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HB 2250

AN ACT relating to the criminal offense of making a firearm accessible to a

House Bill Goodwin
Filed

Filed

Bill introduced by legislator

Committee

Hearing

Passed Cmte

Calendar

Passed

Sent

Enrolled

Governor

Signed

89th Regular Session

Jan 14, 2025 - Jun 2, 2025 • Session ended

Awaiting Committee Assignment

Bill filed, pending referral to House committee

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Fiscal Note

Not available

What This Bill Does

Modifies Texas law regarding firearm storage and child access, expanding the definition of a child to include individuals under 18 years old. It requires gun owners to secure firearms in a locked container or render them inoperable, making it a criminal offense if a child gains unauthorized access to a firearm, with specific exceptions for supervised hunting, sporting activities, agricultural work, and situations involving property violations.

Subject Areas

Bill Text

relating to the criminal offense of making a firearm accessible to a
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1.  Sections 46.13(a), (b), and (c), Penal Code, are
(1)  "Child" means a person younger than 18 [17] years
(2)  ["Readily dischargeable firearm" means a firearm
that is loaded with ammunition, whether or not a round is in the
(A)  render a firearm inaccessible or unusable to
any person other than the owner by storing the [take steps that a
reasonable person would take to prevent the access to a readily
dischargeable firearm by a child, including but not limited to
placing a] firearm, unloaded, in a locked container that is
(B)  temporarily render a [rendering the] firearm
inoperable by a trigger lock or other means.
(b)  A person commits an offense if a child gains access to a
[readily dischargeable] firearm and the person with criminal
(1)  failed to secure the firearm; or
(2)  left the firearm in a place to which the person
knew or should have known the child would gain access.
(c)  It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
section that the child's access to the firearm:
(1)  was supervised by a person older than 18 years of
age and was for hunting, sporting, or other lawful purposes;
(2)  [consisted of lawful defense by the child of
[(3)]  was gained as a result of any person [by]
entering property in violation of this code; or
(3) [(4)]  occurred during a time when the actor was
engaged in an agricultural enterprise.
SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act applies 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 at the time 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
SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

Bill Sponsors

Legislators who authored or co-sponsored this bill.

Bill History

filed

Bill filed: AN ACT relating to the criminal offense of making a firearm accessible to a