TWT C.S.H.B. 1137 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS TRANSPORTATION C.S.H.B. 1137 By: Uher 2-28-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND Due to the frequency of turnover in ownership of financial institutions, many lien records are moved from institution to institution and are, therefore, difficult to locate. Thus, current law demands that a motor vehicle lienholder pay to have the lien added to the Texas Department of Transportation's (TXDOT) records. Upon the demand of the owner, the lienholder discharges the retired lien and forwards the title to the owner. However, the TXDOT records continue to reflect the lien until a records management fee is paid by the owner. Thus, the records are not as accurate as possible. PURPOSE C.S.H.B. 1137 would facilitate the orderly and timely transfer of a title to a motor vehicle when a lien against the motor vehicle has been discharged. It does that by regulating the time for release of the lien by the lienholder when the lien has been discharged and by providing for the situation when the lienholder fails to release the lien in a timely fashion. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Sec. 501.115 (a), Transportation Code, to provide that within a reasonable time not to exceed 21 days after receipt of the final payment due under a note secured by a lien on a motor vehicle, the lienholder must execute and deliver to the owner or owner's designee a discharge of the lien. SECTION 2. Amends Sec. 501.152, Transportation Code, to provide that an owner is exempt from penalties if the title is in possession of the lienholder. SECTION 3. Amends Sec. 503.063, Transportation Code, by providing exceptions in Subsections (a) and (b). Adds Subsection (f) which allows a seller to issue and additional temporary tag in the occurrence that the prior lienholder has failed to comply with the provisions of Transportation Code Sec. 501.115 (a). The tag is good for 21 days. SECTION 4. Emergency Clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE SECTION 1. The substitute adds a 21-day time limit by which a lienholder must execute and deliver a discharge of a lien to the owner or owner's designee. SECTIONS 2 and 3 of the substitute are entirely new and were not included in the original.