1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the Vehicle Storage Facility Act.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 2, Vehicle Storage Facility Act (Article
1-5 6687-9a, Revised Statutes), is amended by amending Subdivision (6)
1-6 and adding Subdivision (10) to read as follows:
1-7 (6) "Owner of a vehicle" means:
1-8 (A) a person in whose name the vehicle is
1-9 registered under Chapter 501, Transportation Code;
1-10 (B) a person in whose name the vehicle is
1-11 registered under Chapter 502, Transportation Code, or a member of
1-12 the person's immediate family;
1-13 (C) a person who holds the vehicle through a
1-14 valid lease agreement; [or]
1-15 (D) an unrecorded lienholder whose right to
1-16 possess the vehicle exists through a chattel mortgage; or
1-17 (E) a lienholder who holds an affidavit of
1-18 repossession and has the right to repossess the vehicle.
1-19 (10) "Abandoned nuisance vehicle" means a motor
1-20 vehicle that is at least 10 years old and is of a condition only to
1-21 be demolished, wrecked, or dismantled.
1-22 SECTION 2. Section 13, Vehicle Storage Facility Act (Article
1-23 6687-9a, Revised Statutes), is amended by amending Subsections (g)
1-24 and (i) and adding Subsections (k) and (l) to read as follows:
2-1 (g) Notice by publication must contain [all of] the vehicle
2-2 description, the total charges, the full name, street address, and
2-3 telephone number of the facility, and the department registration
2-4 number. No other information is required to be published [by this
2-5 section]. The publication may contain a list of more than one
2-6 vehicle, watercraft, or outboard motor. Only one notice is
2-7 required to be published for an abandoned nuisance vehicle.
2-8 (i) The operator of the storage facility may charge the
2-9 owner of the vehicle a reasonable fee for giving the notice
2-10 required by this section and an additional reasonable fee if the
2-11 notice was required under Subsection (k) of this section.
2-12 (k) If publication is required for the second notice, the
2-13 published notice must contain the vehicle description, the total
2-14 charges, the full name, street address, and telephone number of the
2-15 facility, the department registration number, and a statement that
2-16 failure of the owner or lienholder to claim the vehicle before the
2-17 date of sale is a waiver of all right, title, and interest in the
2-18 vehicle and is consent to the sale of the vehicle at a public sale.
2-19 (l) A vehicle storage facility that holds an abandoned
2-20 nuisance vehicle is not required to send or publish a second notice
2-21 and is entitled to dispose of the vehicle on the 30th day after the
2-22 date the first letter is mailed or notice is published. The
2-23 vehicle storage facility may notify the department that notices
2-24 under Chapter 683, Transportation Code, have been provided and
2-25 shall pay a fee of $10 to the department, or, in the alternative,
2-26 the vehicle storage facility may notify the appropriate law
2-27 enforcement agency and pay a fee of $10 to that agency. The law
3-1 enforcement agency may sign a document issued by the department.
3-2 SECTION 3. Section 14, Vehicle Storage Facility Act (Article
3-3 6687-9a, Revised Statutes), is amended by amending Subsections (a)
3-4 and (c) and adding Subsection (h) to read as follows:
3-5 (a) The operator of a vehicle storage facility may not
3-6 charge an owner more than $32 [$25] for notification under Section
3-7 13 of this article. In addition, if notice by publication is
3-8 required by this Act, and the cost of publication exceeds 50
3-9 percent of the notification fee, the vehicle storage facility may
3-10 recover the additional amount of the cost of publication from the
3-11 vehicle owner or agent.
3-12 (c) The operator of a vehicle storage facility may not
3-13 charge less than $5 or more than $15 for each day or part of a day
3-14 for storage of a vehicle, except that a vehicle storage facility
3-15 shall charge a fee of $30 for each day or part of a day for storage
3-16 of a vehicle that is longer than 25 feet. A daily storage fee may
3-17 be charged for a day regardless of whether the vehicle is stored
3-18 for 24 hours of the day, except that a daily storage fee may not be
3-19 charged for more than one day if the vehicle remains at the vehicle
3-20 storage facility less than 12 hours. For the purposes of this
3-21 subsection, a day is considered to begin and end at midnight.
3-22 (h) Any fee that is required to be submitted to a law
3-23 enforcement agency, the agency's authorized agent, or a
3-24 governmental entity may be collected by the operator of the vehicle
3-25 storage facility in addition to other fees authorized by this
3-26 section.
3-27 SECTION 4. Section 14B, Vehicle Storage Facility Act
4-1 (Article 6687-9a, Revised Statutes), is amended by amending
4-2 Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
4-3 (b) An operator entitled to dispose of a vehicle under this
4-4 section may sell the vehicle at a public sale without being
4-5 required to obtain a release or discharge of any lien on the
4-6 vehicle, regardless of whether notice was provided by mail or by
4-7 publication in accordance with this Act. The proceeds from the
4-8 sale of the vehicle shall be applied to the charges incurred for
4-9 the vehicle under Section 14 of this article. The operator shall
4-10 pay excess proceeds, if any, to the person entitled to them.
4-11 (c) Notwithstanding Subsection (a) of this section, the
4-12 operator of a vehicle storage facility may dispose of a vehicle for
4-13 which notice was given under Section 13 of this article as provided
4-14 by this section if the vehicle is an abandoned nuisance vehicle and
4-15 before the 30th day after the date the notice was sent, the vehicle
4-16 storage facility submits an application to the department for
4-17 disposal of the vehicle.
4-18 SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
_______________________________ _______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2243 was passed by the House on May
1, 2001, by a non-record vote; and that the House concurred in
Senate amendments to H.B. No. 2243 on May 25, 2001, by a non-record
vote.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2243 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 22, 2001, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays
0, 1 present, not voting.
_______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________________
Date
__________________________
Governor