Tex. Penal Code § 48.03 · Chapter 48. CONDUCT AFFECTING PUBLIC HEALTH
PROHIBITION ON PURCHASE AND SALE OF HUMAN FETAL TISSUE.
Text — Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
(a) In this section, "human fetal tissue" has the meaning assigned by Section 173.001, Health and Safety Code.
(b) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly offers to buy, offers to sell, acquires, receives, sells, or otherwise transfers any human fetal tissue for economic benefit.
(c) An offense under this section is a state jail felony.
(d) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the actor:
(1) is an employee of or under contract with an accredited public or private institution of higher education; and
(2) acquires, receives, or transfers human fetal tissue solely for the purpose of fulfilling a donation authorized by Section 173.005, Health and Safety Code.
(e) This section does not apply to:
(1) human fetal tissue acquired, received, or transferred solely for diagnostic or pathological testing;
(2) human fetal tissue acquired, received, or transferred solely for the purposes of a criminal investigation;
(3) human fetal tissue acquired, received, or transferred solely for the purpose of disposing of the tissue in accordance with state law or rules applicable to the disposition of human fetal tissue remains;
(4) human fetal tissue or human tissue acquired during pregnancy or at delivery of a child, provided the tissue is acquired by an accredited public or private institution of higher education for use in research approved by an institutional review board or another appropriate board, committee, or body charged with oversight applicable to the research; or
(5) cell lines derived from human fetal tissue or human tissue existing on September 1, 2017, that are used by an accredited public or private institution of higher education in research approved by an institutional review board or another appropriate board, committee, or body charged with oversight applicable to the research.
(f) With the consent of the appropriate local county or district attorney, the attorney general has concurrent jurisdiction with that consenting local prosecutor to prosecute an offense under this section.
Notes and commentary — not statutory text
History
Added by Acts 2017, 85th Leg., R.S., Ch. 441 (S.B. 8), Sec. 17, eff. September 1, 2017.
Source of truth
- Edition
- Current through the 89th 2nd Called Legislative Session, 2025
- Official file
- https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/PE/htm/PE.48.htm
- Text hash
- sha256 0676248b7d68e767ff43a4ae1a49b26b9781fd13e515b289116b142b8648fcdf
- Composed by
- compose_tx.py 2026-10-05: the Legislative Council's chapter files read in document order; verify_tx.py's independent reading (lxml DOM walk) agrees character for character
This section cites
Provisions in this library that the text above cites, as it prints each citation. A range cited as “ss. 61.13-61.16” links its first and last provisions.
Cited by 2 provisions
Provisions in this library whose text cites Tex. Penal Code § 48.03. Each shows the citation as that text prints it.
Health and Safety Code
Procedural information only. Not legal advice and not a substitute for the advice of an attorney. Confirm the current text with the official publisher before relying on it.