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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the maintenance of a tow rotation list by the |
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commissioners court or sheriff's office of certain counties; |
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authorizing fees; creating a criminal offense. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 2308.209, Occupations Code, is amended |
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by adding Subsection (b-1) to read as follows: |
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(b-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (b), this section does not |
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apply to a county with a population of 800,000 or more that is |
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adjacent to a county with a population of 3.3 million or more. |
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SECTION 2. Subchapter E, Chapter 2308, Occupations Code, is |
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amended by adding Section 2308.2095 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 2308.2095. COUNTY ADMINISTRATION OF TOW ROTATION LIST |
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IN CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) This section applies only to the |
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unincorporated area of a county with a population of 800,000 or more |
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that is adjacent to a county with a population of 3.3 million or |
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more. |
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(b) A commissioners court may maintain a list of towing |
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companies to perform nonconsent tows of motor vehicles initiated by |
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a peace officer investigating a traffic accident or a traffic |
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incident. The towing companies must operate in a county to which |
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this section applies. |
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(c) A commissioners court of a county may delegate to the |
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sheriff's office of a county the authority under Subsection (b) to |
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maintain a list of towing companies. |
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(d) A peace officer initiating a nonconsent tow of a motor |
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vehicle involved in a traffic accident or traffic incident that the |
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officer is investigating shall notify the commissioners court or |
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sheriff's office, as applicable, that the tow is being initiated. |
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The commissioners court or sheriff's office, as applicable, shall |
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contact successive towing companies on the tow rotation list until |
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a company agrees to carry out the tow. |
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(e) The commissioners court or sheriff's office, as |
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applicable, may impose an administrative fee on: |
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(1) a towing company for inclusion on the tow rotation |
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list; and |
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(2) the operator of a vehicle subject to a nonconsent |
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tow performed by a towing company included on the tow rotation list |
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for facilitating the tow. |
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(f) The amount of the fees collected under Subsection (e) |
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may not exceed the amount necessary to implement this section. |
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(g) The towing company performing the tow shall collect an |
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administrative fee imposed under Subsection (e)(2) and remit the |
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fee to the county. A fee collected under this subsection is |
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separate from a fee collected by the towing company for performing |
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the tow. |
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(h) The commissioners court of a county in which a list is |
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maintained under Subsection (b) shall adopt policies to implement |
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this section in a manner that ensures: |
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(1) equal distribution of nonconsent tows among the |
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towing companies that perform nonconsent tows in the county; and |
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(2) consumer protection, including fair pricing, for |
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owners or operators of motor vehicles towed by towing companies on |
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the tow rotation list. |
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(i) The commissioners court or sheriff's office, as |
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applicable, shall make a list maintained under this section |
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available for public inspection. |
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(j) In a county in which a list is maintained under |
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Subsection (b), a person commits an offense if: |
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(1) the person arrives at the scene of a traffic |
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accident or traffic incident to perform a nonconsent tow of a motor |
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vehicle without first being contacted by the commissioners court or |
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sheriff's office, as applicable; |
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(2) the person directly or indirectly solicits, on |
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streets located in the county, towing services, including towing, |
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removing, repairing, wrecking, storing, trading, selling, or |
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purchasing related to a vehicle that has been damaged in an accident |
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to the extent that it cannot be normally and safely driven; or |
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(3) the person enters the scene of a traffic accident, |
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traffic incident, or other area under the control of a peace officer |
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without the permission of the peace officer. |
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(k) An offense under Subsection (j) is a misdemeanor |
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punishable by a fine of not less than $1 or more than $200. |
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SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An |
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offense committed before the effective date of this Act is governed |
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by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed, and the |
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former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of |
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this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of |
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this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |