By: Marchant H.B. No. 3417
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the use of power of attorney in certain motor vehicle
title transfers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 501.076, Texas Transportation Code, is
enacted, to read as follows:
Section 501.076. Power of Attorney.
(a) An owner who has a contractual option to transfer
ownership of a vehicle in full or partial satisfaction of the
balance owed on the vehicle, as provided in section 348.123(b)(5)
of the Texas Finance Code, may execute a written power of attorney
that authorizes an agent to complete and sign for the owner, and
provide to the transferee, the form to transfer the title under
section 501.071 and the odometer disclosure under section 501.072
of the Transportation Code, and the other documents necessary to
transfer title.
(b) The owner may execute the power of attorney at the time
the owner enters the contract giving the owner the option to
transfer the vehicle, or at any time after that date. The power of
attorney may only be used if an owner elects to transfer the vehicle
in full or partial satisfaction of the contract, and may not be used
by the holder of the contract as part of the holder's exercise of a
remedy for a default by the owner under the contract.
(c) The person named as the agent in the power of attorney
must meet the following requirements:
(1) the person may be a person who has been appointed
by the Commissioner's Court as a deputy to perform vehicle
registration functions under Texas Transportation Code Sec.
502.112, a licensed vehicle auction company holding a wholesale
General Distinguishing Number under Texas Transportation Code Sec.
503.022, a person who has a permit similar to one of the foregoing
that is issued by the state in which the owner is located, or
another person authorized by law to execute title documents in the
state in which the owner executes the documents; and
(2) the person may not be the transferee, or an
employee of the transferee. The person may not act as the agent of
both the transferor and transferee in the transaction. For the
purposes of this section, a person is not the agent of both the
transferor and transferee in a transaction unless the person has
the authority to sign the documents pertaining to the transfer of
title on behalf of both the transferor and the transferee.
(d) If a power of attorney is used under subsection (a), the
holder of the contract shall accompany the power of attorney with a
written statement that the vehicle was returned at the election of
the owner in full or partial satisfaction of the owner's
obligations under the contract and not as the result of the exercise
by the holder of the contract of its remedies for default.
(e) A written odometer statement may be included on or with
the power of attorney, or may be provided at a later date. If a
written odometer statement is not provided, the agent is authorized
to rely upon physical inspection of the odometer or other
reasonable measures to determine the vehicle mileage and complete
the odometer disclosure for the transfer. If the agent does not
receive a written odometer statement, the holder of the contract or
agent may also, at least twenty days before the transfer of title,
mail to the owner at the owner's address on the title or the last
known address known to the holder of the contract, notification
that the owner is required by law to notify the agent, at an address
specified in the notice, before the expiration of the notice period
if the owner knows that the odometer does not reflect the actual
mileage of the vehicle. Such a notification shall be in bold
letters, underlined or otherwise conspicuous, and may be a separate
statement or included in documents with other information relating
to the potential transfer. If the owner knows that the odometer does
not reflect the actual mileage of the vehicle, the owner shall
notify the agent of that fact within the stated notice period.
(f) This section does not in any way impair or impede any
transfers made through use of a power of attorney prior to the
effective date of this section, and such transfers shall continue
to be valid if they comply with the provisions of this section or
would otherwise comply with the law in effect prior to the effective
date of this section. This section does not apply to powers of
attorney authorized under federal law or regulation that authorize
a transferee to act as the agent of the transferor under certain
circumstances, or to powers of attorney otherwise authorized by the
law of this State. This section does not affect the use of powers of
attorney to sign, complete and deliver the form to transfer title
and other documents necessary to transfer title, including the
odometer disclosure, in title transfers other than those described
in subsection (a).
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.