Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2676 Compare Versions

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1	1	84R8546 DDT-F
2	2	By: Stephenson H.B. No. 2676
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the regulation of money services businesses; affecting
8	8	the prosecution of a criminal offense.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 151.003, Finance Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 151.003. EXCLUSIONS. The following persons are not
13	13	required to be licensed under this chapter:
14	14	(1) the United States or an instrumentality of the
15	15	United States, including the United States Post Office or a
16	16	contractor acting on behalf of the United States Post Office;
17	17	(2) a state or an agency, political subdivision, or
18	18	other instrumentality of a state;
19	19	(3) a federally insured financial institution, as that
20	20	term is defined by Section 201.101, that is organized under the laws
21	21	of this state, another state, or the United States;
22	22	(4) a foreign bank branch or agency in the United
23	23	States established under the federal International Banking Act of
24	24	1978 (12 U.S.C. Section 3101 et seq.);
25	25	(5) a person acting as an agent for an entity excluded
26	26	under Subdivision (3) or (4), to the extent of the person's actions
27	27	in that capacity, provided that:
28	28	(A) the entity is liable for satisfying the money
29	29	services obligation owed to the purchaser on the person's receipt
30	30	of the purchaser's money; and
31	31	(B) the entity and person enter into a written
32	32	contract that appoints the person as the entity's agent and the
33	33	person acts only within the scope of authority conferred by the
34	34	contract;
35	35	(6) a person that, on behalf of the United States or a
36	36	department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States, or a
37	37	state or county, city, or any other governmental agency or
38	38	political subdivision of a state, provides electronic funds
39	39	transfer services of governmental benefits for a federal, state,
40	40	county, or local governmental agency;
41	41	(7) a person that acts as an intermediary on behalf of
42	42	and at the direction of a license holder in the process by which the
43	43	license holder, after receiving money or monetary value from a
44	44	purchaser, either directly or through an authorized delegate,
45	45	transmits the money or monetary value to the purchaser's designated
46	46	recipient, provided that the license holder is liable for
47	47	satisfying the obligation owed to the purchaser;
48	48	(8) an attorney or title company that in connection
49	49	with a real property transaction receives and disburses domestic
50	50	currency or issues an escrow or trust fund check only on behalf of a
51	51	party to the transaction;
52	52	(9) a person engaged in the business of currency
53	53	transportation who is both a registered motor carrier under Chapter
54	54	643, Transportation Code, and a licensed armored car company or
55	55	courier company under Chapter 1702, Occupations Code, provided that
56	56	the person:
57	57	(A) only transports currency from a person to:
58	58	(i) the same person at another location; or
59	59	(ii) a financial institution to be
60	60	deposited in an account belonging to the same person; and
61	61	(B) does not otherwise engage in the money
62	62	transmission or currency exchange business without a license issued
63	63	under this chapter; and
64	64	(10) any other person, transaction, or class of
65	65	persons or transactions exempted by commission rule or any other
66	66	person or transaction exempted by the commissioner's order on a
67	67	finding that the licensing of the person is not necessary to achieve
68	68	the purposes of this chapter.
69	69	SECTION 2. Sections 151.302(a) and (b), Finance Code, are
70	70	amended to read as follows:
71	71	(a) A person may not engage in the business of money
72	72	transmission in this state or advertise, solicit, or represent
73	73	[hold itself out as a person] that the person engages in the
74	74	business of money transmission in this state unless the person:
75	75	(1) is licensed under this subchapter;
76	76	(2) is an authorized delegate of a person licensed
77	77	under this subchapter, appointed by the license holder in
78	78	accordance with Section 151.402;
79	79	(3) is excluded from licensure under Section 151.003;
80	80	or
81	81	(4) has been granted an exemption under Subsection
82	82	(c).
83	83	(b) For purposes of this chapter, [:
84	84	[(1)] a person engages in the business of money
85	85	transmission if the person [conducts money transmission for persons
86	86	located in this state and] receives compensation or expects to
87	87	receive compensation, directly or indirectly, for conducting money
88	88	transmission [the transmissions; and
89	89	[(2) a person solicits, advertises, or holds itself
90	90	out as a person that engages in the business of money transmission
91	91	if the person represents that the person will conduct money
92	92	transmission for persons located in this state].
93	93	SECTION 3. Section 151.504(b), Finance Code, is amended to
94	94	read as follows:
95	95	(b) At the time an application for a currency exchange
96	96	license is submitted, an applicant must file with the department:
97	97	(1) an application fee in the amount established by
98	98	commission rule; and
99	99	(2) security in the amount required under [of $2,500
100	100	that meets the requirements of] Section 151.506.
101	101	SECTION 4. Section 151.506, Finance Code, is amended to
102	102	read as follows:
103	103	Sec. 151.506. SECURITY. (a) An applicant for a currency
104	104	exchange license must provide and a currency exchange license
105	105	holder must maintain at all times security in the amount applicable
106	106	to the applicant or license holder under this section. The security
107	107	must satisfy [of $2,500 that satisfies] the requirements of and is
108	108	subject to Sections 151.308(c)-(j).
109	109	(b) An applicant must provide and a license holder must
110	110	maintain security in the amount of $2,500 if the applicant will
111	111	conduct or the license holder conducts business with persons
112	112	located in this state exclusively at one or more physical locations
113	113	through in-person, contemporaneous transactions.
114	114	(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), if Subsection (b)
115	115	does not apply to:
116	116	(1) the applicant, the applicant must provide security
117	117	in the amount that is the greater of:
118	118	(A) $2,500; or
119	119	(B) an amount equal to one percent of the
120	120	applicant's projected total dollar volume of currency exchange
121	121	business in this state for the first year of licensure; or
122	122	(2) the license holder, the license holder must
123	123	maintain security in the amount that is the greater of:
124	124	(A) $2,500; or
125	125	(B) an amount equal to one percent of the license
126	126	holder's total dollar volume of currency exchange business in this
127	127	state for the preceding year.
128	128	(d) The maximum amount of security that may be required
129	129	under Subsection (c) is $1 million.
130	130	SECTION 5. Section 151.605(g), Finance Code, is amended to
131	131	read as follows:
132	132	(g) The following persons are exempt from the requirements
133	133	of Subsection (a), but the license holder must notify the
134	134	commissioner not later than the 15th day after the date the change
135	135	of control becomes effective:
136	136	(1) a person that acts as proxy for the sole purpose of
137	137	voting at a designated meeting of the security holders or holders of
138	138	voting interests of a license holder or controlling person;
139	139	(2) a person that acquires control of a license holder
140	140	by devise or descent;
141	141	(3) [a person that acquires control as a personal
142	142	representative, custodian, guardian, conservator, or trustee, or
143	143	as an officer appointed by a court or by operation of law;
144	144	[(4)] a person exempted in the public interest by rule
145	145	of the commission or by order of the commissioner; and
146	146	(4) [(5)] a person that has previously complied with
147	147	and received approval under this chapter or that was identified as a
148	148	person in control in a prior application filed with and approved by
149	149	the commissioner.
150	150	SECTION 6. Section 151.708(c), Finance Code, is amended to
151	151	read as follows:
152	152	(c) An offense under this section may be prosecuted in [If
153	153	the commissioner has reason to believe that a person has committed
154	154	an offense under this section or any other state or federal law, the
155	155	commissioner may file a criminal referral with the district
156	156	attorney of] Travis County or in [an appropriate prosecuting
157	157	attorney of] the county in which the offense is alleged to have been
158	158	committed.
159	159	SECTION 7. Section 151.301(b)(7), Finance Code, is
160	160	repealed.
161	161	SECTION 8. Section 151.605, Finance Code, as amended by
162	162	this Act, applies only to a person that acquires control of a
163	163	license holder under that section as a personal representative,
164	164	custodian, guardian, conservator, or trustee or as an officer
165	165	appointed by a court or by operation of law on or after the
166	166	effective date of this Act. A person that acquired control of a
167	167	license holder as a personal representative, custodian, guardian,
168	168	conservator, or trustee or as an officer appointed by a court or by
169	169	operation of law before the effective date of this Act is governed
170	170	by the law in effect on the date the person acquired control, and
171	171	the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
172	172	SECTION 9. Section 151.708(c), Finance Code, as amended by
173	173	this Act, applies only to an offense committed on or after the
174	174	effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the
175	175	effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the
176	176	offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for
177	177	that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was
178	178	committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of
179	179	the offense occurred before that date.
180	180	SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.