H.B. No. 683         AN ACT   relating to the prosecution of the offense of possession or use of   law enforcement identification, insignia, or vehicles in a   municipality and the clarification of the offenses of false   identification as a peace officer and misrepresentation of   property.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  The heading to Section 341.904, Local Government   Code, is amended to read as follows:          Sec. 341.904.  POSSESSION OR USE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT   IDENTIFICATION, INSIGNIA, OR VEHICLE IN A [POPULOUS] MUNICIPALITY.          SECTION 2.  Section 341.904(b), Local Government Code, is   amended to read as follows:          (b)  A [In a municipality with a population of 1.18 million   or more located primarily in a county with a population of 2 million   or more, a] person commits an offense if in a municipality the   person intentionally or knowingly:                (1)  uses, possesses, or wears:                      (A)  a police identification item of the municipal   police department;                      (B)  an item bearing the insignia or design   prescribed by the police chief of the municipality for officers and   employees of the municipal police department to use while engaged   in official activities; or                      (C)  within the municipal police department's   jurisdiction, an item that is deceptively similar to a police   identification item of the department;                (2)  uses, within the municipal police department's   jurisdiction, the name of the department in connection with an   object to create the appearance that the object belongs to or is   used by the department; or                (3)  uses, possesses, or operates, within the municipal   police department's jurisdiction, a marked patrol vehicle that is   deceptively similar to a department patrol vehicle.          SECTION 3.  Section 37.12, Penal Code, is amended by   amending Subsections (a), (b), and (d) and adding Subsections (b-1)   and (c-1) to read as follows:          (a)  A person commits an offense if:                (1)  the person makes, provides to another person, or   possesses a card, document, badge, insignia, shoulder emblem, or   other item, including a vehicle, bearing an insignia of a law   enforcement agency that identifies a person as a peace officer or a   reserve law enforcement officer; and                (2)  the person who makes, provides, or possesses the   item bearing the insignia knows that the person so identified by the   item is not commissioned as a peace officer or reserve law   enforcement officer as indicated on the item.          (b)  It is a defense to prosecution under this section that:                (1)  the card, document, badge, insignia, shoulder   emblem, or other item bearing an insignia of a law enforcement   agency clearly identifies the person as an honorary or junior peace   officer or reserve law enforcement officer, or as a member of a   junior posse; or                (2)  the person identified as a peace officer or   reserve law enforcement officer by the item bearing the insignia   was commissioned in that capacity when the item was made.          (b-1)  It is an exception to the application of this section   that [; or                [(3)]  the item was used or intended for use   exclusively for decorative purposes or in an artistic or dramatic   presentation.          (c-1)  For purposes of this section, an item bearing an   insignia of a law enforcement agency includes an item that contains   the word "police," "sheriff," "constable," or "trooper."          (d)  A person commits an offense if the person intentionally   or knowingly misrepresents an object, including a vehicle, as   property belonging to a law enforcement agency.  For purposes of   this subsection, intentionally or knowingly misrepresenting an   object as property belonging to a law enforcement agency includes   intentionally or knowingly displaying an item bearing an insignia   of a law enforcement agency in a manner that would lead a reasonable   person to interpret the item as property belonging to a law   enforcement agency.          SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.       ______________________________ ______________________________      President of the Senate Speaker of the House                   I certify that H.B. No. 683 was passed by the House on May 2,   2017, by the following vote:  Yeas 134, Nays 11, 1 present, not   voting.     ______________________________   Chief Clerk of the House                 I certify that H.B. No. 683 was passed by the Senate on May   24, 2017, by the following vote:  Yeas 30, Nays 1.     ______________________________   Secretary of the Senate       APPROVED:  _____________________                      Date                           _____________________                    Governor