Enrolled Bill Summary

            Senate Bill 393 adds a chapter to the Business & Commerce Code to create the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act to regulate the use of electronic records and signatures in business, commercial, or governmental transactions. The bill provides that a signature, record, or contract may not be denied legal effect or enforceability solely because of its electronic nature; that if a law requires a signature or a record to be in writing, an electronic signature or record satisfies the law; and that electronic transmission of information in a record that is capable of retention by the recipient satisfies a requirement to provide the information in writing unless the law requires the record to be posted, sent, or formatted in a specific manner. The bill sets forth the circumstances under which electronic records are considered to have been sent and received, as well as the effect on both parties of a change or error in transmission of an electronic record, and it authorizes the parties to a transaction involving an electronic record to vary these requirements by agreement in certain circumstances. The bill also includes provisions relating to the notarization, retention, admissibility in evidence, and transfer of electronic records. The bill authorizes the Department of Information Resources and the Texas State Library and Archives Commission to promulgate rules relating to the format of electronic records accepted or distributed by governmental agencies, the type of electronic signature required, if any, and procedures to ensure security, confidentiality, and auditability; authorizes the department to encourage and promote consistency and interoperability with respect to electronic communications; and requires state agencies to decide whether, and the extent to which, the agency will accept and use electronic records and signatures.

            Senate Bill 393 also provides that the act is exempted from preemption by the federal Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, repeals existing provisions in the Business & Commerce Code relating to digital signatures, and amends Local Government Code provisions relating to the acceptance, filing, and recording of electronic records by county clerks.