S.B. No. 1058
AN ACT
1-1 relating to fees imposed and collected by agencies of state and
1-2 local government.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 118.052, Local Government Code, is
1-5 amended to read as follows:
1-6 Sec. 118.052. Fee Schedule. Each clerk of a county court
1-7 shall collect the following fees for services rendered to any
1-8 person:
1-9 (1) CIVIL COURT ACTIONS
1-10 (A) Filing of Original Action (Sec.
1-11 118.053):
1-12 (i) Garnishment after judgment........ $15.00
1-13 (ii) All others........................ $40.00
1-14 (B) Filing of Action Other than Original
1-15 (Sec. 118.054) ...................... $30.00
1-16 (C) Services Rendered After Judgment in
1-17 Original Action (Sec. 118.0545):
1-18 (i) Abstract of judgment .............. $5.00
1-19 (ii) Execution, order of sale, writ,
1-20 or other process ................ $5.00
1-21 (2) PROBATE COURT ACTIONS
1-22 (A) Probate Original Action (Sec.
1-23 118.055):
2-1 (i) Probate of a will with
2-2 independent executor,
2-3 administration with will
2-4 attached, administration of an
2-5 estate, guardianship or
2-6 receivership of an estate, or
2-7 muniment of title .............. $35.00
2-8 (ii) Community survivors .............. $20.00
2-9 (iii) Small estates .................... $10.00
2-10 (iv) Affidavits of heirship ........... $10.00
2-11 (v) Mental health or chemical
2-12 dependency services ............ $40.00
2-13 (vi) Additional, special fee (Sec.
2-14 118.064) ....................... $ 3.00
2-15 (B) Services in Pending Probate Action
2-16 (Sec. 118.056):
2-17 (i) Filing and recording a document:
2-18 for the first page ............... $ 3.00
2-19 for each additional page or part
2-20 of a page ..................... $ 2.00
2-21 (ii) Approving and recording bond ..... $ 3.00
2-22 (iii) Administering oath ............... $ 2.00
2-23 (C) Adverse Probate Action (Sec. 118.057)
2-24 ..................................... $35.00
2-25 (D) Claim Against Estate (Sec. 118.058) ... $ 2.00
3-1 (3) OTHER FEES
3-2 (A) Issuing Document Requiring a Return,
3-3 No Pending Action (Sec. 118.059):
3-4 original document and one copy ........ $ 4.00
3-5 each additional set of an original
3-6 and one copy ........................ $ 4.00
3-7 (B) Certified Papers, No Return Required
3-8 (Sec. 118.060):
3-9 for the clerk's certificate ........... $ 1.00
3-10 plus a fee per page or part of a page
3-11 of .................................. $ 1.00
3-12 (C) Letters Testamentary, Letter of
3-13 Guardianship, Letter of
3-14 Administration, or Abstract of
3-15 Judgment (Sec. 118.061) ............. $ 2.00
3-16 (D) Safekeeping of Wills (Sec. 118.062) ... $ 5.00
3-17 (E) Mail Service of Process (Sec.
3-18 118.063) ................... same as sheriff
3-19 (F) Records Management and Preservation
3-20 Fee .................................. $5.00
3-21 SECTION 2. Subchapter C, Chapter 118, Local Government Code,
3-22 is amended by adding Section 118.0546 to read as follows:
3-23 Sec. 118.0546. RECORDS MANAGEMENT AND PRESERVATION
3-24 FEE--CIVIL CASES. (a) The fee for "Records Management and
3-25 Preservation" under Section 118.052 is for the records management
4-1 and preservation services performed by the county as required by
4-2 Chapter 203.
4-3 (b) The fee shall be assessed as cost and must be paid at
4-4 the time of filing any civil case or ancillary pleading thereto.
4-5 (c) The fee shall be placed in a special fund to be called
4-6 the records management and preservation fund.
4-7 (d) The fee shall be used only for records management and
4-8 preservation purposes in the county. No expenditure may be made
4-9 from this fund without prior approval of the commissioners court.
4-10 SECTION 3. Subchapter C, Chapter 118, Local Government Code,
4-11 is amended by adding Section 118.0645 to read as follows:
4-12 Sec. 118.0645. RECORDS MANAGEMENT AND PRESERVATION
4-13 FEE--PROBATE CASES. (a) The fee for "Records Management and
4-14 Preservation" under Section 118.052 is for the records management
4-15 and preservation services performed by the county as required by
4-16 Chapter 203.
4-17 (b) The fee shall be assessed as cost and must be paid at
4-18 the time of filing any probate case or adverse probate action.
4-19 (c) The fee shall be placed in a special fund entitled
4-20 records management and preservation fund.
4-21 (d) The fee shall be used only for records management and
4-22 preservation purposes in the county as required by Chapter 203. No
4-23 expenditure may be made from this fund without prior approval of
4-24 the commissioners court.
4-25 SECTION 4. Section 203.003, Local Government Code, is
5-1 amended to read as follows:
5-2 Sec. 203.003. DUTIES OF COMMISSIONERS COURT. The
5-3 commissioners court of each county shall:
5-4 (1) promote and support the efficient and economical
5-5 management of records of all elective offices in the county to
5-6 enable elected county officers to conform to this subtitle and
5-7 rules adopted under it;
5-8 (2) facilitate the creation and maintenance of records
5-9 containing adequate and proper documentation of the organization,
5-10 functions, policies, decisions, procedures, and essential
5-11 transactions of each elective office and designed to furnish the
5-12 information necessary to protect the legal and financial rights of
5-13 the local government, the state, and the persons affected by the
5-14 activities of the local government;
5-15 (3) facilitate the identification and preservation of
5-16 the records of elective offices that are of permanent value; <and>
5-17 (4) facilitate the identification and protection of
5-18 the essential records of elective offices;
5-19 (5) establish a county clerk records management and
5-20 preservation fund for fees subject to Section 118.0216 and approve
5-21 in advance any expenditures from the fund; and
5-22 (6) establish a records management and preservation
5-23 fund for the records management and preservation fees authorized
5-24 under Sections 118.052, 118.0546, and 118.0645, Section 51.317,
5-25 Government Code, and Article 102.005(d), Code of Criminal
6-1 Procedure, and approve in advance any expenditures from the fund,
6-2 which may be spent only for records management preservation or
6-3 automation purposes in the county.
6-4 SECTION 5. Section 51.317, Government Code, is amended by
6-5 amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (c) to read as
6-6 follows:
6-7 (b) The fees are:
6-8 (1) for filing a suit, including an appeal
6-9 from an inferior court........................$45
6-10 (2) for filing a cross-action, intervention,
6-11 contempt action, or motion for new trial......$15
6-12 (3) for issuing a subpoena, including one
6-13 copy, when requested at the time a suit
6-14 or action is filed............................$ 4
6-15 (4) for issuing a citation or other writ or
6-16 process not otherwise provided for,
6-17 including one copy, when requested at
6-18 the time a suit or action is filed............$ 8
6-19 (5) for issuing an additional copy of a
6-20 process not otherwise provided for, when
6-21 requested at the time a suit or action
6-22 is filed......................................$ 4
6-23 (6) for the records management and
6-24 preservation fund............................$ 5.
6-25 (c) The district clerk, after collecting a fee under
7-1 Subsection (b)(6), shall pay the fee to the county treasurer, or to
7-2 an official who discharges the duties commonly delegated to the
7-3 county treasurer, for deposit in the records management and
7-4 preservation fund.
7-5 SECTION 6. Article 102.005, Code of Criminal Procedure, is
7-6 amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
7-7 (d) A defendant convicted of an offense in a county court, a
7-8 county court at law, or a district court shall pay a fee of $10 for
7-9 records management and preservation services performed by the
7-10 county as required by Chapter 203, Local Government Code. The fee
7-11 shall be collected and distributed by the clerk of the court in the
7-12 same manner as fees are collected and distributed under Section
7-13 51.317(c), Government Code. The fee received by a county shall be
7-14 placed in a special fund to be called the records management and
7-15 preservation fund. The fee shall be used only for records
7-16 management and preservation purposes in the county as required by
7-17 Chapter 203, Local Government Code. No expenditures may be made
7-18 from this fund without prior approval of the commissioners court.
7-19 SECTION 7. Section 431.241, Health and Safety Code, is
7-20 amended by adding Subsection (g) to read as follows:
7-21 (g) The department may assess a fee for the issuance of a
7-22 certificate of free sale and another certification issued under
7-23 this chapter. The board by rule shall set each fee in an amount
7-24 sufficient to recover the cost to the department of issuing the
7-25 particular certificate.
8-1 SECTION 8. Section 3, Article 21.60, Insurance Code, is
8-2 amended to read as follows:
8-3 Sec. 3. ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT. (a) The board
8-4 shall administer and enforce this article. The board shall
8-5 establish reasonable and necessary fees in an amount not to exceed
8-6 $20 per year for each amusement ride covered by this Act.
8-7 (b) For purposes of establishing fees under this section, an
8-8 amusement ride that consists of two or more self-propelled,
8-9 four-wheeled vehicles designed to be operated independently and to
8-10 carry fewer than three persons, including vehicles known as
8-11 go-carts, is a single amusement ride.
8-12 (c) Funds raised through said fees shall be deposited in the
8-13 State Treasury and shall be credited to the account of the board
8-14 for administration of this Act.
8-15 SECTION 9. Subsection (a), Section 11A, The Real Estate
8-16 License Act (Article 6573a, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is
8-17 amended to read as follows:
8-18 (a) Each of the following fees imposed by or under another
8-19 section of this Act is increased by $200:
8-20 (1) fee for filing an original application for an
8-21 individual <a> real estate broker license; and
8-22 (2) fee for annual renewal of an individual <a> real
8-23 estate broker license.
8-24 SECTION 10. (a) Except as provided by Subsections (b) and
8-25 (c) of this section, this Act takes effect immediately.
9-1 (b) Sections 1 through 7 of this Act take effect September
9-2 1, 1993.
9-3 (c) Section 8 of this Act takes effect January 1, 1994.
9-4 SECTION 11. The changes in law made by this Act in the
9-5 amount or application of a fee apply only to a fee that becomes due
9-6 on or after the effective date of the change and, as applicable,
9-7 the effective date of a rule adopted under the change. A fee that
9-8 became due before the effective date of the change in law made by
9-9 this Act in the fee is governed by the law as it existed when the
9-10 fee became due, and the former law is continued in effect for that
9-11 purpose.
9-12 SECTION 12. The importance of this legislation and the
9-13 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-14 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-15 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-16 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
9-17 and that this Act take effect and be in force according to its
9-18 terms, and it is so enacted.