By: Carona S.B. No. 1388
(In the Senate - Filed March 7, 2013; March 18, 2013, read
first time and referred to Committee on Business and Commerce;
April 2, 2013, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 9, Nays 0; April 2, 2013,
sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1388 By: Carona
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to identity recovery services; imposing a fee.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 348.208, Finance Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
follows:
(b) A retail installment contract may include as a separate
charge an amount for:
(1) motor vehicle property damage or bodily injury
liability insurance;
(2) mechanical breakdown insurance;
(3) participation in a motor vehicle theft protection
plan;
(4) insurance to reimburse the retail buyer for the
amount computed by subtracting the proceeds of the buyer's basic
collision policy on the motor vehicle from the amount owed on the
vehicle if the vehicle has been rendered a total loss;
(5) a warranty or service contract relating to the
motor vehicle;
(6) an identity recovery service contract [defined by
Section 1306.003, Occupations Code]; or
(7) a debt cancellation agreement if the agreement is
included as a term of a retail installment contract under Section
348.124.
(b-1) In this section, "identity recovery service contract"
means an agreement:
(1) to provide identity recovery, as defined by
Section 1304.003, Occupations Code;
(2) that is entered into for a separately stated
consideration and for a specified term; and
(3) that is financed through a retail installment
contract.
SECTION 2. Section 353.207, Finance Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
follows:
(b) A retail installment contract may include as a separate
charge an amount for:
(1) motor vehicle property damage or bodily injury
liability insurance;
(2) mechanical breakdown insurance;
(3) participation in a motor vehicle theft protection
plan;
(4) insurance to pay all or part of the amount computed
by subtracting the proceeds of the retail buyer's basic collision
policy on the commercial vehicle from the amount owed on the vehicle
in the event of a total loss or theft of the vehicle;
(5) a warranty or service contract relating to the
commercial vehicle;
(6) an identity recovery service contract [defined by
Section 1306.003, Occupations Code]; or
(7) a debt cancellation agreement.
(b-1) In this section, "identity recovery service contract"
means an agreement:
(1) to provide identity recovery, as defined by
Section 1304.003, Occupations Code;
(2) that is entered into for a separately stated
consideration and for a specified term; and
(3) that is financed through a retail installment
contract.
SECTION 3. Subsections (a) and (b), Section 1304.003,
Occupations Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) In this chapter:
(1) "Identity recovery" means a process, through a
limited power of attorney and the assistance of an identity
recovery expert, that returns the identity of an identity theft
victim to pre-identity theft event status.
(2) "Service[, "service] contract" means an
agreement[:
[(1)] that is entered into for a separately stated
consideration and for a specified term[; and
[(2)] under which a provider agrees to:
(A) repair, replace, or maintain a product, or
provide indemnification for the repair, replacement, or
maintenance of a product, for operational or structural failure or
damage caused by a defect in materials or workmanship or by normal
wear; or
(B) provide identity recovery, if the service
contract is financed under Chapter 348 or 353, Finance Code.
(b) A service contract described by Subsection (a)(2)(A)
may also provide for:
(1) incidental payment or indemnity under limited
circumstances, including towing, rental, and emergency road
service;
(2) the repair or replacement of a product for damage
resulting from a power surge or for accidental damage incurred in
handling the product; or
(3) identity recovery, [as defined by Section
1306.002,] if the service contract is financed under Chapter 348 or
353, Finance Code.
SECTION 4. Subchapter C, Chapter 1304, Occupations Code, is
amended by adding Section 1304.1035 to read as follows:
Sec. 1304.1035. QUARTERLY REPORT REQUIRED; FEE. Not later
than the 30th day after the date each calendar quarter ends, a
provider must report to the department the number of service
contracts described by Section 1304.003(a)(2)(B) that were sold or
issued to consumers in this state during the most recent calendar
quarter and must submit a fee of $1 for each contract to the
department.
SECTION 5. Section 1304.104, Occupations Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 1304.104. INFORMATION CONCERNING NUMBER OF SERVICE
CONTRACTS SOLD OR ISSUED. Information concerning the number of
service contracts sold or issued by a provider that is submitted
under Section 1304.103 or 1304.1035 is a trade secret to which
Section 552.110, Government Code, applies.
SECTION 6. Subsection (c), Section 2306.003, Occupations
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(c) A vehicle protection product may also include identity
recovery, as defined by Section 1304.003 [1306.002], if the vehicle
protection product is financed under Chapter 348 or 353, Finance
Code.
SECTION 7. Chapter 1306, Occupations Code, is repealed.
SECTION 8. (a) The changes in law made by this Act apply
only to a contract entered into or renewed on or after the effective
date of this Act. A contract entered into or renewed before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect
immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
(b) The repeal of Chapter 1306, Occupations Code, by this
Act does not apply to a violation of that chapter that occurs before
the effective date of the repeal. A violation that occurs before
the effective date of the repeal is governed by the law as it
existed on the date the violation occurred, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this
subsection, a violation occurred before the effective date of the
repeal if any element of the violation occurred before that date.
SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
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