HBA-JEK H.B. 688 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 688 By: Woolley Licensing & Administrative Procedures 7/25/2001 Enrolled BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current law prohibits a person from consuming an alcoholic beverage or possessing an open alcoholic beverage container within 1,000 feet of a public or private school, and authorizes a commissioners court to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages near a church, public school, or public hospital. Law prior to the 77th Legislature did not, however, specifically address the possession or consumption of alcohol near a parochial school or the sale of alcohol near a private school. House Bill 688 extends limitations on the possession, consumption, and sale of alcohol to include areas near private and parochial schools. 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 688 amends the Alcoholic Beverage Code to include a parochial school among the schools near which a person commits a Class C misdemeanor for possessing an open container or consuming an alcoholic beverage on a public street, alley, or sidewalk within 1,000 feet of the property line. The bill also extends this prohibition to any public, private, or parochial school that provides all or any part of a prekindergarten program. The bill extends the authority of the commissioners court to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages by a dealer within 300 feet of a private school in areas of the county outside of an incorporated city or town, but specifies that this provision does not apply to a business with a food and beverage certificate or a premise minors are prohibited from entering. The bill authorizes the commissioners court to prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages within 1,000 feet of a private school if the commissioners court or the governing body of an incorporated city or town receives a request from the governing body of the private school. This provision does not apply to a premise minors are prohibited from entering or to a business that is operating with a temporary and special wine and beer retailer permit, caterer's permit, or temporary license on the premise of a private school. H.B. 688 sets forth standards with which to measure the distance between a business where alcoholic beverages are sold and a public or private school if the place of business where alcoholic beverages is sold is located on or above the fifth story of a multistory building. EFFECTIVE DATE May 28, 2001.