1-1     By:  Solomons, Heflin (Senate Sponsor - Shapiro)       H.B. No. 468
 1-2           (In the Senate - Received from the House April 25, 2001;
 1-3     April 26, 2001, read first time and referred to Committee on
 1-4     Intergovernmental Relations; May 10, 2001, reported favorably by
 1-5     the following vote:  Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 10, 2001, sent to
 1-6     printer.)
 1-7                            A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-8                                   AN ACT
 1-9     relating to the transportation of and certain ad valorem tax liens
1-10     on manufactured homes; providing a penalty.
1-11           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-12           SECTION 1.  Section 19(d), Texas Manufactured Housing
1-13     Standards Act (Article 5221f, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is
1-14     amended to read as follows:
1-15           (d)  The department may not refuse to issue a document of
1-16     title, and may not suspend or revoke a document of title, unless:
1-17                 (1)  the application contains any false or fraudulent
1-18     statement, the applicant has failed to furnish information required
1-19     by the director, or the applicant is not lawfully entitled to the
1-20     issuance of a document of title;
1-21                 (2)  the director has reasonable basis to believe that
1-22     the manufactured home has been stolen or unlawfully converted, or
1-23     the issuance of a document of title would constitute a fraud
1-24     against the rightful owner or a lienholder;
1-25                 (3)  the director has reasonable basis to believe that
1-26     the manufactured home is "salvaged" as defined in Section 8 of this
1-27     Act and a salvage title has not been applied for;
1-28                 (4)  the required fee has not been paid;
1-29                 (5)  the state sales and use tax has not been paid in
1-30     accordance with the provisions of Chapter 158, Tax Code, and its
1-31     subsequent amendments, and Subsection (j) of this section; or
1-32                 (6)  a local tax lien was [has been] filed before
1-33     September 1, 2001, and recorded pursuant to Section 32.015,
1-34     [Property] Tax Code, as that section existed on the date the lien
1-35     was filed, and that lien has not been extinguished.
1-36           SECTION 2.  Section 32.015, Tax Code, is amended to read as
1-37     follows:
1-38           Sec. 32.015.  [RECORDING] TAX LIEN ON MANUFACTURED HOME. (a)
1-39     [The collector for a taxing unit may file notice of the unit's tax
1-40     lien on a manufactured home with the department if the tax has not
1-41     been paid by January 31 of the year following the year for which
1-42     the tax is imposed. The notice must include:]
1-43                 [(1)  the name and address of the owner of the
1-44     manufactured home; and]
1-45                 [(2)  the amount of tax owed, the tax year for which
1-46     the tax was imposed, and the name of the taxing unit that imposed
1-47     the tax; and]
1-48                 [(3)  the complete identification number or serial
1-49     number of the manufactured home, or the Department of Housing and
1-50     Urban Development label number or state seal number.]
1-51           [(b)  The collector may simultaneously file notice of tax
1-52     liens of all the taxing units served by the collector.  However,
1-53     notice of any lien for taxes for the preceding calendar year must
1-54     be filed with the department before September 1 of the following
1-55     year.  Any lien for which the notice is not filed by that date is
1-56     unenforceable against:]
1-57                 [(1)  a bona fide purchaser for value who is without
1-58     notice or actual knowledge of the lien or the delinquent taxes for
1-59     which the tax lien exists; or]
1-60                 [(2)  the holder of a lien recorded on the manufactured
1-61     home document of title.]
1-62           [(c)  If the complete identification or serial number or the
1-63     Department of Housing and Urban Development label number or state
1-64     seal number of the home on the tax lien notice matches that of a
 2-1     title of record, the department shall record the tax lien on the
 2-2     title records of the manufactured home.  Simultaneously with the
 2-3     recording of a tax lien, the department must mail a notice of the
 2-4     tax lien to any other lienholders of record.]
 2-5           [(d)  The department shall record the tax lien under
 2-6     Subsection (c) even if the person listed as the owner on the
 2-7     department's title records is not the person who owned the
 2-8     manufactured home on the date that the tax was imposed.  Recording
 2-9     of the tax lien does not invalidate a title document or a
2-10     certificate of title for the manufactured home that was previously
2-11     issued by the department.]
2-12           [(e)  For all manufactured homes sold, or to which ownership
2-13     is transferred, after December 31, 1985, the recording of a tax
2-14     lien under this section constitutes constructive notice of the
2-15     existence of the tax lien to all purchasers of the manufactured
2-16     home who purchase it after the date of recordation of the lien and
2-17     before a tax certificate or paid tax receipt is filed pursuant to
2-18     Subsection (g).]
2-19           [(f)  When the ownership of a manufactured home is
2-20     transferred, the subsequent owner and the lienholder of the home is
2-21     considered to have notice of the ad valorem taxes imposed on the
2-22     home for the current tax year or for the previous tax year if the
2-23     time for filing a notice of a tax lien under Subsection (b) has not
2-24     expired.]
2-25           [(g)]  On payment of the taxes, penalties, and interest for a
2-26     year for which a valid tax lien filed before September 1, 2001, has
2-27     been recorded on the title records of the department, the collector
2-28     for the taxing unit shall issue a tax certificate showing no taxes
2-29     due or a tax paid receipt for such year to the person making
2-30     payment.  When the tax certificate showing no taxes due or tax paid
2-31     receipt is filed with the department, the tax lien is extinguished
2-32     and canceled and shall be removed from the title records of the
2-33     manufactured home.  The collector for a taxing unit may not refuse
2-34     to issue a tax paid receipt to the person who offers to pay the
2-35     taxes, penalties, and interest for a particular year or years, even
2-36     though taxes may also be due for another year or other years.
2-37           (b) [(h)  If a manufactured home for which a notice of a tax
2-38     lien is timely filed does not have a title recorded on the records
2-39     of the department, the tax lien is not extinguished and is
2-40     enforceable.]
2-41           [(i)]  In this section, "department[,]" ["label," "seal,"]
2-42     and "manufactured home" have the meanings assigned by Section 3,
2-43     Texas Manufactured Housing Standards Act (Article 5221f, Vernon's
2-44     Texas Civil Statutes);  however, the term "manufactured home" does
2-45     not include a manufactured home that has been attached to real
2-46     property and for which the document of title has been canceled
2-47     under Section 19(l) of that Act.
2-48           SECTION 3.  Section 32.03, Tax Code, is amended by amending
2-49     Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (c)-(i) to read as follows:
2-50           (b)  A bona fide purchaser for value or the holder of a lien
2-51     recorded on the manufactured home document of title is not required
2-52     to pay any taxes imposed in a tax year that begins before January
2-53     1, 2001, or[,] penalties[,] or interest on those taxes except for
2-54     each year [those years] for which a valid tax lien was [has been]
2-55     duly filed and recorded under Section 32.015, as that section
2-56     existed on the date the lien was filed, [of this code] and each
2-57     year [those years] for which the owner of the manufactured home had
2-58     [has] constructive notice of the taxes under Section 32.015(e), as
2-59     that section existed before September 1, 2001 [of this code].  The
2-60     effect and priority of a tax lien that attaches to secure the
2-61     payment of taxes imposed on a manufactured home in a tax year that
2-62     begins on or after January 1, 2001, are those established by
2-63     Sections 32.01 and 32.05.  In this section, "manufactured home" has
2-64     the meaning assigned by Section 32.015(b) [32.015(i) of this code].
2-65           (c)  A bona fide purchaser for value or the holder of a lien
2-66     recorded on a manufactured home document of title is not required
2-67     to pay any taxes imposed on the manufactured home in a tax year
2-68     that begins on or after January 1, 2001, or penalties or interest
2-69     on those taxes, if the chief appraiser of the appraisal district
 3-1     established for the county in which the manufactured home is
 3-2     located, in connection with an application for a permit to
 3-3     transport the manufactured home under Section 623.093(d),
 3-4     Transportation Code, has issued a written statement that no unpaid
 3-5     taxes have been reported on the manufactured home due any taxing
 3-6     unit for which the appraisal district appraises property.
 3-7           (d)  On request of any person, a chief appraiser shall issue
 3-8     a written statement as to whether the chief appraiser has received
 3-9     notice of any taxes on a manufactured home located in the appraisal
3-10     district due any taxing unit for which the appraisal district
3-11     appraises property.  A request for the issuance of a statement by
3-12     the chief appraiser under this subsection must:
3-13                 (1)  be in writing and signed by the person requesting
3-14     the statement;
3-15                 (2)  identify the location of the manufactured home
3-16     sufficiently for the chief appraiser to determine whether the
3-17     manufactured home is listed on the current appraisal roll; and
3-18                 (3)  specify the address where the chief appraiser
3-19     should send the statement.
3-20           (e)  On receipt of a request under Subsection (d), the chief
3-21     appraiser shall send to the collector for each taxing unit in which
3-22     the manufactured home is located a request for information whether
3-23     any taxes on the manufactured home are due that taxing unit.  The
3-24     chief appraiser shall specify the date by which the collector must
3-25     respond to the chief appraiser.
3-26           (f)  Not later than the fifth business day after the date the
3-27     chief appraiser receives a request for a statement under Subsection
3-28     (d), the chief appraiser shall issue the statement described by
3-29     Subsection (d).  In issuing the statement, a chief appraiser may
3-30     rely on a tax certificate, a written statement by the collector, a
3-31     tax bill, or a reproduction of a tax bill provided by the collector
3-32     for a taxing unit.
3-33           (g)  If the chief appraiser receives the appropriate
3-34     information from the collector for a taxing unit indicating that
3-35     there are unpaid taxes due that taxing unit on the manufactured
3-36     home, the chief appraiser shall include in the statement issued
3-37     under Subsection (d) the amount of taxes due that taxing unit and
3-38     the name and address of the collector for that taxing unit.  If the
3-39     chief appraiser does not receive information from the collector for
3-40     any taxing unit to which the chief appraiser sent a request under
3-41     Subsection (e) before the chief appraiser issues the statement
3-42     required by Subsection (d), the chief appraiser shall state in the
3-43     written statement that the chief appraiser has not received notice
3-44     of any taxes on the manufactured home due the taxing units for
3-45     which the appraisal district appraises property.
3-46           (h)  To cover the costs to the appraisal district associated
3-47     with the issuance of written statements under this section, a chief
3-48     appraiser may charge the person requesting a statement a fee not to
3-49     exceed $10 for each statement requested.
3-50           (i)  A chief appraiser and a county assessor-collector may
3-51     enter into a contract that authorizes the assessor-collector to
3-52     issue written statements requested under this section.  If a chief
3-53     appraiser and a county assessor-collector enter into such a
3-54     contract, a reference in this section to the chief appraiser means
3-55     the county assessor-collector.
3-56           SECTION 4.  Sections 623.093(d), (e), and (f), Transportation
3-57     Code, are amended to read as follows:
3-58           (d)  In this subsection, "consumer," "manufacturer," and
3-59     "retailer" have the meanings assigned by the Texas Manufactured
3-60     Housing Standards Act (Article 5221f, Vernon's Texas Civil
3-61     Statutes).  If the application is for a permit to transport a
3-62     manufactured house from a location other than the location of the
3-63     manufacturer or from the location of the retailer of the
3-64     manufactured house pursuant to the original sale, exchange, or
3-65     lease-purchase of the manufactured house to a consumer, the
3-66     application for a permit must be accompanied by a written statement
3-67     from the chief appraiser of the appraisal district established for
3-68     the county in which the manufactured house is located that states
3-69     that no unpaid ad valorem taxes have been reported on the
 4-1     manufactured house due any taxing unit for which the appraisal
 4-2     district appraises property.  If the manufactured house is not
 4-3     listed on the most recent appraisal roll of the appraisal district
 4-4     established for the county  in which the manufactured house is
 4-5     located, the application for the permit must be accompanied by:
 4-6                 (1)  evidence showing that the manufactured house was
 4-7     moved into the county after January 1 of the current year; or
 4-8                 (2)  a certificate from the appraisal district
 4-9     established for the county in which the manufactured house is
4-10     located that states that the owner of the manufactured house or
4-11     another person has provided that appraisal district with
4-12     information sufficient to list the manufactured house in the
4-13     supplemental appraisal records of that appraisal district. [If the
4-14     manufactured home is being moved from or to a site in this state
4-15     where it has been, or will be, occupied as a dwelling, the permit
4-16     must also show:]
4-17                 [(1)  the complete serial or identification number;]
4-18                 [(2)  the HUD label or state seal number;]
4-19                 [(3)  the name of the owner of the home; and]
4-20                 [(4)  the location from which the home is being moved
4-21     and the location to which the home is being delivered.]
4-22           (e)  [If the permit shows the additional information required
4-23     by Subsection (d), the department shall send on a quarterly basis a
4-24     copy of the permit, or furnish the essential information in the
4-25     permit, to the tax assessor-collector and the chief appraiser of
4-26     the appraisal district for each county in which the movement begins
4-27     or ends.]
4-28           [(f)]  Each quarter the department shall send a copy of each
4-29     permit for the transportation of a manufactured house that begins
4-30     or ends in this state, or provide the essential information in the
4-31     permit, to the chief appraiser of the appraisal district in each
4-32     county in which the transportation begins or ends.
4-33           (f)  If an application for a permit to move a manufactured
4-34     house is accompanied by a copy of a writ of possession issued by a
4-35     court of competent jurisdiction, the applicant is not required to
4-36     submit the written statement from the chief appraiser set forth in
4-37     Subsection (d).
4-38           SECTION 5. Section 623.104, Transportation Code, is amended
4-39     by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
4-40     follows:
4-41           (a)  A person commits an offense if the person violates this
4-42     subchapter.  An offense under this subsection is a Class C
4-43     misdemeanor, except as provided by Subsection (d).
4-44           (d)  If the offense involves the movement of a manufactured
4-45     house over a highway, road, or street in this state without a
4-46     permit issued by the department, the offense is a misdemeanor
4-47     punishable by a fine of $500.
4-48           SECTION 6.  (a)  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
4-49           (b)  The changes in law made by this Act to Section 623.093,
4-50     Transportation Code, apply only to an application for a permit
4-51     under that section that is filed on or after September 1, 2001.  An
4-52     application for a permit under Section 623.093, Transportation
4-53     Code, that was filed before September 1, 2001, is governed by the
4-54     law in effect on the date the application was filed, and the former
4-55     law is continued in effect for that purpose.
4-56           (c)  The changes in law made by this Act to Section 623.104,
4-57     Transportation Code, apply only to an offense committed under that
4-58     section on or after September 1, 2001.  An offense under Section
4-59     623.104, Transportation Code, committed before September 1, 2001,
4-60     is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was
4-61     committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
4-62     purpose.  For purposes of this subsection, an offense was committed
4-63     before September 1, 2001, if any element of the offense occurred
4-64     before that date.
4-65                                  * * * * *