HB 268

relating to increasing the criminal penalty for making certain
false reports and to restitution for emergency response costs
associated with those false reports.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1.  Article 42.037(w), Code of Criminal Procedure,
(w)  If a defendant is convicted of an offense under Section
42.0601, Penal Code, or an offense punishable under Section
42.06(b)(2), Penal Code, the court may order the defendant to make
restitution to an entity for the reasonable costs of the emergency
response by that entity resulting from the false report.
SECTION 2.  Section 42.06(b), Penal Code, is amended to read
(b)  An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor,
(1)  a state jail felony if [unless] the false report is
of an emergency involving [a public or private institution of
higher education or involving a public primary or secondary
school,] public communications, public transportation, public
water, gas, or power supply or other public service; or
(2)  a felony of the third degree if the false report is
(A)  a public or private institution of higher
(B)  a public or private primary or secondary
school [, in which event the offense is a state jail felony].
SECTION 3.  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 on the date 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 was
SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.