Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB2238 Compare Versions

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1	1	H.B. No. 2238
2	2
3	3
4	4	AN ACT
5	5	relating to the regulation of manufactured housing.
6	6	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
7	7	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 1201, Occupations Code, is
8	8	amended by adding Section 1201.009 to read as follows:
9	9	Sec. 1201.009. ELECTRONIC MEANS AUTHORIZED. If feasible,
10	10	any action required under this chapter may be accomplished by
11	11	electronic means.
12	12	SECTION 2. Section 1201.058, Occupations Code, is amended
13	13	by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
14	14	(e) If the governor by executive order or proclamation
15	15	declares a state of disaster under Chapter 418, Government Code,
16	16	the director, in accordance with rules adopted by the board, may
17	17	waive the imposition of any fee under this chapter in the affected
18	18	area.
19	19	SECTION 3. Sections 1201.104(c), (e), and (f), Occupations
20	20	Code, are amended to read as follows:
21	21	(c) An applicant for a salesperson's license may apply for a
22	22	license without having completed the course of instruction if
23	23	[provided that] the person successfully completes the [next
24	24	scheduled] course not later than the 90th day [offered] after the
25	25	date of the person's licensure. If the person fails to complete
26	26	such course successfully and in a timely manner, the person's
27	27	license is automatically suspended until the person successfully
28	28	completes the course.
29	29	(e) The board shall adopt rules relating to course content
30	30	and approval. [Classes must be live. Online or other electronic
31	31	classes are not permitted.]
32	32	(f) An applicant for an initial installer's license shall
33	33	receive a license on a provisional [probationary] basis. The
34	34	person's provisional [probationary] status remains [shall remain]
35	35	in effect until [such time as] a sufficient number of installations
36	36	completed by the person have been inspected by the department and
37	37	found not to have any identified material violations of the
38	38	department's rules. The board, with the advice of the advisory
39	39	committee to be established under Section 1201.251, shall adopt
40	40	rules to establish what constitutes a sufficient number of
41	41	installations under this subsection.
42	42	SECTION 4. Section 1201.113(b), Occupations Code, is
43	43	amended to read as follows:
44	44	(b) Completion of [Attendance at] an approved or
45	45	administered continuing education course described by Subsection
46	46	(a) is a prerequisite to renewal of a license.
47	47	SECTION 5. Section 1201.114, Occupations Code, is amended
48	48	to read as follows:
49	49	Sec. 1201.114. LICENSE EXPIRATION[; PROBATIONARY LICENSE].
50	50	[(a)] Any license under this chapter [other than a probationary
51	51	license] is valid for two years. A license may be renewed as
52	52	provided by the director. A person whose license has been suspended
53	53	or revoked or whose license has expired may not engage in activities
54	54	that require a license until the license has been reinstated or
55	55	renewed.
56	56	[(b) If the director determines that a licensed salesperson
57	57	or installer should receive a probationary license, the director
58	58	may issue a probationary license on such terms and for such period
59	59	as are deemed reasonable. The issuance of a license on a
60	60	probationary basis, any one or more of the specific terms of the
61	61	probation, or the period of probation may be appealed before the
62	62	31st day after issuance of the probationary license by written
63	63	notice to the director. If appeal is made, the director shall set
64	64	the matter for a hearing before the State Office of Administrative
65	65	Hearings, and all administrative proceedings relating to the
66	66	issuance of the probationary license shall be deemed to be a
67	67	contested case under Chapter 2001, Government Code. If no appeal is
68	68	made, the probationary license shall be issued and shall remain in
69	69	effect in accordance with the terms specified.]
70	70	SECTION 6. Sections 1201.116(a) and (c), Occupations Code,
71	71	are amended to read as follows:
72	72	(a) The department shall renew a license if the department
73	73	receives the renewal application and payment of the required
74	74	[annual] fee before the expiration date of the license.
75	75	(c) The renewal license expires on the second [first]
76	76	anniversary of the date the license was renewed.
77	77	SECTION 7. Section 1201.204(c), Occupations Code, is
78	78	amended to read as follows:
79	79	(c) After the first retail sale of a manufactured home, the
80	80	retailer must submit the original manufacturer's certificate for
81	81	that home to the department. If an application for an initial
82	82	statement of ownership is made without the required manufacturer's
83	83	certificate and the retailer does not provide it as required, the
84	84	department shall, on or before the issuance of the requested
85	85	statement of ownership and location, send written notice to each
86	86	party currently reflected on the department's records as having a
87	87	recorded lien on the inventory of that retailer with respect to that
88	88	home. Failure to include the original manufacturer's certificate
89	89	with such an application does not impair a consumer's ability to
90	90	obtain, on submittal of an otherwise complete application, a
91	91	statement of ownership and location free and clear of any liens
92	92	other than liens created by or consented to by the consumer.
93	93	SECTION 8. Section 1201.206(g), Occupations Code, is
94	94	amended to read as follows:
95	95	(g) When [the seller files] an application for the issuance
96	96	of a statement of ownership and location for a used manufactured
97	97	home that is not in a retailer's inventory is filed, [the seller
98	98	shall also file with the department] a statement from the tax
99	99	assessor-collector for the taxing unit having power to tax the
100	100	manufactured home shall also be filed with the department. The
101	101	statement from the tax assessor-collector must indicate that there
102	102	are no personal property taxes due on the manufactured home that may
103	103	have accrued on each January 1 that falls within the 18 months
104	104	before the date of the sale.
105	105	SECTION 9. Section 1201.207(c), Occupations Code, is
106	106	amended to read as follows:
107	107	(c) Except with respect to any change in use, servicing of a
108	108	loan on a manufactured home, or change in ownership of a lien on a
109	109	manufactured home, but subject to Section 1201.2075, if the
110	110	department has issued a statement of ownership and location for a
111	111	manufactured home, the department may issue a subsequent statement
112	112	of ownership and location for the home only if all parties reflected
113	113	in the department's records as having an interest in the
114	114	manufactured home give their written consent or release their
115	115	interest, either in writing or by operation of law, or the
116	116	department has followed the procedures provided by Section
117	117	1201.206(k) to document ownership and lien status. Once the
118	118	department issues a statement of ownership and location, the
119	119	department shall not alter the record of the ownership or lien
120	120	status, other than to change the record to accurately reflect the
121	121	proper owner's or lienholder's identity, of a manufactured home for
122	122	any activity occurring before the issuance of the statement of
123	123	ownership and location without either the written permission of the
124	124	owner of record for the manufactured home, their legal
125	125	representative, or a court order.
126	126	SECTION 10. Sections 1201.217(b) and (c), Occupations Code,
127	127	are amended to read as follows:
128	128	(b) Before declaring a manufactured home abandoned, the
129	129	owner of real property on which the home is located must send a
130	130	notice of intent to declare the home abandoned to the record owner
131	131	of the home, all lienholders at the addresses listed on the home's
132	132	statement of ownership and location on file with the department,
133	133	[and] the tax collector for each taxing unit that imposes ad valorem
134	134	taxes on the real property where the home is located, and any
135	135	intervening owners of liens or equitable interests. The notice
136	136	must include the address where the home is currently located. If
137	137	the person giving such notice knows that a [the] person to whom the
138	138	notice is being given no longer resides and is no longer receiving
139	139	mail at a known [such] address, a reasonable effort shall be made to
140	140	locate the person and give the person notice at an address where the
141	141	person is receiving mail. Mailing of the notice by certified mail,
142	142	return receipt requested, postage prepaid, to the persons required
143	143	to be notified by this subsection constitutes conclusive proof of
144	144	compliance with this subsection.
145	145	(c) On receipt of a notice of intent to declare a
146	146	manufactured home abandoned, the record owner of the home, a
147	147	lienholder, [or] a tax assessor-collector for a taxing unit that
148	148	imposes ad valorem taxes on the real property on which the home is
149	149	located, or an intervening owner of a lien or equitable interest may
150	150	enter the real property on which the home is located to remove the
151	151	home. The real property owner must disclose to the record owner,
152	152	lienholder, [or] tax assessor-collector, or intervening owner
153	153	seeking to remove the home the location of the home and grant the
154	154	person reasonable access to the home. A person removing a home is
155	155	responsible to the real property owner for any damage to the real
156	156	property resulting from the removal of the home.
157	157	SECTION 11. Section 1201.219, Occupations Code, is amended
158	158	by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
159	159	follows:
160	160	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (a) and subject to
161	161	Subsection (d), a lien on a manufactured home is perfected only by
162	162	filing with the department the notice of lien on a form provided by
163	163	the department. [The form shall require the disclosure of the
164	164	original dollar amount of the lien and, if a tax lien, the name and
165	165	address of the person in whose name the manufactured home is listed
166	166	on the tax roll.] The department shall disclose on its website the
167	167	date of each lien filing. A[, the original amount of the lien
168	168	claimed by each filing, and the fact that the amount shown does not
169	169	include additional sums including interest, penalties, and
170	170	attorney's fees. The statement required by Section 1201.205(7) is
171	171	notice to all persons that the tax lien exists. Except as expressly
172	172	provided by Chapter 32, Tax Code, a] lien recorded with the
173	173	department has priority, according to the chronological order of
174	174	recordation, over another lien or claim against the manufactured
175	175	home[. Tax liens shall be filed by the tax collector for any taxing
176	176	unit having the power to tax the manufactured home. A single filing
177	177	by a tax collector is a filing for all the taxing units for which the
178	178	tax collector is empowered to collect].
179	179	(d) Except as provided by Subsection (a), a tax lien on a
180	180	manufactured home is perfected only by filing with the department
181	181	the notice of the tax lien on a form provided by the department in
182	182	accordance with the requirements of Chapter 32, Tax Code. The form
183	183	must require the disclosure of the original dollar amount of the tax
184	184	lien and the name and address of the person in whose name the
185	185	manufactured home is listed on the tax roll. The department shall
186	186	disclose on its Internet website the date of each tax lien filing,
187	187	the original amount of the tax lien claimed by each filing, and the
188	188	fact that the amount shown does not include additional sums,
189	189	including interest, penalties, and attorney's fees. The statement
190	190	required by Section 1201.205(7) is notice to all persons that the
191	191	tax lien exists. A tax lien recorded with the department has
192	192	priority over another lien or claim against the manufactured home.
193	193	Tax liens shall be filed by the tax collector for any taxing unit
194	194	having the power to tax the manufactured home. A single filing by a
195	195	tax collector is a filing for all the taxing units for which the tax
196	196	collector is empowered to collect.
197	197	SECTION 12. Section 1201.255(b), Occupations Code, is
198	198	amended to read as follows:
199	199	(b) An installer may not install a used manufactured home at
200	200	a location on a site that has evidence of ponding, runoff under
201	201	heavy rains, or bare uncompacted soil unless the installer first
202	202	obtains the owner's signature on a form promulgated by the board
203	203	disclosing that such conditions may contribute to problems with the
204	204	stabilization system for that manufactured home, including
205	205	possible damage to that home, and the owner accepts that risk.
206	206	SECTION 13. Section 1201.358(c), Occupations Code, is
207	207	amended to read as follows:
208	208	(c) The director may issue an order:
209	209	(1) directing a manufacturer, retailer, or installer
210	210	whose license is not revoked, suspended, or subject to an
211	211	administrative sanction under Section 1201.357(b) and who is not
212	212	out of business to perform the warranty obligation of a
213	213	manufacturer, retailer, or installer whose license is revoked,
214	214	suspended, or subject to an administrative sanction under Section
215	215	1201.357(b) or who is out of business; and
216	216	(2) giving the manufacturer, retailer, or installer
217	217	performing the obligation the right of indemnification against
218	218	another party.
219	219	SECTION 14. Section 1201.404(a), Occupations Code, is
220	220	amended to read as follows:
221	221	(a) Except as otherwise provided by Subchapter C, the trust
222	222	fund shall be paid directly to a consumer or, at the director's
223	223	option, to a third party on behalf of a consumer [used] to
224	224	compensate a consumer who sustains actual damages resulting from an
225	225	unsatisfied claim against a licensed manufacturer, retailer,
226	226	broker, or installer if the unsatisfied claim results from a
227	227	violation of:
228	228	(1) this chapter;
229	229	(2) a rule adopted by the director;
230	230	(3) the National Manufactured Housing Construction
231	231	and Safety Standards Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. Section 5401 et seq.);
232	232	(4) a rule or regulation of the United States
233	233	Department of Housing and Urban Development; or
234	234	(5) Subchapter E, Chapter 17, Business & Commerce
235	235	Code.
236	236	SECTION 15. The following sections of the Occupations Code
237	237	are repealed:
238	238	(1) Section 1201.160;
239	239	(2) Section 1201.2055(b); and
240	240	(3) Section 1201.405(b).
241	241	SECTION 16. (a) Sections 1201.104(c) and (f), Occupations
242	242	Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to a license application
243	243	filed with the executive director of the manufactured housing
244	244	division of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs
245	245	on or after the effective date of this Act. An application filed
246	246	with the executive director of the manufactured housing division of
247	247	the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs before the
248	248	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect
249	249	immediately before that date, and the former law is continued in
250	250	effect for that purpose.
251	251	(b) Sections 1201.113(b) and 1201.116(a) and (c),
252	252	Occupations Code, as amended by this Act, apply only to a license
253	253	that is renewed on or after the effective date of this Act. A
254	254	license that is renewed before the effective date of this Act is
255	255	governed by the law in effect immediately before that date, and the
256	256	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
257	257	(c) Section 1201.206(g), Occupations Code, as amended by
258	258	this Act, applies only to an application for a statement of
259	259	ownership and location filed on or after the effective date of this
260	260	Act. An application for a statement of ownership and location filed
261	261	before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
262	262	effect immediately before that date, and the former law is
263	263	continued in effect for that purpose.
264	264	SECTION 17. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
265	265	______________________________ ______________________________
266	266	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
267	267	I certify that H.B. No. 2238 was passed by the House on April
268	268	9, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 148, Nays 0, 1 present, not
269	269	voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
270	270	No. 2238 on May 8, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 133, Nays 0, 1
271	271	present, not voting.
272	272	______________________________
273	273	Chief Clerk of the House
274	274	I certify that H.B. No. 2238 was passed by the Senate, with
275	275	amendments, on May 5, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
276	276	______________________________
277	277	Secretary of the Senate
278	278	APPROVED: __________________
279	279	Date
280	280	__________________
281	281	Governor