By:  Barrientos                                       S.B. No. 1398
                                 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
                                        AN ACT
    1-1  relating to the regulation of certain residential rental locators;
    1-2  providing penalties.
    1-3        BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
    1-4        SECTION 1.  The Real Estate License Act (Article 6573a,
    1-5  Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) is amended by adding Section 24 to
    1-6  read as follows:
    1-7        Sec. 24.  RESIDENTIAL RENTAL LOCATORS.  (a)  In this section,
    1-8  "residential rental locator" means a person who offers, for
    1-9  compensation, to locate residential real property for lease to a
   1-10  prospective tenant.
   1-11        (b)  A person may not engage in business as a residential
   1-12  rental locator in this state unless the person holds a license
   1-13  issued under this Act to operate as a real estate broker or real
   1-14  estate salesman.
   1-15        (c)  The commission by rule shall adopt regulations and
   1-16  establish standards relating to permissible forms of advertising by
   1-17  a person licensed under this section.
   1-18        (d)  Each residential rental locator shall post in a
   1-19  conspicuous place accessible to clients and prospective clients the
   1-20  locator's license, a statement that the locator is licensed by the
   1-21  commission, and the name, mailing address, and telephone number of
   1-22  the commission as provided by Section 5(q) of this Act.
   1-23        (e)  A violation of this section by a residential rental
   1-24  locator constitutes grounds under this Act for the suspension or
    2-1  revocation of the person's license and for the assessment of an
    2-2  administrative penalty under Section 19A of this Act.
    2-3        (f)  A person commits an offense if the person engages in
    2-4  business as a residential rental locator in this state without a
    2-5  license issued under this Act.  An offense under this subsection is
    2-6  a Class B misdemeanor.
    2-7        SECTION 2.  (a)  The change in law made by Subsection (f),
    2-8  Section 24, The Real Estate License Act (Article 6573a, Vernon's
    2-9  Texas Civil Statutes), as added by this Act, applies only to an
   2-10  offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.  For
   2-11  purposes of this section, an offense is committed before the
   2-12  effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
   2-13  before that date.
   2-14        (b)  An offense committed before the effective date of this
   2-15  Act is governed by the law in effect when the offense was
   2-16  committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
   2-17  purpose.
   2-18        SECTION 3.  The Texas Real Estate Commission shall adopt
   2-19  rules as required by Subsection (c), Section 24, The Real Estate
   2-20  License Act (Article 6573a, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), as
   2-21  added by this Act, not later than December 1, 1995.
   2-22        SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1995.
   2-23        SECTION 5.  The importance of this legislation and the
   2-24  crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
   2-25  emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
   2-26  constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
   2-27  days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.