79R5361 HLT-F
By: West, Royce S.B. No. 1357
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to disclosure of home mortgage purchases by certain
enterprises; providing an administrative penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subtitle B, Title 4, Finance Code, is amended by
adding Chapter 350 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 350. DISCLOSURE OF HOME MORTGAGE PURCHASES BY CERTAIN
ENTERPRISES
Sec. 350.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Mortgage" means a debt secured by a first lien on
a manufactured home or residential real property designed
principally for occupancy by one to four families that is created by
a deed of trust, security deed, or other security instrument.
(2) "Public use database" means the
government-sponsored enterprises database containing information
on mortgage loans purchased by the Federal National Mortgage
Association or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation that the
Department of Housing and Urban Development makes available to the
public under 12 U.S.C. Section 4543.
(3) "Regulations" means the regulations under 12
C.F.R. Part 203 issued by the Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System to implement the home mortgage disclosure
requirements of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975 (12 U.S.C.
Section 2801 et seq.).
Sec. 350.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter only applies to
an enterprise as defined by 12 U.S.C. Section 4502.
Sec. 350.003. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. (a) An enterprise
shall submit to the finance commission not later than March 1 of
each year a report containing information on mortgages:
(1) secured by property located in this state;
(2) purchased by the enterprise during the previous
calendar year; and
(3) required to be included in the public use database
for the corresponding year.
(b) The enterprise shall include in the report, for each
mortgage described by Subsection (a):
(1) the mortgage data that must be reported by a
financial institution under the regulations in effect during the
previous year, other than data that the finance commission
determines by rule is not relevant to the purposes of this chapter;
and
(2) any additional information included on the public
use database that the finance commission has determined by rule is
not redundant to the items required to be provided under
Subdivision (1).
(c) Any report provided under Subsection (a) must include
the name or identification number of the mortgage financing
institution that sells a mortgage to an enterprise.
Sec. 350.004. EXEMPTIONS FROM REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. (a)
The finance commission may adopt rules to exempt an enterprise from
reporting information required by Section 350.003(b) on the grounds
that the required information cannot be obtained by the enterprise.
(b) Before adopting a rule under Subsection (a), the finance
commission shall consider:
(1) the strong bargaining position of the enterprise
in its dealings with loan sellers;
(2) the prior experience of the enterprise in
obtaining mortgage information from sellers; and
(3) the best practices within the mortgage financing
industry of collecting and transferring mortgage information.
(c) The finance commission shall periodically review any
exemption granted to an enterprise. The finance commission shall
adopt a policy to apply an exemption only if the enterprise cannot
obtain mortgage information even after following the best practices
of collecting and transferring mortgage information.
Sec. 350.005. AVAILABILITY OF REPORT. The finance
commission shall make the report submitted under Section 350.003
available to:
(1) the Texas Workforce Commission civil rights
division for purposes of monitoring and promoting equal credit
opportunity, fair lending, and fair housing; and
(2) the public at the cost of reproducing the report.
Sec. 350.006. ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY. (a) The commission
may impose an administrative penalty on an enterprise that fails to
file a report as required by Section 350.003.
(b) The amount of the penalty may not exceed $5,000 and each
day a violation continues or occurs is a separate violation for the
purpose of imposing a penalty. The amount shall be based on:
(1) the seriousness of the violation, including the
nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation;
(2) the history of previous violations;
(3) the amount necessary to deter a future violation;
(4) efforts to correct the violation; and
(5) any other matter that justice may require.
(c) The enforcement of the penalty may be stayed during the
time the order is under judicial review if the person pays the
penalty to the clerk of the court or files a supersedeas bond with
the court in the amount of the penalty. A person who cannot afford
to pay the penalty or file the bond may stay the enforcement by
filing an affidavit in the manner required by the Texas Rules of
Civil Procedure for a party who cannot afford to file security for
costs, subject to the right of the finance commission to contest the
affidavit as provided by those rules.
SECTION 2. An enterprise shall file the first report with
the Finance Commission of Texas as required by Section 350.003,
Finance Code, as added by this Act, not later than March 1, 2006.
The first report must contain information on mortgages purchased by
the enterprise during the 2005 calendar year.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2005.