BILL ANALYSIS
By: Chisum
Committee Report (Substituted)
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
The Department of Public Safety maintains driving records for persons licensed to drive by the State of Texas and updates this information as violation convictions or driver license suspensions or revocations occur. The driving record is a critical element in helping employers and insurance companies understand the driving habits of their employees and customers. In 30 other states, employers and insurance companies have the option of subscribing to services that compare their employee or policyholder databases to a state’s records database. The timely access of the record is of paramount interest to a safe motoring public and helps contribute to public safety. Although this monitoring enhances the value of driver data, the Department does not believe it is authorized to provide such information other than as part of a three-year driving record.
This bill enables the Department to enhance its existing provision of driver information to employers, insurers, insurance support organizations, employer support organizations, and self-insured entities by granting the Department the authority to establish a driver record monitoring pilot program for the proactive monitoring of driving records.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is expressly granted to the Texas Department of Public Safety in SECTION 1 of this bill.
ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter C, Chapter 521, Transportation Code by adding Section 521.060 as follows:
Sec. 521.060 DRIVER RECORD MONITORING PILOT PROGRAM. (a) Permits the Department of Public Safety by rule to establish a driver record monitoring pilot program for a term of not more than one year.
(b) Permits the Department to enter into a contract with an employer, an insurer, an insurance support organization, an employer support organization, or an entity that self-insures its motor vehicles to provide eligible information from the driving record information maintained by the Department. Specifies that the contract must be with a person who can receive information under Chapter 730.
(c) Requires the Department under the terms of the contract to monitor the driver record of each holder of a driver’s license requested by the person with whom the Department has contracted, identify any change in the status of the driver’s license during the monitoring period, and periodically provide reports of those changes to the person with whom the Department has contracted. Requires that the person with whom the Department has contracted to purchase a copy of the driver record of each individual who has had a change in status or conviction, warrant that the person will not directly or indirectly disclose information received from the Department under the contract to a third party without express written consent or if required by law or legal process, immediately notify the Department, and if the person under contract is an insurance support organization, warrant that the person will not seek to obtain information about a holder of a driver's license under the contract unless the license holder is insured by a client of the organization and that the person will provide the department with the name of each client to whom the insurance support organization provides information.
(d) Permits the attorney general to file a suit against a person under contract for injunctive relief or a civil penalty not to exceed $2,000 for each disclosure that violates the terms of the contract.
(e) Provides that attorney general is entitled to reasonable expenses, court costs, investigative costs, and attorneys fees when an injunction or penalty is ordered. Specifies that each day a violation continues or occurs is a separate violation.
(f) Establishes that a violation of the terms of a contract entered into with the Department by the person with whom the Department has contracted is a false, misleading, or deceptive act or practice under Subchapter E, Chapter 17, Business & Commerce Code.
(g) Specifies that civil actions will be filed in a district court in Travis county or the county where the violation occurred.
(h) Establishes that a person with whom the department has contracted under this section has committed an offense if the person directly or indirectly discloses information received under the contract in a manner that violates the contract. Specifies that this violation will be a Class B misdemeanor. Provides that conduct constituting an offense under this subsection and an offense under another law may be prosecuted under this subsection, the other law, or both.
(i) Requires the Department to impose a fee for the services provided under the contract to be reasonable and not be less than the amount necessary to allow the Department to recover all reasonable costs associated with entering into the contract.
(j) Permits the Department to establish a reasonable deadline by which a person must apply to enter into a contract.
(k) Provides that to the fullest extent practical that the services of the Department under a contract shall be provided by, through, or in conjunction with the interactive system established under Section 521.055.
(l) Permits the Public Safety Commission to authorize the Department to implement the pilot program as a permanent program.
(m) Requires that the Department submit a report analyzing the pilot program to the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and each member of the legislature before recommending the pilot program become permanent. Specifies that the report must include a list of each insurance support organization with whom the department has contracted and a list of each client to whom the insurance support organization has provided information received from the Department.
SECTION 2. Effective Date.
EFFECTIVE DATE
Upon passage, or, if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2007.
COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE
Like SECTION 1 of the original bill, SECTION 1 of the substitute bill adds Sec. 521.060 to Subchapter C, Chapter 521, Transportation Code. However, the substitute bill differs from the original bill in that the substitute bill adds language to the original subsection (c), adds new subsections (d) – (h), renumbers original bill subsections (d)-(g) as subsections (i) – (l), and adds subsection (m).
The original bill adds subsection (c) as follows:
(c) Requires the Department under the terms of the contract to monitor the driver record of each holder of a driver’s license requested by the person with whom the Department has contracted, identify any change in the status of the driver’s license, and periodically provide reports of those changes to the person with whom the Department has contracted. Requires that the person with whom the Department has contracted purchase a copy of the driver record of those identified in a report as having a change in status or conviction.
The substitute bill adds subsection (c) as follows:
(c) Requires the Department under the terms of the contract to monitor the driver record of each holder of a driver’s license requested by the person with whom the Department has contracted, identify any change in the status of the driver’s license during the monitoring period, and periodically provide reports of those changes to the person with whom the Department has contracted. Requires that the person with whom the Department has contracted to purchase a copy of the driver record of each individual who has had a change in status or conviction, warrant that the person will not directly or indirectly disclose information received from the Department under the contract to a third party without express written consent or if required by law or legal process, immediately notify the Department, and if the person under contract is an insurance support organization, warrant that the person will not seek to obtain information about a holder of a driver's license under the contract unless the license holder is insured by a client of the organization and that the person will provide the department with the name of each client to whom the insurance support organization provides information.
The substitute bill adds a new subsection (d) as follows and renumbers the original bill subsection (d) as subsection (i):
(d) Permits the attorney general to file a suit against a person under contract for injunctive relief or a civil penalty not to exceed $2,000 for each disclosure that violates the terms of the contract.
The substitute bill adds a new subsection (e) as follows and renumbers the original bill subsection (e) as subsection (j):
(e) Provides that attorney general is entitled to reasonable expenses, court costs, investigative costs, and attorneys fees when an injunction or penalty is ordered. Specifies that each day a violation continues or occurs is a separate violation.
The substitute bill adds a new subsection (f) as follows and renumbers the original bill subsection (f) as subsection (k):
(f) Establishes that a violation of the terms of a contract entered into with the Department by the person with whom the Department has contracted is a false, misleading, or deceptive act or practice under Subchapter E, Chapter 17, Business & Commerce Code.
The substitute bill adds a new subsection (g) as follows and renumbers the original bill subsection (g) as subsection (l):
(g) Specifies that civil actions will be filed in a district court in Travis county or the county where the violation occurred.
The substitute bill adds a new subsection (h) as follows:
(h) Establishes that a person with whom the department has contracted under this section has committed an offense if the person directly or indirectly discloses information received under the contract in a manner that violates the contract. Specifies that this violation will be a Class B misdemeanor. Provides that conduct constituting an offense under this subsection and an offense under another law may be prosecuted under this subsection, the other law, or both.
The substitute bill adds subsection (m) as follows:
(m) Requires that the Department submit a report analyzing the pilot program to the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house of representatives, and each member of the legislature before recommending the pilot program become permanent. Specifies that the report must include a list of each insurance support organization with whom the department has contracted and a list of each client to whom the insurance support organization has provided information received from the Department.