HBA-DMH H.B. 621 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 621 By: Capelo Public Safety 3/14/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, a peace officer may not arrest a person for a traffic offense involving speeding or a violation of the open container law. In these situations the officer is required to issue a written notice to appear. House Bill 621 provides that all traffic offenses that are Class C misdemeanors are offenses for which a peace officer is required to issue a citation that contains a written notice to appear. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 621 amends the Transportation Code and Code of Criminal Procedure to require a peace officer to issue a citation that contains a written notice to appear before a magistrate, instead of taking a person before the magistrate if the person is charged with a traffic offense that is a Class C misdemeanor, including a violation of the open container law. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.