HBA-ATS H.B. 896 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 896 By: Haggerty Business & Industry 3/3/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Current law requires a landlord of a rental dwelling unit to change the locks on any outside doors, sliding doors, and windows by the seventh day after the date a new tenant moves into a leased dwelling (after all previous tenants have moved out). Although this requirement was meant to provide new tenants with a sense of security by assuring them that not everyone who received a key from a former tenant had access to the dwelling, the statute may be read as not requiring a landlord to change the locks of a dwelling occupied by a person without a lease. This is because a "tenant" is defined by statute as a person who is authorized by a lease to occupy a dwelling to the exclusion of others and who is obligated under the lease to pay rent. The definition does not encompass occupants of a dwelling who are not party to a lease. H.B. 896 redefines "tenant turnover date" to mean the date a new tenant moves into a dwelling under a lease after all previous occupants, rather than tenants, have moved out. As amended, the law requires a landlord of a rental dwelling unit to change the locks on any outside doors, sliding doors, and windows by the seventh day after the date a new tenant moves into a leased dwelling after all previous occupants have moved out. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Subdivision (15), Section 92.151, Property Code, to redefine "tenant turnover date" to mean the date a new tenant moves into a dwelling under a lease after all previous occupants, rather than tenants, have moved out. SECTION 2. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 3. Emergency clause.