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  By: Farrar H.B. No. 3450
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to restrictions on the operations of public and private
  animal shelters, providing a penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the
  Companion Animal Protection Act of 2011.
         SECTION 2.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code, is amended
  by adding Section 823.010 to read as follows:
         Sec. 823.010.  STATEMENT OF LEGISLATIVE INTENT.  (a)  It is
  the intent of the State of Texas to curtail the killing of savable
  animals in the state.  In order to accomplish this, the State of
  Texas finds and declares:
               (1)  protecting animals is a legitimate and compelling
  public interest;
               (2)  the killing of savable animals in animal shelters
  is a tragedy, the incidence of which ought to be curtailed;
               (3)  no animal should be killed if the animal can be
  placed in a suitable home, if a private sheltering agency or rescue
  group is willing to take care and custody of the animal for purposes
  of adoption, or, in the case of feral cats, if they can be
  sterilized and released to their habitats;
               (4)  animals held in shelters deserve proper care and
  humane treatment;
               (5)  shelters have a duty to make all savable animals
  available for adoption for a reasonable period of time;
               (6)  owners of lost animals should have a reasonable
  period of time within which to redeem their animals;
               (7)  shelters should not kill savable animals at the
  request of their owners;
               (8)  all efforts should be made to encourage the
  voluntary spaying and neutering of animals;
               (9)  when animals are killed, it should be done as
  humanely and compassionately as possible;
               (10)  taxpayers and community members deserve full and
  complete disclosure about how animal shelters operate;
         (b)  The State of Texas further finds and declares that all
  public and private sheltering agencies that operate within the
  state shall:
               (1)  commit themselves to ending the killing of savable
  animals in their care and custody;
               (2)  work with other animal adoption organizations to
  promote the adoption of animals and to reduce euthanasia rates;
               (3)  provide every animal in their custody with
  individual consideration and care to the maximum extent
  practicable;
               (4)  not ban, bar, limit or otherwise obstruct the
  adoption of any animal based on arbitrary criteria, such as breed,
  age, color, or other criteria except as to the individual animal's
  medical condition or aggression, or the adopter's fitness to adopt.
         SECTION 2.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended to
  add Section 823.011 to read as follows:
         Section 823.011.  DEFINITIONS.  For purposes of this Act,
  the following definitions shall apply:
         (a)  a "Public Sheltering Agency" is an animal shelter or
  animal adoption group that receives city, county or state funding
  and/or has a contract with a city, county or state under which it
  accepts stray or owner-relinquished animals.
         (b)  a "Private Sheltering Agency" is an animal shelter or
  animal adoption group which is designated as a non-profit under
  Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code which does not
  receive city, county or state funding or have a contract with the
  city, county or state under which it accepts stray or
  owner-relinquished animals and is not operated from a private
  residence.
         (c)  a "Rescue Group" is a collaboration of individuals not
  operated for a profit, whose primary stated purpose is animal
  protection, which places into new homes stray and/or
  owner-relinquished animals and/or animals who have been removed
  from a public or private sheltering agency.  Individual rescuers
  who keep animals in their own homes but are not part of a larger
  collaboration are not a rescue group for purposes of this Act.
         (d)  an "Animal" is any domestic non-human living creature
  normally kept as a pet, or a feral cat.
         (e)  an "Impounded animal" is any animal who enters a public
  or private sheltering agency or rescue group regardless of whether
  the animal is a stray, owner-relinquished, seized, taken into
  protective custody, or transferred from another private or public
  sheltering agency.
         (f)  a "Stray animal" is any animal who is impounded without
  a known owner present at impound who is voluntarily relinquishing
  custody.
         (g)  a "Savable animal" is any animal who is either healthy
  or treatable, and is not a vicious or dangerous dog.
         (h)  a "Healthy animal" is any animal who is not sick or
  injured.
         (i)  a "Treatable animal" is any animal who is sick or
  injured, whose prognosis for rehabilitation of that illness and/or
  injury is excellent, good, fair, or guarded as determined by a
  veterinarian licensed to practice in this state.
         (j)  a "Non-rehabilitatable animal" is any animal with
  severe illness or injury whose prognosis for rehabilitation is
  either poor or grave as determined by a veterinarian licensed to
  practice in this state.
         (k)  an "Irremediably Suffering animal" is any animal with a
  medical condition who has a poor or grave prognosis for being able
  to live without severe, unremitting pain, as determined by a
  veterinarian licensed to practice in this state.
         (l)  a "Feral Cat" is a cat who is free-roaming, unsocialized
  to humans, and unowned.
         (m)  a "Feral Cat Caregiver" is someone who cares for feral
  cats and has an interest in protecting the cats, but is not the
  owner of those cats.
         (n)  an "Unweaned animal" is any neonatal animal who, in the
  absence of his/her mother, requires supplemental bottle feeding by
  humans in order to survive.  In the case of puppies and kittens,
  unweaned animals are animals who fit the above description and are
  from 0 to 4 weeks of age.
         (o)  a "Litter of animals" includes two or more animals who
  are under twelve weeks of age as determined by a veterinarian
  licensed to practice medicine in this state, or by a veterinary
  technician or veterinary assistant working under the direction of a
  veterinarian licensed to practice medicine in this state.
         (p)  a "Vicious Dog" is a dog who exhibits aggression to
  people even when the dog is not hungry, in pain, or frightened, and
  whose prognosis for rehabilitation of that aggression is poor or
  grave as determined by a trained behaviorist who is an expert on
  canine behavior.
         (q)  a "Dangerous Dog" is a dog adjudicated to be vicious by a
  court of competent jurisdiction and where all appeals of that
  judicial determination have been unsuccessful.
         SECTION 3.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended to
  add Section 823.012 to read as follows:
         Section 823.012.  STERILIZATION REQUIREMENTS.  (a)  Except
  as otherwise provided in this section, no public or private
  sheltering agency or rescue group shall sell, adopt, or give away
  to a new owner any dog, cat, rabbit, or other animal who has not been
  spayed or neutered, except that this section shall not apply to
  reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, and small animals such as mice
  and hamsters, where the anesthesia or sterilization procedure is
  likely to result in the animal's death.
         (b)  If a veterinarian licensed to practice veterinary
  medicine in this state certifies that an animal is too sick or
  injured to be spayed or neutered, or that it would otherwise be
  detrimental to the health of the animal to be spayed or neutered,
  the adopter or purchaser shall be exempt from the requirements of
  this Section.
         SECTION 4.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended by
  adding Section 823.013 to read as follows:
         Section 823.012.  OFFENSES AND PENALTIES.  (a)  A person is
  subject to civil penalties of not less than two hundred dollars
  ($200) or more than five hundred dollars ($500) if that person does
  any of the following:
               (1)  falsifies any proof of spaying or neutering
  submitted for the purpose of compliance with this Act;
               (2)  intentionally issues a check for insufficient
  funds for any spaying or neutering deposit required under this Act;
               (3)  falsifies a signed letter from a veterinarian
  submitted for the purpose of compliance with this Act, certifying
  that an animal is too sick or injured to be spayed or neutered.
         (b)  An action for a penalty proposed under this section may
  be commenced in a court of competent jurisdiction by the
  administrator of the public or private animal sheltering agency or
  rescue group from which the recipient obtained the animal who is the
  subject of the violation.
         (c)  All penalties collected under this section shall be
  retained by the agency bringing the action under subsection (b) to
  be used solely for programs to spay or neuter animals.
         SECTION 5.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended to
  add Section 823.014 to read as follows:
         Section 823.014.  FERAL CATS.  (a)  Caretakers of feral cats
  shall be exempted from any provision of law proscribing the feeding
  of stray animals, requiring permits for the feeding of animals,
  requiring the confinement of cats, or limiting the number of
  animals a person can own, harbor, or have custody of, except that
  nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the enforcement
  of a statute having as its effect the prevention or punishment of
  animal neglect or cruelty, so long as such enforcement is based on
  the conditions of animals, and not based on the mere fact that a
  person is feeding feral cats in a public or private location.
         (b)  In order to encourage spay/neuter of feral cats and to
  protect cats, public or private sheltering agencies or rescue
  groups shall not lend, rent, or otherwise provide traps to the
  public to capture cats, except to a person for the purpose of
  catching and reclaiming that person's wayward cat(s), to capture
  injured or sick cats or cats otherwise in danger, to capture feral
  kittens for purposes of taming and adoption, or, in the case of
  feral cats, for purposes of spay/neuter and subsequent re-release;
               (1)  For purposes of this subsection, the location of
  the cats, without more, does not constitute "otherwise in danger";
               (2)  A person is subject to civil penalties of not less
  than two hundred dollars ($200) or more than five hundred dollars
  ($500) if that person uses a trap from a public or private
  sheltering agency or rescue group for purposes other than those
  enumerated above.
         (c)  An action for a penalty proposed under this section may
  be commenced in a court of competent jurisdiction by the
  administrator of the public or private animal sheltering agency or
  rescue group from which the recipient obtained the trap that is the
  subject of the violation.
         (d)  All penalties collected under this section shall be
  retained by the agency bringing the action under subsection (c) to
  be used solely for programs to spay or neuter animals.
         SECTION 6.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended by
  adding Section 823.015 to read as follows:
         Section 823.015.  HOLDING PERIODS.  (a)  The required
  holding period for a stray animal impounded by any public or private
  sheltering agency shall be at least five business days, not
  including the day of impoundment, unless otherwise provided in this
  section:
               (1)  Stray animals without any form of identification
  and without a known owner shall be held for owner redemption during
  the first two days of the holding period, not including the day of
  impoundment, and shall be available for owner redemption, transfer,
  and adoption for the remainder of the holding period;
               (2)  Stray animals may be adopted into new homes or
  transferred to a rescue group or private sheltering agency for the
  purpose of adoption after the first two days of the holding period,
  not including the day of impoundment, except as provided in
  subsections (a)(3) to (9);
               (3)  If a stray animal is impounded with a license tag,
  microchip, or other form of identification, or belongs to a known
  owner, the animal shall be held for owner redemption during the
  first three days of the holding period, not including the day of
  impoundment, and shall be available for owner redemption, transfer,
  and adoption for the remainder of the holding period;
               (4)  Litters of animals or individual members of a
  litter of animals, including the nursing mother, and unweaned
  animals may be transferred to a private sheltering agency or rescue
  group for the purpose of adoption immediately after impound;
               (5)  Individual members of litters of animals who are
  at least six weeks of age, including the mother, may be adopted
  immediately upon impound;
               (6)  A feral cat caregiver has the same right of
  redemption for feral cats as an owner of a pet cat, without
  conferring ownership of the cat(s) on the caregiver;
               (7)  Irremediably suffering animals may be euthanized
  without delay, upon a determination made in writing and signed by a
  veterinarian licensed to practice medicine in this state. That
  certification shall be made available for free public inspection
  for no less than three years;
               (8)  Symptomatic dogs with confirmed cases of
  parvovirus or cats with confirmed cases of panleukopenia may be
  euthanized without delay, upon a certification made in writing and
  signed by a veterinarian licensed to practice medicine in this
  state that the prognosis is poor even with supportive care. That
  certification shall be made available for free public inspection
  for no less than three years;
               (9)  Unweaned animals impounded without their mother
  may be killed so long as the shelter has exhausted all efforts to
  place the animals in foster care, made an emergency appeal under the
  requirements of Section 9, and certified that it is unable to
  provide the needed care and feeding in its facility. That
  certification shall also state in clear and definitive terms why
  the agency is unable to place the animals in foster care, which
  private sheltering agencies and rescue groups it made an appeal to,
  and what would be required in the future in order to provide the
  needed care and feeding in foster care or its facility, and what
  steps are being taken to do so.  This certification shall be made in
  writing, signed by the director of the agency or by a veterinarian,
  and be made available for free public inspection for no less than
  three years.
         SECTION 7.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code, is amended
  by adding Section 823.016 to read as follows:
         Section 823.016. SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATED TO
  OWNER-RELINQUISHED ANIMALS. (a)  The required holding period for
  an owner relinquished animal impounded by public or private
  sheltering agencies shall be the same as that for stray animals and
  applies to all owner relinquished animals, except as follows:
               (1)  Any owner-relinquished animal that is impounded
  shall be held for adoption or for transfer to a private sheltering
  agency or rescue group for the purpose of adoption for the entirety
  of the holding period;
               (2)  Owner-relinquished animals may be adopted into new
  homes or transferred to a private sheltering agency or rescue group
  for the purpose of adoption at any time after impoundment.
         (b)  When an animal is surrendered or brought to a shelter to
  be killed at the owner's request, the animal shall be subject to the
  same holding periods and the same requirements of all owner
  relinquished animals notwithstanding the request.
         (c)  An animal seized by an officer of a public or private
  sheltering agency under the provisions of a state statute having as
  its effect the prevention or punishment of animal neglect or
  cruelty, or seized under the provision of state dangerous dog laws
  or under state quarantine or disease control regulations, shall be
  impounded and held as consistent with the requirements of those
  laws, except that holding periods under this Chapter shall be
  observed to the maximum extent practicable.
         SECTION 8.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code, is amended
  by adding Section 823.021 to read as follows:
         Section 823.021.  ADDITIONAL PROGRAMS AND DUTIES.  (a)  All
  public and private sheltering agencies that kill animals shall
  maintain a registry of organizations willing to accept animals for
  the purposes of adoption, as follows:
               (1)  All public or private sheltering agencies, and
  rescue groups designated as non-profits by Section 501(c)(3) of the
  Internal Revenue Code, shall be immediately placed on this registry
  upon their request, regardless of the organizations' geographical
  location or any other factor except as described under subsection
  (a)(5);
               (2)  The public or private sheltering agency may, but
  is not required to, include on the registry any rescue groups that
  are not designated as non-profits under Section 501(c)(3) of the
  Internal Revenue Code;
               (3)  The registry shall include the following
  information as provided by the registered organization:
  organization name, mailing address, and telephone number; website
  and e-mail address, if any; emergency contact information for the
  organization; the types of animals about whom the organization
  wishes to be contacted, including species-type and breed; and
  whether or not the organization is willing and able to care for
  unweaned animals, sick or injured animals, and/or feral or
  aggressive animals;
               (4)  All public and private sheltering agencies shall
  seek organizations to include on the registry;
               (5)  A public or private sheltering agency may refuse
  to include an organization on the registry, or delete it from the
  registry, until such time as this is no longer the case, if any of
  the organization's current directors and/or officers have been
  convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction of a crime
  consisting of cruelty to animals or neglect of animals; or if such
  charges are pending against any of the organization's current
  directors or officers; or if that organization or its current
  directors or officers are constrained by a court order or legally
  binding agreement that prevents the organization from taking in or
  keeping animals.  An agency may require an organization to disclose
  any or all convictions, charges, and legal impediments described in
  this subsection;
               (6)  A public or private sheltering agency may require
  that registered organizations provide the following summary
  information on no more than a monthly basis: the total number of
  animals the organization has taken from the agency who have been
  adopted, died, were transferred, were killed, and are still under
  the organization's care.  This information may be provided in an
  informal format, such as via electronic mail;
               (7)  A public or private sheltering agency shall not
  demand additional information, other than that described in this
  section, as a prerequisite for including an organization on the
  registry or for continuing to maintain that organization on the
  registry.
         (b)  No public or private sheltering agency may kill an
  animal unless and until the agency has notified, or made a
  reasonable attempt to notify, all organizations on the registry
  described in subsection (a) that have indicated a willingness to
  take an animal of that type.
         SECTION 9.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code, is amended
  by adding Section 823.022 to read as follows:
         Section 823.022.  LOST ANIMALS.  (a)  All public and private
  sheltering agencies shall take appropriate action to ensure that
  all animals are checked for all currently acceptable methods of
  identification, including microchips, identification tags, and
  licenses.  All public and private sheltering agencies shall
  maintain continuously updated lists of animals reported lost, and
  match these lost reports with animals reported found and animals in
  the shelter, and shall also post all stray animals on the Internet
  with sufficient detail to allow them to be recognized and claimed by
  their owners.  If a possible owner is identified, the agencies shall
  undertake reasonable efforts to notify the owner or caretaker of
  the whereabouts of the animal and any procedures available for the
  lawful recovery of the animal.  These efforts shall include, but are
  not limited to, notifying the possible owner by telephone, mail,
  and personal service to the last known address. Upon the owner's or
  caretaker's initiation of recovery procedures, the agencies shall
  retain custody of the animal for a reasonable period of time to
  allow for completion of the recovery process.  Efforts to locate or
  contact an owner or caretaker, and communications with persons
  claiming to be owners or caretakers, shall be recorded and be made
  available for free public inspection for no less than three years.
         SECTION 10.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.024 to read as follows:
         Section 823.024.  LIMITATION ON ADOPTION CRITERIA.  (a)  No
  public or private sheltering agency shall ban, bar, limit or
  otherwise obstruct the adoption of any animal based on arbitrary
  criteria, such as breed, age, color, or any other criteria except as
  to the individual animal's medical condition and aggression, or the
  adopter's fitness to adopt.
         SECTION 11.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.025 to read as follows:
         Section 823.025.  REQUIRED SERVICES.  (a)  Every public
  sheltering agency shall provide the following public services:
               (1)  low-cost spay/neuter services for animals;
               (2)  volunteer opportunities for people to assist the
  shelter, including fostering animals, socializing animals,
  assisting with adoptions, and otherwise helping in the operations
  of the shelter;
               (3)  programs to assist people in overcoming situations
  that may cause them to relinquish or abandon their animals,
  including, but not limited to, programs that address animal
  behavior problems, medical conditions, and environmental
  conditions.
         (b)  Nothing in this section shall prohibit an agency from
  enacting reasonable rules to facilitate the orderly operation of
  these programs, so long as the rules are designed to meet the goals
  of this Act.
         SECTION 12.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.030 to read as follows:
         Section 823.025.  PROHIBITION ON ADOPTION FOR CERTAIN
  PURPOSES. (a)  No person shall procure or use any living animal
  from a public or private sheltering agency or rescue group for
  medical or biological teaching, research or study.  No hospital,
  educational or commercial institution, laboratory, or animal
  dealer, whether or not such dealer is licensed by the United States
  Department of Agriculture, shall purchase or accept any living
  animal from a public or private sheltering agency, rescue group,
  commercial kennel, kennel, peace officer, or animal control
  officer.
         (b)  No public or private sheltering agency, rescue group,
  commercial kennel, kennel, peace officer, or animal control officer
  shall sell, adopt, transfer, or give away any living animal to a
  person, hospital, educational or commercial institution,
  laboratory, or dealer in animals, whether or not such dealer is
  licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture, for
  purposes of medical or biological teaching, research or study.
         SECTION 13.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.031 to read as follows:
         Section 823.031.  PRECONDITIONS FOR EUTHANASIA.  (a)  No
  savable animal in a public or private sheltering agency shall be
  killed simply because the holding period has expired. Before an
  animal is killed, all of the following conditions must be met:
               (1)  there are no empty cages, kennels, or other living
  environments in the shelter;
               (2)  the animal cannot share a cage or kennel with
  another animal;
               (3)  a foster home is not available;
               (4)  organizations listed on the registry described in
  Section 9 are not willing to accept the animal;
               (5)  the animal is not a feral cat subject to
  sterilization and release; and
               (6)  the director of the agency certifies he or she has
  no other alternative, or the director certifies that failure to
  euthanize the animal would constitute an unsustainable burden on
  the agency.
         (b)  The determination that all conditions of subsection (a)
  have been met shall be made in writing, signed by the director of
  the agency, and be made available for free public inspection for no
  less than three years.
         SECTION 14.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.032 to read as follows:
         Section 823.032.  EUTHANASIA PROCEDURES.  (a)  All animals
  impounded by a public or private sheltering agency or rescue group
  shall be killed only when necessary and consistent with the
  requirements of this Act, and the killing shall be accomplished by
  lethal intravenous injection of sodium pentobarbital, except as
  follows:
               (1)  intraperitoneal injections may be used only under
  the direction of a licensed veterinarian, and only when intravenous
  injection is not possible for infant animals, companion animals
  other than cats and dogs, feral cats, or in comatose animals with
  depressed vascular function.
               (2)  intracardiac injections may be used only when
  intravenous injection is not possible for animals who are
  completely unconscious or comatose, and then only under the
  direction of a veterinarian.
         (b)  No animal shall be allowed to witness any other animal
  being killed or being tranquilized/sedated for the purpose of being
  killed or see the bodies of animals which have already been killed.
         (c)  Animals shall be sedated/tranquilized as necessary to
  minimize their stress or discomfort, or in the case of vicious
  animals, to ensure staff safety, except that neuromuscular blocking
  agents shall not be used.
         (d)  Following their injection, animals shall be lowered to
  the surface on which they are being held and shall not be permitted
  to drop or otherwise collapse without support.
         (e)  An animal may not be left unattended between the time
  procedures to kill the animal are commenced and the time death
  occurs, nor may the body be disposed of until death is verified.
         (f)  Verification of death shall be confirmed for each animal
  in at least two of the following ways:
               (1)  by lack of heartbeat, verified by a stethoscope;
               (2)  by lack of respiration, verified by observation;
               (3)  by pale, bluish gums and tongue, verified by
  observation; and
               (4)  by lack of eye response, verified if lid does not
  blink when eye is touched and pupil remains dilated when a light is
  shined on it.
         (g)  The room in which animals are killed shall be cleaned
  and regularly disinfected as necessary.
         (h)  A veterinarian licensed to practice veterinary medicine
  in this state or a trained euthanasia technician shall perform the
  euthanasia procedures.
         SECTION 15.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.035 to read as follows:
         Section 823.035.  ADDITIONAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.  (a)  
  All public or private sheltering agencies shall prepare a written
  monthly summary by the tenth day of the month that includes the
  following information by species-type:
               (1)  the number of animals impounded during the
  previous month;
               (2)  the number of impounded animals sterilized and/or
  sterilized by contract with participating outside private
  veterinarians during the previous month;
               (3)  the number of animals who were killed by the
  agency, at the agency's direction, with the agency's permission,
  and/or by a representative of the agency during the previous month;
               (4)  the number of animals who died, were lost, and/or
  were stolen while in the direct or constructive care of such agency
  during the previous month;
               (5)  the number of animals who were adopted or returned
  to prior owners during the previous month;
               (6)  the number of animals who were transferred to
  other organizations for adoption during the previous month; and
               (7)  the number of animals impounded into the reporting
  agency from outside the reporting agency's normal city or county
  service area during the previous month.
         (b)  An agency shall retain copies of the summaries required
  by (a) for at least three calendar years and shall make such
  summaries available for public inspection.
         SECTION 16.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.037 to read as follows:
         Section 823.037.  ENFORCEMENT AND REMEDIES.  Any public or
  private sheltering agency or rescue group may compel a public or
  private sheltering agency to follow the mandates of this Act
  through a lawsuit asking a court of competent jurisdiction to grant
  declaratory and injunctive relief including, but not limited to:
  restraining orders, preliminary injunctions, injunctions, writs of
  mandamus and prohibition, and other appropriate remedies at law
  which will compel compliance with this Act.
         SECTION 17.  Chapter 823, Health and Safety Code is amended
  by adding Section 823.038 to read as follows:
         Section 823.038.  SEVERABILITY.  (a)  If the provisions of
  any article, section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or clause
  of this Act shall be adjudged invalid by a court or other tribunal
  of competent jurisdiction, such determination, order, or judgment
  shall not affect or invalidate the remainder of any article,
  section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or clause of this Act.  
  Any such invalidity shall be confined in its operation to the
  clause, sentence, paragraph, section or article thereof directly
  involved in the controversy in which such determination, order, or
  judgment shall have been rendered.
         SECTION 18.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.