By Harris                                             S.B. No. 1155

         Substitute the following for S.B. No. 1155:

         By Averitt                                        C.S.S.B. No. 1155

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to business practices in the writing of title insurance.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Article 9.01, Insurance Code, is amended to read

 1-5     as follows:

 1-6         Art. 9.01.  Short Title and Legislative Purpose and Intent

 1-7           A.  This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Texas

 1-8     Title Insurance Act."

 1-9           B.  The Legislature of the State of Texas finds that the

1-10     business of title insurance, both the direct issuance of policies

1-11     and the reinsurance of any assumed risks, of every type, shall in

1-12     all respects be totally regulated by the State of Texas so as to

1-13     provide for the protection of every consumer and purchaser of a

1-14     title insurance policy and to provide for adequate and reasonable

1-15     rates of return for title insurance companies and title insurance

1-16     agents.  It is the express legislative intent that this Chapter 9

1-17     accomplish such a result.

1-18           C.  In addition to any other licensing requirements under

1-19     this chapter, no license or renewal of license shall be granted to

1-20     any person, firm, association or corporation as a title agent or

1-21     direct operation unless it is found by the Commissioner that such

1-22     person, firm, association, or corporation is, or intends to be,

1-23     actively engaged in the business of title insurance.  The

1-24     Commissioner is authorized and required to comprehensively regulate

 2-1     the business of title insurance, including the practice of

 2-2     rebating, by rulemaking, reporting requirements or otherwise.

 2-3     Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the Commissioner

 2-4     shall adopt rules to implement this chapter.

 2-5           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

 2-6           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

 2-7     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-8     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-9     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

2-10     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.