BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 3641

By: Guillen

Homeland Security & Public Safety

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Current law specifies that an individual must have an established domicile in Texas to be eligible for a driver's license or identification card. The definition of domicile relates to a permanent residence. Department of Public Safety (DPS) policy requires only that applicants for a non‑commercial driver's license or identification card provide proof of having a Texas residence address, not that the address is a permanent residence. One group of individuals this affects is college students who go to an out-of-state school but maintain their principal place of residence in Texas. H.B. 3641 seeks to better align state law with DPS policy by revising the statutory residency requirements to specify that applicants for a driver's license or personal identification certificate need to have an established address of principal residence in Texas.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 3641 amends the Transportation Code to revise the residency requirements for a driver's license or personal identification certificate by extending eligibility to all otherwise eligible persons who have established an address of principal residence in Texas, rather than restricting eligibility only to those who have an established domicile in Texas. The bill applies only to an application for a driver's license or personal identification certificate submitted on or after the bill's effective date.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2023.