By Counts H.B. No. 2845
74R8053 T
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the powers, functions, authority, and duties of the
1-3 Automobile Theft Prevention Authority.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Article 4413(37), Title 70, Revised Statutes, is
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 Art. 4413(37). AUTOMOBILE THEFT PREVENTION AUTHORITY
1-8 Sec. 1. DEFINITIONS. In this article:
1-9 (1) "Authority" means the Automobile Theft Prevention
1-10 Authority.
1-11 (2) "Economic automobile theft" means automobile theft
1-12 committed for financial gain.
1-13 Sec. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF AUTHORITY. The Automobile Theft
1-14 Prevention Authority is established in the <criminal justice
1-15 division of the governor's office> Department of Transportation.
1-16 Sec. 3. APPOINTMENT OF AUTHORITY. (a) The authority is
1-17 composed of seven members.
1-18 (b) The governor, with the advice and consent of the senate,
1-19 shall appoint the following six members:
1-20 (1) two representatives of motor vehicle insurance
1-21 consumers;
1-22 (2) two representatives of insurance companies writing
1-23 motor vehicle insurance in this state; and
1-24 (3) two representatives of law enforcement.
2-1 (c) The director of the Department of Public Safety or the
2-2 director's designee serves ex officio as the seventh member of the
2-3 authority.
2-4 (d) Appointments to the authority shall be made without
2-5 regard to race, color, handicap, sex, religion, age, or national
2-6 origin of the appointees.
2-7 (e) The six members of the authority appointed by the
2-8 governor serve staggered six-year terms, with the terms of two
2-9 members expiring February 1 of each odd-numbered year. If there is
2-10 a vacancy during a term, the governor shall appoint a replacement
2-11 who meets the requirements of the vacant office to fill the
2-12 unexpired term.
2-13 (f) It is a ground for removal from the authority if a
2-14 member:
2-15 (1) does not have at the time of appointment the
2-16 qualifications required by Subsection (b) of this section;
2-17 (2) does not maintain during service on the authority
2-18 the qualifications required by Subsection (b) of this section;
2-19 (3) cannot discharge the member's duties for a
2-20 substantial part of the term for which the member is appointed
2-21 because of illness or disability; or
2-22 (4) is absent from more than half of the regularly
2-23 scheduled authority meetings that the member is eligible to attend
2-24 during a calendar year unless the absence is excused by majority
2-25 vote of the authority.
2-26 (g) The validity of an action of the authority is not
2-27 affected by the fact that it is taken when a ground for removal of
3-1 a member of the authority exists.
3-2 (h) If the chairman has knowledge that a potential ground
3-3 for removal exists, the chairman shall notify the governor of that
3-4 fact.
3-5 Sec. 4. Expenses. A member of the authority is not entitled
3-6 to compensation but is entitled to reimbursement for expenses
3-7 incurred in performing the member's duties at the rate provided in
3-8 the General Appropriations Act.
3-9 Sec. 5. Officers; meetings. (a) At the first meeting of
3-10 each calendar year, the authority shall elect a chairman from its
3-11 members.
3-12 (b) The authority shall meet at the call of the chairman or
3-13 at the call of four members.
3-14 Sec. 6. Powers and duties. (a) The authority shall adopt
3-15 rules to implement its powers and duties.
3-16 (b) The authority may solicit and accept gifts and grants.
3-17 (c) The authority may employ and compensate staff as
3-18 <provided by legislative appropriation or may use staff provided by
3-19 the governor's office> in coordination with the Department of
3-20 Transportation, and may delegate authority to the staff as needed.
3-21 (d) Not later than April 1 of each year, the authority shall
3-22 report on its activities to the lieutenant governor and the speaker
3-23 of the house of representatives.
3-24 (e) The authority may contract for various services with
3-25 other state agencies as needed to carry out its purposes, powers,
3-26 and duties. These services may include, but are not limited to,
3-27 legal services, fiscal services, administrative services, and
4-1 personnel services.
4-2 Sec. 6A. POWER TO REFUND. (a) The authority may request
4-3 the comptroller to draw warrants on the automobile theft prevention
4-4 fund for the purpose of refunding monies to an "insurer" (as
4-5 defined under Section 10 of this article).
4-6 (b) The authority shall not issue a request under subsection
4-7 (a) of this section unless the authority has determined that the
4-8 insurer is due a refund for fees paid under Section 10 of this
4-9 article.
4-10 (c) The authority shall make the determination under
4-11 subsection (b) of this section as follows:
4-12 (1) The two members of the authority who are
4-13 representatives of insurance companies writing motor vehicle
4-14 insurance in this state shall recuse themselves;
4-15 (2) The remaining five members of the authority shall
4-16 make the determination by a simple majority vote.
4-17 (d) The process of making the determination of refund under
4-18 this section is not a hearing for purposes of due process.
4-19 Sec. 7. Plan of operation. (a) The authority shall develop
4-20 and implement a plan of operation.
4-21 (b) The plan of operation must include:
4-22 (1) an assessment of the scope of the problems of
4-23 automobile theft and economic automobile theft, including
4-24 particular areas of the state where the problems are greatest;
4-25 (2) an analysis of various methods of combating the
4-26 problems of automobile theft and economic automobile theft;
4-27 (3) a plan for providing financial support to combat
5-1 automobile theft and economic automobile theft; and
5-2 (4) an estimate of the funds required to implement the
5-3 plan of operation.
5-4 Sec. 8. Automobile theft prevention fund. (a) The
5-5 automobile theft prevention fund is an account in the state
5-6 treasury.
5-7 (b) The treasurer shall administer the fund and may invest
5-8 the fund in the same manner as other state funds.
5-9 (c) The comptroller shall deposit to the credit of the fund
5-10 any gift or grant of money accepted by the authority and money
5-11 collected under Sections 9 and 10 of this article. The comptroller
5-12 shall draw warrants on the fund at the request of the authority,
5-13 except that a warrant may not exceed the amount in the fund.
5-14 (d) Interest or income on amounts deposited in the
5-15 automobile theft prevention fund shall be credited to the fund.
5-16 (e) Money credited to the fund shall be used by the
5-17 authority to pay administrative costs and to achieve the purposes
5-18 of this article, including:
5-19 (1) establishing and funding the automobile
5-20 registration program required by Section 9 of this article;
5-21 (2) providing financial support to law enforcement
5-22 agencies for economic automobile theft enforcement teams;
5-23 (3) providing financial support to law enforcement
5-24 agencies, local prosecutors, judicial agencies, and neighborhood,
5-25 community, business, and nonprofit organizations for programs
5-26 designed to reduce the incidence of economic automobile theft;
5-27 (4) conducting educational programs designed to inform
6-1 automobile owners of methods of preventing automobile theft;
6-2 (5) providing equipment, for experimental purposes, to
6-3 assist automobile owners in preventing automobile theft; and
6-4 (6) establishing a uniform program to prevent stolen
6-5 motor vehicles from entering Mexico.
6-6 Sec. 9. Automobile registration program. (a) The authority
6-7 shall develop a statewide automobile registration program to be
6-8 administered by the Department of Public Safety.
6-9 (b) The authority shall identify a period of the day during
6-10 which most automobiles are not used. An owner of an automobile
6-11 that does not usually use the automobile during that period may
6-12 register the automobile with the Department of Public Safety in
6-13 accordance with the program developed by the authority.
6-14 (c) The authority shall develop a form for registration of
6-15 an automobile under the program. The form shall advise the owner
6-16 of the automobile of the provisions of Subsection (f) of this
6-17 section. An automobile may not be registered under the program
6-18 unless the owner consents to the provisions of Subsection (f) of
6-19 this section.
6-20 (d) The program must provide a method for an owner to
6-21 withdraw an automobile from the program. The program may not
6-22 require owners of automobiles to participate in the program.
6-23 (e) The department shall issue to the owner of an automobile
6-24 registered under this section a decal or other appropriate
6-25 identifying marker to be affixed to the automobile to indicate that
6-26 the automobile is registered with the program.
6-27 (f) A peace officer who observes a registered automobile
7-1 that is being operated during the period of the day identified by
7-2 the authority under Subsection (b) of this section may stop the
7-3 automobile to determine whether the automobile is being operated by
7-4 the owner or with the owner's permission.
7-5 (g) The Department of Public Safety shall adopt rules to
7-6 administer the program and shall adopt fees in an amount sufficient
7-7 to recover the cost of administering the program. Money collected
7-8 by the department under this subsection shall be deposited to the
7-9 credit of the automobile theft prevention fund.
7-10 Sec. 10. Fee. (a) In this section:
7-11 (1) "Insurer" means any insurance company writing any
7-12 form of motor vehicle insurance in this state, including an
7-13 interinsurance or reciprocal exchange, mutual company, mutual
7-14 association, or Lloyd's plan.
7-15 (2) "Motor vehicle years of insurance" means the total
7-16 number of years or portions of years during which a motor vehicle
7-17 is covered by insurance.
7-18 (b) Not later than March <February> 1 of each year, each
7-19 insurer shall pay to the authority a fee equal to $1 multiplied by
7-20 the total number of motor vehicle years of insurance for insurance
7-21 policies delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed by the insurer
7-22 during the preceding calendar year.
7-23 (c) The fee imposed by this section is in addition to any
7-24 other fee or tax imposed by law on an insurer.
7-25 (d) The authority shall notify the State Board of Insurance
7-26 of any insurer that fails to pay the fee required by this section,
7-27 and the board may for that reason revoke the insurer's certificate
8-1 of authority.
8-2 (e) If the authority is abolished under Section 12 of this
8-3 Article or otherwise, the comptroller shall deposit to the general
8-4 revenue fund any money that is in the automobile theft prevention
8-5 fund on the date that the authority is abolished.
8-6 Sec. 11. Performance review. (a) In this section,
8-7 "automobile theft rate" means the ratio of automobile thefts in
8-8 this state to the number of automobiles in this state. The ratio
8-9 shall be based on statistical information provided by the
8-10 Department of Public Safety's uniform crime reporting division.
8-11 (b) The authority shall determine the automobile theft rate
8-12 as of the date a majority of the members of the authority are
8-13 appointed and have qualified for office and shall report the rate
8-14 to the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house of
8-15 representatives. The report required by this subsection shall be
8-16 made not later than 30 days after the date on which a majority of
8-17 the initial members of the authority are appointed and have
8-18 qualified for office.
8-19 (c) Not later than October 1, 1995, the authority shall
8-20 determine the automobile theft rate as of September 1, 1995, and
8-21 shall report the rate to the lieutenant governor and the speaker of
8-22 the house of representatives. <If the rate is larger than the rate
8-23 established by the authority under Subsection (b) of this section,
8-24 the authority is abolished and contracts entered into by the
8-25 authority terminate effective November 30, 1995.>
8-26 <(d) If the authority is abolished under Subsection (c) of
8-27 this section, the comptroller shall deposit to the general revenue
9-1 fund any money that is in the automobile theft prevention fund on
9-2 the date that the authority is abolished.>
9-3 Sec. 12. Application of Sunset Act. The authority is
9-4 subject to Chapter 325, Government Code (Texas Sunset Act). Unless
9-5 continued in existence as provided by that chapter, the authority
9-6 is abolished and this article expires September 1, <2003> 1997.
9-7 SECTION 2. The importance of this legislation and the
9-8 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
9-9 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
9-10 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
9-11 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
9-12 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
9-13 passage, and it is so enacted.