Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB899 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1		-	By: Eltife S.B. No. 899
2		-	(Stephenson)
	1	+	S.B. No. 899
3	2
4	3
5		-	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	4		AN ACT
7	5		relating to the regulation of money services businesses; affecting
8	6		the prosecution of a criminal offense.
9	7		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	8		SECTION 1. Section 151.003, Finance Code, is amended to
11	9		read as follows:
12	10		Sec. 151.003. EXCLUSIONS. The following persons are not
13	11		required to be licensed under this chapter:
14	12		(1) the United States or an instrumentality of the
15	13		United States, including the United States Post Office or a
16	14		contractor acting on behalf of the United States Post Office;
17	15		(2) a state or an agency, political subdivision, or
18	16		other instrumentality of a state;
19	17		(3) a federally insured financial institution, as that
20	18		term is defined by Section 201.101, that is organized under the laws
21	19		of this state, another state, or the United States;
22	20		(4) a foreign bank branch or agency in the United
23	21		States established under the federal International Banking Act of
24	22		1978 (12 U.S.C. Section 3101 et seq.);
25	23		(5) a person acting as an agent for an entity excluded
26	24		under Subdivision (3) or (4), to the extent of the person's actions
27	25		in that capacity, provided that:
28	26		(A) the entity is liable for satisfying the money
29	27		services obligation owed to the purchaser on the person's receipt
30	28		of the purchaser's money; and
31	29		(B) the entity and person enter into a written
32	30		contract that appoints the person as the entity's agent and the
33	31		person acts only within the scope of authority conferred by the
34	32		contract;
35	33		(6) a person that, on behalf of the United States or a
36	34		department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States, or a
37	35		state or county, city, or any other governmental agency or
38	36		political subdivision of a state, provides electronic funds
39	37		transfer services of governmental benefits for a federal, state,
40	38		county, or local governmental agency;
41	39		(7) a person that acts as an intermediary on behalf of
42	40		and at the direction of a license holder in the process by which the
43	41		license holder, after receiving money or monetary value from a
44	42		purchaser, either directly or through an authorized delegate,
45	43		transmits the money or monetary value to the purchaser's designated
46	44		recipient, provided that the license holder is liable for
47	45		satisfying the obligation owed to the purchaser;
48	46		(8) an attorney or title company that in connection
49	47		with a real property transaction receives and disburses domestic
50	48		currency or issues an escrow or trust fund check only on behalf of a
51	49		party to the transaction;
52	50		(9) a person engaged in the business of currency
53	51		transportation who is both a registered motor carrier under Chapter
54	52		643, Transportation Code, and a licensed armored car company or
55	53		courier company under Chapter 1702, Occupations Code, provided that
56	54		the person:
57	55		(A) only transports currency from a person to:
58	56		(i) the same person at another location; or
59	57		(ii) a financial institution to be
60	58		deposited in an account belonging to the same person; and
61	59		(B) does not otherwise engage in the money
62	60		transmission or currency exchange business without a license issued
63	61		under this chapter; and
64	62		(10) any other person, transaction, or class of
65	63		persons or transactions exempted by commission rule or any other
66	64		person or transaction exempted by the commissioner's order on a
67	65		finding that the licensing of the person is not necessary to achieve
68	66		the purposes of this chapter.
69	67		SECTION 2. Sections 151.302(a) and (b), Finance Code, are
70	68		amended to read as follows:
71	69		(a) A person may not engage in the business of money
72	70		transmission in this state or advertise, solicit, or represent
73	71		[hold itself out as a person] that the person engages in the
74	72		business of money transmission in this state unless the person:
75	73		(1) is licensed under this subchapter;
76	74		(2) is an authorized delegate of a person licensed
77	75		under this subchapter, appointed by the license holder in
78	76		accordance with Section 151.402;
79	77		(3) is excluded from licensure under Section 151.003;
80	78		or
81	79		(4) has been granted an exemption under Subsection
82	80		(c).
83	81		(b) For purposes of this chapter,[:
84	82		[(1)] a person engages in the business of money
85	83		transmission if the person [conducts money transmission for persons
86	84		located in this state and] receives compensation or expects to
87	85		receive compensation, directly or indirectly, for conducting money
88	86		transmission [the transmissions; and
89	87		[(2) a person solicits, advertises, or holds itself
90	88		out as a person that engages in the business of money transmission
91	89		if the person represents that the person will conduct money
92	90		transmission for persons located in this state].
93	91		SECTION 3. Section 151.504(b), Finance Code, is amended to
94	92		read as follows:
95	93		(b) At the time an application for a currency exchange
96	94		license is submitted, an applicant must file with the department:
97	95		(1) an application fee in the amount established by
98	96		commission rule; and
99	97		(2) security in the amount required under [of $2,500
100	98		that meets the requirements of] Section 151.506.
101	99		SECTION 4. Section 151.506, Finance Code, is amended to
102	100		read as follows:
103	101		Sec. 151.506. SECURITY. (a) An applicant for a currency
104	102		exchange license must provide and a currency exchange license
105	103		holder must maintain at all times security in the amount applicable
106	104		to the applicant or license holder under this section. The security
107	105		must satisfy [of $2,500 that satisfies] the requirements of and is
108	106		subject to Sections 151.308(c)-(j).
109	107		(b) An applicant must provide and a license holder must
110	108		maintain security in the amount of $2,500 if the applicant will
111	109		conduct or the license holder conducts business with persons
112	110		located in this state exclusively at one or more physical locations
113	111		through in-person, contemporaneous transactions.
114	112		(c) Except as provided by Subsection (d), if Subsection (b)
115	113		does not apply to:
116	114		(1) the applicant, the applicant must provide security
117	115		in the amount that is the greater of:
118	116		(A) $2,500; or
119	117		(B) an amount equal to one percent of the
120	118		applicant's projected total dollar volume of currency exchange
121	119		business in this state for the first year of licensure; or
122	120		(2) the license holder, the license holder must
123	121		maintain security in the amount that is the greater of:
124	122		(A) $2,500; or
125	123		(B) an amount equal to one percent of the license
126	124		holder's total dollar volume of currency exchange business in this
127	125		state for the preceding year.
128	126		(d) The maximum amount of security that may be required
129	127		under Subsection (c) is $1 million.
130	128		SECTION 5. Section 151.605(g), Finance Code, is amended to
131	129		read as follows:
132	130		(g) The following persons are exempt from the requirements
133	131		of Subsection (a), but the license holder must notify the
134	132		commissioner not later than the 15th day after the date the change
135	133		of control becomes effective:
136	134		(1) a person that acts as proxy for the sole purpose of
137	135		voting at a designated meeting of the security holders or holders of
138	136		voting interests of a license holder or controlling person;
139	137		(2) a person that acquires control of a license holder
140	138		by devise or descent;
141	139		(3) [a person that acquires control as a personal
142	140		representative, custodian, guardian, conservator, or trustee, or
143	141		as an officer appointed by a court or by operation of law;
144	142		[(4)] a person exempted in the public interest by rule
145	143		of the commission or by order of the commissioner; and
146	144		(4) [(5)] a person that has previously complied with
147	145		and received approval under this chapter or that was identified as a
148	146		person in control in a prior application filed with and approved by
149	147		the commissioner.
150	148		SECTION 6. Section 151.708(c), Finance Code, is amended to
151	149		read as follows:
152	150		(c) An offense under this section may be prosecuted in [If
153	151		the commissioner has reason to believe that a person has committed
154	152		an offense under this section or any other state or federal law, the
155	153		commissioner may file a criminal referral with the district
156	154		attorney of] Travis County or in [an appropriate prosecuting
157	155		attorney of] the county in which the offense is alleged to have been
158	156		committed.
159	157		SECTION 7. Section 151.301(b)(7), Finance Code, is
160	158		repealed.
161	159		SECTION 8. Section 151.605, Finance Code, as amended by
162	160		this Act, applies only to a person that acquires control of a
163	161		license holder under that section as a personal representative,
164	162		custodian, guardian, conservator, or trustee or as an officer
165	163		appointed by a court or by operation of law on or after the
166	164		effective date of this Act. A person that acquired control of a
167	165		license holder as a personal representative, custodian, guardian,
168	166		conservator, or trustee or as an officer appointed by a court or by
169	167		operation of law before the effective date of this Act is governed
170	168		by the law in effect on the date the person acquired control, and
171	169		the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
172	170		SECTION 9. Section 151.708(c), Finance Code, as amended by
173	171		this Act, applies only to an offense committed on or after the
174	172		effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the
175	173		effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the
176	174		offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for
177	175		that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was
178	176		committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of
179	177		the offense occurred before that date.
180	178		SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
	179	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	180	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	181	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 899 passed the Senate on
	182	+	April 9, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
	183	+	______________________________
	184	+	Secretary of the Senate
	185	+	I hereby certify that S.B. No. 899 passed the House on
	186	+	May 12, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 128, Nays 16, two
	187	+	present not voting.
	188	+	______________________________
	189	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	190	+	Approved:
	191	+	______________________________
	192	+	Date
	193	+	______________________________
	194	+	Governor