1-1     By:  Uher (Senate Sponsor - Brown)                    H.B. No. 1137

 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 17, 1997;

 1-3     April 18, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on State

 1-4     Affairs; May 1, 1997, reported favorably by the following vote:

 1-5     Yeas 13, Nays 0; May 1, 1997, sent to printer.)

 1-6                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-7                                   AN ACT

 1-8     relating to the discharge of a lien on a motor vehicle and the

 1-9     subsequent sale of or issuance of temporary tags for the vehicle.

1-10           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

1-11           SECTION 1.  Section 501.115(a), Transportation Code, is

1-12     amended to read as follows:

1-13           (a)  When a [If the] debt or claim secured by a lien has been

1-14     satisfied, the lienholder[, on the demand of the owner,] shall,

1-15     within a reasonable time not to exceed 21 days from receipt of the

1-16     final payment, execute and deliver to the owner, or the owner's

1-17     designee, a discharge of the lien on a form prescribed by the

1-18     department.

1-19           SECTION 2.  Section 501.152, Transportation Code, is amended

1-20     to read as follows:

1-21           Sec. 501.152.  Sale or Offer Without Title Receipt or Title.

1-22     (a)  Except as provided by this section, a [A] person commits an

1-23     offense if the person:

1-24                 (1)  sells, offers to sell, or offers as security for

1-25     an obligation a motor vehicle registered in this state; and

1-26                 (2)  does not possess the title receipt or certificate

1-27     of title for the vehicle.

1-28           (b)  It is not a violation of this section for the beneficial

1-29     owner of a vehicle to sell or offer to sell a vehicle without

1-30     having possession of the certificate of title to the vehicle if the

1-31     sole reason he or she does not have possession of the certificate

1-32     of title is that the title is in the possession of a lienholder who

1-33     has not complied with the terms of Section 501.115(a) of this code.

1-34           SECTION 3.  Section 503.063, Transportation Code, is amended

1-35     by amending Subsections (a) and (b) and by adding Subsection (f) to

1-36     read as follows:

1-37           (a)  Except as provided by this section, a [A] dealer may

1-38     issue to a person who buys an unregistered vehicle one temporary

1-39     cardboard buyer's tag for the vehicle.

1-40           (b)  Except as provided by this section, the [The] buyer's

1-41     tag is valid for the operation of the vehicle until the earlier of:

1-42                 (1)  the date on which the vehicle is registered; or

1-43                 (2)  the 21st day after the date of purchase.

1-44           (f)  A dealer may issue an additional temporary cardboard

1-45     buyer's tag to a person after the expiration of 21 days after the

1-46     issue of a temporary cardboard buyer's tag, and the person may

1-47     operate the vehicle for which the tag was issued on the additional

1-48     temporary cardboard buyer's tag if the dealer has been unable to

1-49     obtain on behalf of the vehicle's owner the necessary documents to

1-50     obtain permanent metal license plates because the documents are in

1-51     the possession of a lienholder who has not complied with the terms

1-52     of Section 501.115(a) of this code.  An additional tag issued under

1-53     the terms of this subsection is valid for a maximum of 21 days

1-54     after the date of issue.

1-55           SECTION 4.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-56     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-57     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-58     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-59     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,

1-60     and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its

1-61     passage, and it is so enacted.

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