Bill Text: TX SB1274 | 2017-2018 | 85th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to the operation of a motor vehicle in the vicinity of an unprotected road user; creating a criminal offense.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-03-13 - Referred to Transportation [SB1274 Detail]

Download: Texas-2017-SB1274-Introduced.html

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85R7614 JXC-D
By: Rodríguez S.B. No. 1274

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the operation of a motor vehicle in the vicinity of an
unprotected road user; creating a criminal offense.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Iris Stagner Safe
Passing Act.
SECTION 2. Subchapter I, Chapter 545, Transportation Code,
is amended by adding Section 545.428 to read as follows:
Sec. 545.428. UNPROTECTED ROAD USERS. (a) In this section,
"unprotected road user" means:
(1) a pedestrian, including a runner, physically
disabled person, highway construction and maintenance worker, tow
truck operator, utility worker, other worker operating legally in
or near the road or right-of-way, or stranded motorist or
passenger;
(2) a person on horseback;
(3) a person operating equipment other than a motor
vehicle, including a bicycle, handcycle, horse-driven conveyance,
or skateboard or roller skates, roller blades, or unprotected farm
equipment; or
(4) a person operating a motorcycle, moped,
motor-driven cycle, or motor-assisted scooter.
(b) An operator of a motor vehicle passing an unprotected
road user operating on a highway or street shall:
(1) vacate the lane in which the unprotected road user
is located if the highway has two or more marked lanes running in
the same direction; or
(2) pass the unprotected road user at a safe distance.
(c) For the purposes of Subsection (b)(2), when road
conditions allow, safe distance is at least:
(1) three feet if the operator's vehicle is a passenger
car or light truck; or
(2) six feet if the operator's vehicle is a truck,
other than a light truck, that is a commercial motor vehicle as
defined by Section 522.003.
(d) An operator of a motor vehicle that is making a turn at
an intersection, including an intersection with an alley or private
road or driveway, shall yield the right-of-way to an unprotected
road user who is in the intersection or in such proximity to the
intersection as to be an immediate hazard.
(e) An operator of a motor vehicle may not overtake an
unprotected road user and subsequently turn in front of the
unprotected road user unless the operator is safely clear of the
unprotected road user, taking into account the speed at which the
unprotected road user is traveling and the braking requirements of
the turning vehicle.
(f) An operator of a motor vehicle may not maneuver the
vehicle in a manner that:
(1) is intended to cause intimidation or harassment to
an unprotected road user; or
(2) threatens an unprotected road user.
(g) An operator of a motor vehicle shall exercise due care
to avoid colliding with any unprotected road user on a roadway or in
an intersection of roadways.
(h) A violation of this section is punishable under Section
542.401 except that:
(1) if the violation results in property damage, the
violation is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not to exceed $500;
or
(2) if the violation results in bodily injury, the
violation is a Class B misdemeanor.
(i) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that
at the time of the offense the unprotected road user was acting in
violation of the law.
(j) If conduct constituting an offense under this section
also constitutes an offense under another section of this code or
the Penal Code, the actor may be prosecuted under either section or
both sections.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.