September 15, 1995



Honorable Gonzalo Barrientos 

Chair

Committee of the Whole on Redistricting

Texas State Senate

P.O. Box 12068

Austin, Texas  78711

Letter Opinion No. 95-058



Re:    Whether a state or local govern-

mental entity, by posting notice under the 

criminal trespass statute, may prohibit a 

concealed handgun licensee from 

carrying a handgun on premises of which 

the governmental entity is the “owner” as 

defined in the Penal Code    (ID# 35896)





Dear Senator Barrientos:



	You ask whether a state or local governmental entity, by posting notice under the 

criminal trespass statute, may prohibit a concealed handgun licensee from carrying a 

handgun on premises of which the governmental entity is the “owner” as defined in the 

Penal Code.   The criminal trespass statute, Penal Code section 30.05, provides in part:



	(a)  A person commits an offense if he enters or remains on 

property or in a building of another without effective consent and 

he:



	(1)  had notice that the entry was forbidden; or



	(2)  received notice to depart but failed to do so.



	(b)  For purposes of this section:



	. . . .



	(2)  “Notice” means:



	(A)  oral or written communication by the owner or 

someone with apparent authority to act for the owner;



	. . . .



	(C)  a sign or signs posted on the property or at the 

entrance to the building, reasonably likely to come to the 

attention of intruders, indicating that entry is forbidden 

. . . .



	Your question is similar to that asked in Attorney General Opinion DM-363:  

whether the concealed handgun law, Senate Bill 60, Act of May 16, 1995, 74th Leg., 

R.S., ch. 229, 1995 Tex. Sess. Law Serv. 1998, permits a business owner or operator to 

post notices prohibiting license holders carrying concealed handguns from the premises 

of the business.  There we concluded:



Senate Bill 60 does not prevent a business owner or operator from 

excluding persons, including both employees and nonemployees, 

carrying concealed handguns.  Under section 30.05 of the Penal 

Code, any person, including a license holder, who enters or remains 

on property or in a building of another carrying a concealed 

handgun without effective consent to carry and who has had notice 

that concealed handguns are prohibited commits a criminal offense.  

Senate Bill 60 is not intended to and does not permit a license 

holder to carry a concealed handgun on the premises of a private 

business contrary to notice as defined by the criminal trespass 

statute prohibiting the carrying of a concealed handgun.



Attorney General Opinion DM-363 (1995) at 9 (footnote omitted).  We are of the 

opinion that a state or local governmental entity has the same option to exclude handgun 

carriers from its premises.



	A state or local governmental entity is by definition included within the meaning 

of “another” in section 30.05.  The Penal Code defines (1) “another” as “a person other 

than the actor,” Penal Code § 1.07(a)(5) (emphasis added), (2) “person” as “an 

individual, corporation, or association,” id. § 1.07(a)(38) (emphasis added), (3) 

“association” as “a government or governmental subdivision or agency, trust, partnership, 

or two or more persons having a joint or common economic interest,” id. § 1.07(a)(6) 

(emphasis added), and (4) “government” as “the state,” “a county, municipality, or 

political subdivision of the state,” or “any branch or agency of the state, a county, 

municipality, or political subdivision,” id. § 1.07(a)(24).  Therefore, the Penal Code 

expressly recognizes the power of a state or local governmental entity to withhold or 

withdraw its consent to a person’s presence on its premises.   Nothing in the concealed 

handgun law affects this general power.   See Attorney General Opinions DM-364 

(1995) at 3, 6; DM-363 (1995) at 1-2, 9.



	We therefore conclude that a state or local governmental entity, by posting notice 

under the criminal trespass statute, may prohibit a gun-carrying concealed handgun 

licensee from entering or remaining on premises of which the governmental entity is the 

“owner” as defined in the Penal Code.



S  U  M  M  A  R  Y



	A state or local governmental entity, by posting notice under 

the criminal trespass statute, may prohibit a gun-carrying concealed 

handgun licensee from entering or remaining on premises of which 

the governmental entity is the “owner” as defined in the Penal Code.



						Yours very truly,







						James B. Pinson

						Assistant Attorney General

						Opinion Committee







 In the Penal Code,

	“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.



Penal Code § 1.07(a)(35).

 We note that the criminal trespass statute has been enforced in several cases involving trespass 

upon the premises of a state or local governmental entity.  See Robinson v. State, 530 S.W.2d 592 (Tex. 

Crim. App. 1975) (state university campus); Gollinger v. State, 834 S.W.2d 553 (Tex. App.--Houston 

[14th Dist.] 1992, no writ) (rapid transit authority garage); Olaniyi-Oke v. State, 827 S.W.2d 537 (Tex. 

App.--Houston [1st Dist.] 1992, writ ref’d) (county jail); Bader v. State, 777 S.W.2d 178 (Tex. App.--

Corpus Christi 1989, no writ) (state university campus); Reed v. State, 762 S.W.2d 640 (Tex. App.--

Texarkana 1988, writ ref’d) (public high school campus), cert. denied, 493 U.S. 822 (1989).

 Section 7 of the law does, however, amend section 215.001 of the Local Government Code to 

prohibit a municipality’s regulation, at any of the following places or events, of the carrying of a handgun 

that a licensee is licensed to carry:

	(A)  [a] public park;



	(B)  [a] public meeting of a municipality, county, or other 

governmental body;



	(C)  [a] political rally, parade, or official political meeting; or



	(D)  [a] nonfirearms-related school, college, or professional 

athletic event.



Act of May 16, 1995, 74th Leg., R.S., ch. 229, § 7, 1995 Tex. Sess. Law Serv. 1998, 2015 (amending 

Local Gov’t Code § 215.001(b)(6)).  But see id. § 4, at 2014 (adding new Penal Code § 46.035, 

subsection (c) of which prohibits intentional, knowing, or reckless carrying of handgun “at any meeting 

of a governmental entity”).

 

(footnote continued)



Honorable Gonzalo Barrientos  -  Page  3