         (c)  The commission may not adopt a rule that prohibits a
  person from moving animals, including feral swine, owned by that
  person within unquarantined contiguous lands owned or controlled by
  that person.
         (d)  On application of the owner of an animal, including a
  feral swine, a restriction on the movement of the animal imposed
  under this chapter may be modified by order of the executive
  director of the commission if the owner demonstrates that the
  restriction will result in unusual hardship for the owner. In
  considering an application under this section, the executive
  director may consider the effect of prolonged drought, inadequacy
  of pasturage or unusual feed supply resulting from disaster or
  other unforeseeable circumstances, or economic hardship.
         (e)  In connection with the regulation of the movement of
  feral swine, the commission by rule may require disease testing
  before movement of a feral swine from one location to another, and
  establish the conditions under which feral swine may be
  transported.
         (f)  The commission's authority to regulate the movement of
  feral swine may not interfere with the authority of the Parks and
  Wildlife Department to regulate the hunting or trapping of feral
  swine.
         SECTION 14.  Section 161.062(a), Agriculture Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  Except as provided by Section 161.0615, the [The]
  commission shall give notice of a quarantine against another state,
  territory, or country by publishing notice in a newspaper published
  in Texas. The quarantine takes effect on the date of publication.
  The commission shall pay the expense of publication out of any
  appropriation made for office and stationery expenses of the
  commission.
         SECTION 15.  Subchapter D, Chapter 161, Agriculture Code, is
  amended by adding Section 161.0615 to read as follows:
         Sec. 161.0615.  STATEWIDE OR WIDESPREAD QUARANTINE. (a) The
  commission may quarantine livestock, exotic livestock, domestic
  fowl, or exotic fowl in all or any part of this state as a means of
  immediately restricting the movement of animals potentially
  infected with disease and shall clearly describe the territory
  included in a quarantine area.
         (b)  The commission by rule may delegate its authority to
  quarantine livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, or exotic
  fowl under this section to the executive director, who shall
  promptly notify the members of the commission of the quarantine.
         (c)  The commission by rule shall prescribe the manner in
  which notice of a statewide or widespread quarantine under this
  section is to be published.
         SECTION 16.  Subchapter H, Chapter 161, Agriculture Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 161.1375 and 161.150 to read as follows:
         Sec. 161.1375.  MOVEMENT OF FERAL SWINE. (a) A person
  commits an offense if the person recklessly:
               (1)  moves feral swine in a manner that is not in
  compliance with rules adopted by the commission under Section
  161.0412 or 161.054; or
               (2)  as the owner or person in charge of a holding
  facility in which a feral swine is held, permits another to remove
  feral swine from the holding facility in a manner that is not in
  compliance with those rules.
         (b)  An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor
  for each feral hog that is moved or permitted to be removed unless
  it is shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant has been
  previously convicted under this section, in which event the offense
  is a Class B misdemeanor.
         Sec. 161.150.  FAILURE TO REGISTER FERAL SWINE HOLDING
  FACILITIES; HOLDING OF FERAL SWINE.  (a)  A person commits an
  offense if the person recklessly:
               (1)  maintains a feral swine holding facility that is
  not registered under Section 161.0412; or
               (2)  as the owner or person in charge of a holding
  facility that is not registered under Section 161.0412, holds or
  permits another to hold a feral swine in the holding facility.
         (b)  Each feral swine held or permitted to be held in
  violation of Subsection (a)(2) constitutes a separate offense.
         (c)  An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor
  unless it is shown on the trial of the offense that the defendant
  has been previously convicted under this section, in which event
  the offense is a Class B misdemeanor.
         SECTION 17.  Section 26.303, Water Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
  follows:
         (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (a-1), the [The]
  commission by rule shall adopt requirements for the safe and
  adequate handling, storage, transportation, and disposal of
  poultry carcasses.  The rules must:
               (1)  specify the acceptable methods for disposal of
  poultry carcasses, including:
                     (A)  placement in a landfill permitted by the
  commission to receive municipal solid waste;
                     (B)  composting;
                     (C)  cremation or incineration;
                     (D)  extrusion;
                     (E)  on-farm freezing;
                     (F)  rendering;
                     (G)  cooking for swine food; and
                     (H)  any other method the commission determines to
  be appropriate;
               (2)  require poultry carcasses stored on the site of a
  poultry facility to be stored in a varmint-proof receptacle to
  prevent odor, leakage, or spillage;
               (3)  prohibit the storage of poultry carcasses on the
  site of a poultry facility for more than 72 hours; and
               (4)  authorize the on-site burial of poultry carcasses
  only in the event of a major die-off that exceeds the capacity of a
  poultry facility to handle and dispose of poultry carcasses by the
  normal means used by the facility.
         (a-1)  A rule adopted under Subsection (a) may not apply to
  the disposal of carcasses of poultry that died as a result of a
  disease, which is governed by Section 161.004, Agriculture Code.
         SECTION 18.  (a)  In this section, "commission" means the
  Texas Animal Health Commission.
         (b)  The commission and the Texas Veterinary Medical
  Diagnostic Laboratory, in consultation with the United States
  Department of Agriculture shall conduct a joint study regarding
  this state's current and future capacity to perform disease testing
  for livestock, exotic livestock, domestic fowl, and exotic fowl
  during an animal disease outbreak or emergency. In conducting the
  study, the designated agencies shall:
               (1)  determine the current testing capabilities and
  capacity of animal health laboratories in this state;
               (2)  determine the current average time to conduct and
  report tests for animal diseases, including the current average
  time to report initial test results and required confirmation test
  results conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture;
               (3)  project the capabilities and capacity of this
  state's animal health laboratories that would be needed during a
  statewide or nationwide animal disease outbreak over the next 20
  years;
               (4)  assess the potential benefits of expanding or
  combining existing animal health laboratories in this state,
  including those operated in conjunction with the United States
  Department of Agriculture and other cooperating entities;
               (5)  consider establishing or relocating animal health
  laboratories in more accessible locations;
               (6)  consider the advisability of pursuing and
  recommend incentives or other measures to promote the location of
  additional federal animal health laboratories in this state;
               (7)  explore methods to reduce the average time to
  report both initial testing results and federal confirmation
  testing results for animal diseases; and
               (8)  project whether a change in the biosafety level,
  as designated by the United States Department of Agriculture and
  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is needed for animal
  health laboratories in this state, based on projected future
  testing capabilities and capacity levels.
         (c)  As part of the joint study, the commission shall
  evaluate the research and information contained in the four
  proposals submitted by groups in this state in 2006 to the United
  States Department of Homeland Security for the National Bio and
  Agro-Defense Facility to ensure that the study does not duplicate
  the efforts of those entities.
         (d)  If, in reviewing the four proposals described by
  Subsection (c) of this section, the commission determines that one
  or more of the proposals are consistent with the results of the
  commission's evaluation, the commission may support one or more of
  the proposals as they relate to the regulatory efforts of the
  commission and this state.
         (e)  If the United States Department of Homeland Security
  selects one of the proposals described by Subsection (c) of this
  section to house the national facility, the commission shall
  integrate the research conducted as part of the joint study with the
  research conducted as part of the selected proposal. The
  commission shall also share its research and coordinate with the
  group that submitted the selected proposal in relation to the
  commission's and this state's regulatory efforts.
         (f)  The commission shall submit a report of the findings of
  the joint study to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the
  speaker of the house of representatives as soon as practicable
  after the decision-making process at the federal level is
  completed, but not later than December 31, 2008.
         (g)  This section expires February 1, 2009.
         SECTION 19.  The changes in law made by this Act to Sections
  161.021 and 161.028, Agriculture Code, do not affect the selection
  or term of a member or public member of the Texas Animal Health
  Commission appointed before September 1, 2007.
         SECTION 20.  (a)  Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
  this section, the change in law made by this Act to Section 161.004,
  Agriculture Code, takes effect January 1, 2008.
         (b)  The Texas Animal Health Commission shall adopt the rules
  required by Section 161.004, Agriculture Code, as amended by this
  Act, as soon as practicable after the effective date of this Act,
  but not later than January 1, 2008.
         SECTION 21.  (a)  Except as otherwise provided by Subsection
  (b) of this section, this Act takes effect September 1, 2007.
         (b)  Section 18 of this Act takes effect immediately if this
  Act receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
  house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
  If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for Section 18 of
  this Act to have immediate effect, Section 18 of this Act takes
  effect September 1, 2007.
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
 
         I certify that H.B. No. 2543 was passed by the House on May 7,
  2007, by the following vote:  Yeas 142, Nays 0, 1 present, not
  voting.
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
 
         I certify that H.B. No. 2543 was passed by the Senate on May
  23, 2007, by the following vote:  Yeas 29, Nays 0.
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate    
  APPROVED:  _____________________
                     Date          
   
            _____________________
                   Governor