73R5120 CAE-F
By Cuellar of Webb H.B. No. 474
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the regulation of currency exchange and transmission
1-3 businesses.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 3(c), Article 350, Revised Statutes, is
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 (c) A retailer or service provider who, in the ordinary
1-8 course of business, accepts currency of a country or government
1-9 other than the United States in payment for goods sold or services
1-10 provided is eligible for an exemption from licensing under this
1-11 article. A person requesting an exemption under this subsection
1-12 must annually file an application with the commissioner,
1-13 accompanied by a nonrefundable license exemption application fee in
1-14 an amount to be set by the commissioner to recover the cost of
1-15 administering this subsection. <A person who engages in a currency
1-16 exchange or transmission business only as an incidental part of the
1-17 person's normal business or as an accommodation to clients or
1-18 customers with whom the person transacts business in the normal
1-19 course of business may request from the commissioner an exemption
1-20 from this article.> The commissioner shall <may> grant an
1-21 exemption to a person under this subsection if the commissioner
1-22 determines that the person making the request is eligible under
1-23 this subsection <does not engage in a currency exchange or
1-24 transmission business as a principal component of the person's
2-1 daily business operations. A person who has been granted an
2-2 exemption under this subsection annually shall certify to the
2-3 commissioner that the person is maintaining the exempt status>.
2-4 The commissioner in accordance with the examination provisions of
2-5 this article may examine <or cause to be examined> a person to
2-6 verify the <certification or> exempt status. The retailer or
2-7 service provider may not be exempted under this subsection or an
2-8 exemption may be suspended or revoked if:
2-9 (1) the value of the goods or services purchased in a
2-10 single transaction exceeds $1,000;
2-11 (2) the currency exchanged as a result of the
2-12 transaction, including change given or made, exceeds $100;
2-13 (3) an attempt is made to structure transactions in a
2-14 way to evade the licensing requirements of this article or to avoid
2-15 using a licensed currency exchange business; or
2-16 (4) the retailer or service provider would not be
2-17 eligible for a license under Section 8 of this article.
2-18 SECTION 2. Section 10(a), Article 350, Revised Statutes, is
2-19 amended to read as follows:
2-20 (a) A person who is licensed under this article shall post a
2-21 bond with a qualified surety company doing business in this state
2-22 that is acceptable to the commissioner <for each license the person
2-23 holds> in an amount determined by the commissioner. The
2-24 commissioner shall determine the amount of the bond based on the
2-25 dollar volume of the licensee's currency exchange or transmission
2-26 business and the number of locations from which the person
2-27 operates, but the bond must be at least $25,000.
3-1 SECTION 3. Section 13(a), Article 350, Revised Statutes, is
3-2 amended to read as follows:
3-3 (a) The commissioner shall cooperate with federal and state
3-4 agencies in discharging the commissioner's responsibilities
3-5 relating to the regulation of currency exchange or transmission
3-6 businesses. The commissioner may:
3-7 (1) arrange for the exchange of information among
3-8 government officials concerning the regulation of a currency
3-9 exchange or transmission business; <and>
3-10 (2) cooperate in and coordinate training programs
3-11 concerning the regulation of currency exchange or transmission
3-12 businesses; and
3-13 (3) assist state and federal agencies in their
3-14 enforcement and investigatory activities and supply those agencies
3-15 with documentation and information.
3-16 SECTION 4. Section 16, Article 350, Revised Statutes, is
3-17 amended to read as follows:
3-18 Sec. 16. INJUNCTION. The prosecuting attorney of the county
3-19 in which a violation is alleged to have occurred, the attorney
3-20 general, or the district attorney of Travis County may seek an
3-21 injunction prohibiting the further operation of a currency exchange
3-22 or transmission business if an investigation discloses that a
3-23 person is operating a currency exchange or transmission business
3-24 without a license or in violation of this article or rules adopted
3-25 under this article.
3-26 SECTION 5. Section 20, Article 350, Revised Statutes, is
3-27 amended to read as follows:
4-1 Sec. 20. Confidential Information. All information obtained
4-2 by the Banking Department from a licensee relating to the financial
4-3 condition of a licensee, whether obtained through examination or
4-4 otherwise, except published statements, and all files and records
4-5 of the Banking Department relating to a licensee are confidential
4-6 and may not be disclosed by the commissioner or an officer or
4-7 employee of the Banking Department. The commissioner may release
4-8 information if:
4-9 (1) the commissioner finds that immediate and
4-10 irreparable harm is threatened to the licensee's customers or
4-11 potential customers or the general public;
4-12 (2) the licensee consents before the release;
4-13 (3) the commissioner finds that release of the
4-14 information is required in connection with an administrative <a>
4-15 hearing under this article <before the Finance Commission>, in
4-16 which event information may be released to the parties of that
4-17 hearing <distributed to the Finance Commission>; or
4-18 (4) the commissioner finds that the release is
4-19 reasonably necessary for the protection of the public and in the
4-20 interest of justice, in which event information may be distributed
4-21 to representatives of an agency, department, or instrumentality of
4-22 this state, any other state, or the federal government<, provided
4-23 the representatives state in writing under oath that they will
4-24 maintain the confidentiality of the information>.
4-25 SECTION 6. Section 8(e), Article 350, Revised Statutes, is
4-26 repealed.
4-27 SECTION 7. The importance of this legislation and the
5-1 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-2 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-3 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-4 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
5-5 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
5-6 passage, and it is so enacted.