TWT H.B. 1464 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS TRANSPORTATION H.B. 1464 By: Bosse 3-23-97 Committee Report (Unamended) BACKGROUND Vehicle Storage Facilities (VSF) report difficulty in disposing of abandoned vehicles, particularly with the notification of owners and lienholders. Currently, one notice is sent to owners and lienholders by a VSF and a second notice is supposed to be sent by the police department. VSFs send a $5 fee to the police department to pay the cost of sending a second notice, but the notice does not always get sent by the police. No matter how many notices could be sent out, some vehicles are simply not picked up. In many cases these are old, dilapidated vehicles in which owners and lienholders ignore a request for release of lien, and VSFs are stranded with no legal means of disposing of these vehicles. PURPOSE The purpose of this bill is to expedite the disposal of abandoned vehicles by improving the abandoned vehicle notification process and by allowing VSFs to auction off vehicles at a public sale. This bill adds a second notice to the process before a VSF may dispose of a vehicle. 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 Section 13, Vehicle Storage Facility Act (Article 6687-9a, Revised Statutes), by adding Subsection (d) which allows a vehicle storage facility (VSF) to send a second notice to the registered owner or primary lienholder if a vehicle has not been claimed by the 61st day after the date the first notice was mailed. The second notice must contain information required under Subsection (b) of this section and a statement that informs the owner or lienholder that the facility has the right to dispose of the vehicle. SECTION 2. Amends The Vehicle Storage Facility Act (Article 6687-9a, Revised Statutes), by adding Section 14B. DISPOSAL OF CERTAIN ABANDONED VEHICLES. (a) Allows a VSF to dispose of a vehicle for which notice was sent under Section 13(d) of this Act before the 30th day after the notice was mailed and the vehicle has not been: (1) claimed by the owner or lienholder, or (2) taken into custody by a law enforcement agency under Chapter 683, Transportation Code. (b) Entitles the VSF to sell the vehicle under section at a public sale without being required to obtain a release or discharge of any lien on the vehicle. Proceeds gained from this sale shall be applied to charges incurred for the vehicle under Section 14 of this Act. The operator shall pay excess proceeds to the person entitled to them. SECTION 3: Effective Date -- September 1, 1997. Applies to a vehicle stored or parked at a VSF on or after that date. SECTION 4: Emergency Clause.