Texas Penal Code 28.09 – Damaging Critical Infrastructure Facility
(a) In this section:
(1) “Critical infrastructure facility” means an electrical power generating facility, substation, switching station, electrical control center, or electrical transmission or distribution facility.
(2) “Cyber attack” means an attempt to damage, disrupt, or gain unauthorized access to a computer, computer network, or computer system.
(3) “Drone” has the meaning assigned by Article 2.33, Code of Criminal Procedure, as added by Chapter 1011 (H.B. 1758), Acts of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021.
(4) “Explosive weapon” has the meaning assigned by § 28.03.
(5) “Extended power outage” means a power outage:
(A) lasting for two hours or more; or
(B) affecting 1,000 or more meters used to measure electric energy consumption by retail customers.
(6) “Firearm” has the meaning assigned by § 46.01.
(b) A person commits an offense if, without the effective consent of the owner or operator of a critical infrastructure facility, the person:
(1) intentionally or knowingly damages, destroys, vandalizes, or impairs the function of any critical infrastructure facility; and
(2) as a result of the conduct described by Subdivision (1), causes an extended power outage.
Terms Used In Texas Penal Code 28.09
- Actor: means a person whose criminal responsibility is in issue in a criminal action. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
- Conduct: means an act or omission and its accompanying mental state. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Effective consent: includes consent by a person legally authorized to act for the owner. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
- Felony: means an offense so designated by law or punishable by death or confinement in a penitentiary. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
- Law: means the constitution or a statute of this state or of the United States, a written opinion of a court of record, a municipal ordinance, an order of a county commissioners court, or a rule authorized by and lawfully adopted under a statute. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
- Owner: means a person who:
(A) has title to the property, possession of the property, whether lawful or not, or a greater right to possession of the property than the actor; or
(B) is a holder in due course of a negotiable instrument. See Texas Penal Code 1.07 - Person: means an individual or a corporation, association, limited liability company, or other entity or organization governed by the Business Organizations Code. See Texas Penal Code 1.07
(c) An offense under this section is a felony of the second degree, except that the offense is a felony of the first degree if:
(1) the amount of pecuniary damage to the critical infrastructure facility is $100,000 or more; or
(2) the actor uses a firearm, drone, cyber attack, or explosive weapon in the commission of the offense.
(d) If conduct that constitutes an offense under this section also constitutes an offense under any other law, the actor may be prosecuted under this section, the other law, or both.