Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 468 amends the Transportation Code, Tax Code, and Texas Manufactured Housing Standards Act to require that an application for a Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) permit to move a manufactured home, except for a move from the location of the manufacturer or the original retailer, be accompanied by a written statement from the local appraisal district that no unpaid property taxes on the housing have been reported by any taxing unit. Certain special procedures apply if the manufactured home is not on the tax rolls. The bill also revises laws relating to the transfers and tax liens involving manufactured homes, and it eliminates the previous system whereby a collector for a taxing unit notified the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs of unpaid taxes and tax liens. Instead, the bill establishes a procedure whereby a person, whether for TxDOT permit or title transfer purposes, may seek from the chief appraiser a written statement about the existence or nonexistence of outstanding tax liability. The bill also sets related deadlines and details procedures for communications between chief appraisers necessary to answer requests for such written statements. Under the bill, the fine for road, highway, or street movement of a manufactured home without a permit is $500, whereas under former law the same offense was a Class C misdemeanor subject to a maximum $500 fine.