82R15977 MAW-F
By: Solomons H.B. No. 2490
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2490:
By: Aliseda C.S.H.B. No. 2490
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the regulation of certain metal dealers; providing
criminal penalties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 1956.001(8), Occupations Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(8) "Personal identification document" means:
(A) a valid driver's license issued by a state in
the United States;
(B) a United States military identification
card; [or]
(C) a personal identification certificate issued
by the department under Section 521.101, Transportation Code, or a
corresponding card or certificate issued by another state;
(D) a passport; or
(E) documentation issued by the United States
agency responsible for citizenship and immigration that authorizes
the person to be in the United States.
SECTION 2. Section 1956.051, Occupations Code, is amended
by amending Subdivisions (1) and (2) and adding Subdivisions (1-a)
and (3-a) to read as follows:
(1) "Commissioner" means the consumer credit
commissioner.
(1-a) "Crafted precious metal" means an object, or
part of an object, made wholly or partly from precious metal. The
term includes jewelry, silverware, an art object, a bar, a wafer, a
[or another object, other than a] coin, or a commemorative
medallion[, made in whole or in part from precious metal].
(2) "Dealer" means a person licensed to engage [who
engages] in the business of purchasing and selling crafted precious
metal.
(3-a) "Finance commission" means the Finance
Commission of Texas.
SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 1956, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 1956.0511 to read as follows:
Sec. 1956.0511. ADMINISTRATION BY FINANCE COMMISSION. (a)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the finance
commission shall administer and enforce this subchapter, unless the
context clearly requires another state agency to perform a specific
duty.
(b) To the extent of any conflict between this subchapter
and other provisions of this chapter, this subchapter prevails.
SECTION 4. Section 1956.060, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1956.060. EXCEPTION: CRAFTED PRECIOUS METAL ACQUIRED
BY PERSON LICENSED UNDER TEXAS PAWNSHOP ACT. This subchapter does
not apply to crafted precious metal acquired by a person or an
employee of a person licensed under Chapter 371, Finance Code.
SECTION 5. Subchapter B, Chapter 1956, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Sections 1956.0611, 1956.0612, 1956.0613,
1956.0614, and 1956.0615 to read as follows:
Sec. 1956.0611. DEALER'S LICENSE REQUIRED. A person may
not engage in the business of purchasing and selling crafted
precious metal unless the person holds a dealer's license issued
under this subchapter.
Sec. 1956.0612. ELIGIBILITY. (a) To be eligible for a
dealer's license, an applicant must:
(1) be of good moral character; and
(2) show that:
(A) the applicant will operate lawfully and
fairly under this subchapter; and
(B) the applicant or the applicant's owners and
managers have the financial responsibility, experience, character,
and general fitness to command the confidence of the public in the
applicant's operations.
(b) Subsection (a)(1) applies to each:
(1) operator and legal or beneficial owner, if the
applicant is a business entity; and
(2) officer, owner of at least five percent of the
shares outstanding, and director, if the applicant is a
corporation.
(c) The finance commission by rule may establish other
qualifications for a dealer's license.
Sec. 1956.0613. LICENSE APPLICATION; FEE. An applicant for
a dealer's license shall submit a license application on a form
prescribed by the commissioner. The finance commission shall
establish an application fee in an amount not to exceed $500.
Sec. 1956.0614. APPROVAL; ISSUANCE OF LICENSE. The
commissioner shall approve the application and issue a dealer's
license to the applicant if the commissioner determines that the
applicant is eligible for the license.
Sec. 1956.0615. RULEMAKING. (a) The finance commission
may adopt rules to enforce this subchapter.
(b) The finance commission shall establish fees under this
subchapter, including an annual fee to be paid by a license holder,
in amounts reasonable and necessary to cover the costs of
administering the commission's programs and activities under this
subchapter.
SECTION 6. Section 1956.062, Occupations Code, is amended
by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
follows:
(c) The dealer shall:
(1) record the identification [proposed seller's
driver's license] number [or department personal identification
certificate number on physical presentation] of the seller's
personal identification document; and
(2) visually verify the accuracy of the seller's
personal identification document and make a copy of the document
[license or personal identification certificate by the seller].
(c-1) The copy of the document described by Subsection (c)
[record] must accompany the list.
SECTION 7. Section 1956.063(c), Occupations Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(c) For each transaction regulated by this subchapter, the
[The] dealer shall submit a [the] report on a preprinted and
prenumbered form prescribed by the finance commission [district
attorney or person performing the duties of district attorney of
the county in which the transaction occurs]. The form must include
the following:
(1) the date of the transaction;
(2) a description of the crafted precious metal
purchased by the dealer;
(3) the name and physical address of the dealer;
(4) the name, physical description, and physical
address of the seller; and
(5) a copy of the document described by Section
1956.062(c).
SECTION 8. Subchapter B, Chapter 1956, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 1956.0631 to read as follows:
Sec. 1956.0631. PAYMENT FOR CRAFTED PRECIOUS METAL
PURCHASED. A dealer may pay for a purchase of crafted precious
metal only by check. The names of the dealer and seller must be
printed on the check.
SECTION 9. Section 1956.064, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1956.064. REQUIRED RETENTION OF CRAFTED PRECIOUS
METAL. (a) A dealer may not melt, deface, alter, or dispose of
crafted precious metal that is the subject of a report required by
this subchapter before the 31st [11th] day after the date the report
is filed unless:
(1) the peace officer to whom the report is submitted,
for good cause, authorizes disposition of the metal; or
(2) [the dealer obtains the name, address, and
description of the buyer and retains a record of that information;
or
[(3)] the dealer is a pawnbroker or an employee of a
pawnbroker and the disposition is the redemption of pledged
property by the pledgor.
(b) A peace officer who has reasonable suspicion to believe
that an item of crafted precious metal in the possession of a dealer
is stolen may place the item on hold by issuing to the dealer a
written notice that:
(1) specifically identifies the item alleged to be
stolen and subject to the hold; and
(2) informs the dealer of the requirements of
Subsection (c).
(c) On receiving the notice, the dealer may not melt,
deface, alter, or dispose of the identified crafted precious metal
until the hold is released in writing by a peace officer of this
state or a court order. [A dealer who retains information under
Subsection (a)(2) shall make that information available for
inspection by any peace officer.]
SECTION 10. Section 1956.067(a), Occupations Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) A dealer who conducts business at a temporary location
for a period of less than one year [90 days] may not engage in the
business of buying precious metal or used items made of precious
metal unless, within a 12-month period at least 30 days before the
date on which each purchase is made, the dealer [person] has filed:
(1) a registration statement with the department;
[and]
(2) a copy of the registration statement and a copy of
the dealer's license issued under this subchapter with the local
law enforcement agency of:
(A) the municipality in which the temporary
location is located; or
(B) if the temporary location is not located in a
municipality, the county in which the temporary location is
located; and
(3) a copy of the dealer's license issued under this
subchapter with the county and, if applicable, the municipality in
which the temporary location is located.
SECTION 11. Section 1956.069(a), Occupations Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) A person [dealer] commits an offense if the person
[dealer]:
(1) fails to make or permit inspection of a report as
required by Section 1956.062 or 1956.063;
(2) violates [disposes of crafted precious metal or
fails to make a record available for inspection by a peace officer
as required by] Section 1956.0611, 1956.0631, or 1956.064;
(3) fails to obtain or retain a statement as required
by Section 1956.066;
(4) fails to file a registration statement as required
by Section 1956.067; or
(5) purchases an object in violation of Section
1956.068.
SECTION 12. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
before that date.
SECTION 13. Not later than December 1, 2011, the Finance
Commission of Texas shall adopt rules to implement Subchapter B,
Chapter 1956, Occupations Code, as amended by this Act.
SECTION 14. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
this section, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
(b) Section 1956.0611, Occupations Code, as added by this
Act, and Sections 1956.067(a) and 1956.069(a), Occupations Code, as
amended by this Act, take effect January 1, 2012.