H.B. No. 3376
AN ACT
relating to forms of notice that may be provided by the Department
of Public Safety during certain enforcement proceedings and
actions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 521.2465, Transportation Code, is
amended by adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a-1) The notice provided to the person by the department
under Subsection (a) may be provided by:
(1) first class mail; or
(2) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
SECTION 2. Section 521.295, Transportation Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 521.295. NOTICE OF DEPARTMENT'S DETERMINATION. (a) If
the department suspends a person's license under Section 521.292 or
revokes a person's license under Section 521.294, the department
shall send a notice of suspension or revocation by:
(1) first class mail to the person's address in the
records of the department; or
(2) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
(b) Notice is considered received on the fifth day after the
date the notice is sent [mailed].
SECTION 3. Section 521.344, Transportation Code, is amended
by amending Subsection (g) and adding Subsection (g-1) to read as
follows:
(g) A revocation, suspension, or prohibition order under
Subsection (e) or (f) remains in effect until the department
receives notice of successful completion of the educational
program. The director shall promptly send notice of a revocation or
prohibition order issued under Subsection (e) or (f) by:
(1) first class mail to the person at the person's most
recent address as shown in the records of the department; or
(2) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
(g-1) The notice provided under Subsection (g) must include
the date of the revocation or prohibition order, the reason for the
revocation or prohibition, and a statement that the person has the
right to request in writing that a hearing be held on the revocation
or prohibition. Notice is considered received on the fifth day
after the date the notice is sent [mailed]. A revocation or
prohibition under Subsection (e) or (f) takes effect on the 30th day
after the date the notice is sent [mailed]. The person may request a
hearing not later than the 20th day after the date the notice is
sent [mailed]. If the department receives a request under this
subsection, the department shall set the hearing for the earliest
practical time and the revocation or prohibition does not take
effect until resolution of the hearing.
SECTION 4. Section 521.457(d), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(d) Except as provided by Subsection (c), it is an
affirmative defense to prosecution of an offense, other than an
offense under Section 521.341, that the person did not receive
actual notice of a cancellation, suspension, revocation, or
prohibition order relating to the person's license. For purposes
of this section, actual notice is presumed if the notice was sent
[mailed] in accordance with law.
SECTION 5. Section 601.124, Transportation Code, is amended
by amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (e) to read as
follows:
(d) The department for cause may cancel a certificate of
self-insurance after a hearing. [The self-insurer must receive at
least five days' notice of the hearing.] Cause includes failure to
pay a judgment before the 31st day after the date the judgment
becomes final.
(e) A self-insurer must receive at least five days' notice
of a hearing held under Subsection (d). The department shall send
notice of the hearing to the self-insurer by:
(1) first class mail; or
(2) e-mail if the self-insurer has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
SECTION 6. Section 601.155, Transportation Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 601.155. NOTICE OF DETERMINATION. (a) The department
shall notify the affected person of a determination made under
Section 601.154 by:
(1) personal service;
(2) first class mail; or
(3) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
(b) The notice must state that:
(1) the person's driver's license and vehicle
registration or the person's nonresident's operating privilege will
be suspended unless the person, not later than the 20th day after
the date the notice was personally served or sent [mailed],
establishes that:
(A) this subchapter does not apply to the person,
and the person has previously provided this information to the
department; or
(B) there is no reasonable probability that a
judgment will be rendered against the person as a result of the
accident; and
(2) the person is entitled to a hearing under this
subchapter if a written request for a hearing is delivered or mailed
to the department not later than the 20th day after the date the
notice was personally served or sent [mailed].
(c) Notice under this section that is mailed by first class
mail must be mailed to the person's last known address, as shown by
the department's records.
(d) For purposes of this section, notice is presumed to be
received if the notice was sent [mailed] to the person's last known
address or e-mail address, as shown by the department's records.
SECTION 7. Section 601.156(c), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(c) The department shall summon the person requesting the
hearing to appear at the hearing. Notice under this subsection:
(1) shall be:
(A) delivered through personal service;
(B) [or] mailed by first class mail to the
person's last known address, as shown by the department's records;
or
(C) sent by e-mail if the person has provided an
e-mail address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically; and
(2) [. The notice] must include written charges issued
by the department.
SECTION 8. Section 601.159, Transportation Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 601.159. PROCEDURES FOR SUSPENSION OF DRIVER'S LICENSE
AND VEHICLE REGISTRATION OR PRIVILEGE. The department shall suspend
the driver's license and each vehicle registration of an owner or
operator or the nonresident's operating privilege of an owner or
operator unless:
(1) if a hearing is not requested, the person, not
later than the 20th day after the date the notice under Section
601.155 was personally served or sent [mailed]:
(A) delivers or mails to the department a written
request for a hearing;
(B) shows that this subchapter does not apply to
the person; or
(C) complies with Section 601.153; or
(2) the person complies with Section 601.153 not later
than the 20th day after:
(A) the date of the expiration of the period in
which an appeal may be brought, if the determination at a hearing is
rendered against the owner or operator and the owner or operator
does not appeal; or
(B) the date of a decision against the person
following the appeal.
SECTION 9. Section 601.161, Transportation Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 601.161. NOTICE OF SUSPENSION. Not later than the 11th
day before the effective date of a suspension under Section
601.159, the department shall send notice of the suspension to each
affected owner or operator. The department shall send the notice by
first class mail or by e-mail to any owner or operator who has
provided an e-mail address to the department and who has elected to
receive notice electronically. The notice must state the amount
required as security under Section 601.153 and the necessity for
the owner or operator to file evidence of financial responsibility
with the department.
SECTION 10. Section 601.232(a), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The department shall send [mail] in a timely manner a
notice to each person whose driver's license and vehicle
registrations are suspended under Section 601.231.
SECTION 11. Section 601.371(b), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this
section that the person had not received notice of a suspension
order concerning the person's vehicle registration. For purposes
of this subsection, notice is presumed to be received if the notice
was sent [mailed] in accordance with this chapter to the last known
address or e-mail address of the person as shown by department
records.
SECTION 12. Section 601.372, Transportation Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (b) and (d) and adding Subsection
(b-1) to read as follows:
(b) The notice must be provided by:
(1) personal delivery to the person;
(2) [or by] deposit in the United States mail
addressed to the person at the last address supplied to the
department by the person; or
(3) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
(b-1) Notice provided under Subsection (b) by mail or e-mail
is presumed to be received on the 10th day after the date the notice
is sent [mailed].
(d) Proof of the notice may be made by the certificate of a
department employee stating that:
(1) the notice was prepared in the regular course of
business and placed in the United States mail or sent by e-mail as
part of the regular organized activity of the department; or
(2) the employee delivered the notice in person.
SECTION 13. Section 708.055, Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 708.055. NOTICE OF ASSIGNMENT OF FIFTH POINT. The
department shall notify the holder of a driver's license of the
assignment of a fifth point on that license by:
(1) first class mail sent to the person's most recent
address as shown on the records of the department; or
(2) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically.
SECTION 14. Section 708.151(a), Transportation Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The department shall send notices as required by
Subsection (b) to the holder of a driver's license when a surcharge
is assessed on that license. Each notice must:
(1) be sent by:
(A) first class mail to the person's most recent
address as shown on the records of the department or to the person's
most recent forwarding address on record with the United States
Postal Service if it is different; or
(B) e-mail if the person has provided an e-mail
address to the department and has elected to receive notice
electronically;
(2) specify the date by which the surcharge must be
paid;
(3) state the total dollar amount of the surcharge
that must be paid, the number of monthly payments required under an
installment payment plan, and the minimum monthly payment required
for a person to enter and maintain an installment payment plan with
the department; and
(4) state the consequences of a failure to pay the
surcharge.
SECTION 15. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 3376 was passed by the House on May 9,
2017, by the following vote: Yeas 131, Nays 1, 1 present, not
voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 3376 was passed by the Senate on May
24, 2017, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: _____________________
Date
_____________________
Governor