1-1 By: Goolsby (Senate Sponsor - Carona) H.B. No. 2185 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 21, 1997; 1-3 April 23, 1997, read first time and referred to Committee on 1-4 Intergovernmental Relations; April 29, 1997, reported adversely, 1-5 with favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 1-6 10, Nays 0; April 29, 1997, sent to printer.) 1-7 COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 2185 By: Carona 1-8 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-9 AN ACT 1-10 relating to the collection of certain warrants or checks issued by 1-11 a county treasurer. 1-12 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-13 SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 116, Local Government Code, 1-14 is amended by adding Section 116.120 to read as follows: 1-15 Sec. 116.120. COLLECTION OF CERTAIN OVERDUE COUNTY WARRANTS 1-16 OR CHECKS. (a) This section applies only to a warrant or check 1-17 issued by a county treasurer in settlement of a claim against a 1-18 county that has not been presented for payment. 1-19 (b) A person attempting to recover funds from the county for 1-20 a check or warrant issued by the county treasurer may not charge 1-21 the person to whom the check or warrant was issued and on whose 1-22 behalf the attempted recovery is made, or that person's successors 1-23 or assigns, a fee in an amount equal to more than 10 percent of the 1-24 face value of the check or warrant. 1-25 (c) A county treasurer may collect a reasonable research fee 1-26 to determine if a claim submitted under this section is valid. The 1-27 treasurer may include the costs of inquiries to depository banks, 1-28 research of accounting records, and other similar actions in 1-29 setting the fee. A county treasurer may require the fee to be paid 1-30 before a claim may be processed or researched under this section. 1-31 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997, and 1-32 applies only to a contract for the collection of an overdue county 1-33 check or warrant made on or after that date. A contract for the 1-34 collection of an overdue county check or warrant made before the 1-35 effective date of this Act is governed by the law as it existed 1-36 immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is 1-37 continued in effect for that purpose. 1-38 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 1-39 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 1-40 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 1-41 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 1-42 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended. 1-43 * * * * *