84R12378 JXC-F
 
  By: Martinez H.B. No. 2459
 
 
 
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 Ann Stagner
  Unprotected Road User 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, 2015.