| 1 | 1 | | 86R13707 MTB-D |
|---|
| 2 | 2 | | By: Krause H.B. No. 3777 |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | relating to priority of payment for certain electrical service |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | claims against the estates of certain decedents. |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 355.102(b), Estates Code, is amended to |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | read as follows: |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | (b) Class 1 claims are composed of funeral expenses and |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | expenses of the decedent's last illness, including claims for the |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | cost of electrical service provided to the decedent if the decedent |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | had been designated as a critical care residential customer, for a |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | reasonable amount approved by the court, not to exceed a total of |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | $15,000. Any excess shall be classified and paid as other unsecured |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | claims. |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | SECTION 2. Section 355.103, Estates Code, is amended to |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | read as follows: |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | Sec. 355.103. PRIORITY OF CERTAIN PAYMENTS. When a |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | personal representative has estate funds in the representative's |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | possession, the representative shall pay in the following order: |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | (1) funeral expenses and expenses of the decedent's |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | last illness, including claims for the cost of electrical service |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | provided to the decedent if the decedent had been designated as a |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | critical care residential customer, in an amount not to exceed |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | $15,000; |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | (2) allowances made to the decedent's surviving spouse |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | and children, or to either the surviving spouse or children; |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | (3) expenses of administration and expenses incurred |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | in preserving, safekeeping, and managing the estate; and |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | (4) other claims against the estate in the order of the |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | claims' classifications. |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | SECTION 3. Sections 355.102(b) and 355.103, Estates Code, |
|---|
| 36 | 36 | | as amended by this Act, apply only to the estate of a decedent who |
|---|
| 37 | 37 | | dies on or after the effective date of this Act. The estate of a |
|---|
| 38 | 38 | | decedent who dies before the effective date of this Act is governed |
|---|
| 39 | 39 | | by the law in effect on the date of the decedent's death, and the |
|---|
| 40 | 40 | | former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
|---|
| 41 | 41 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
|---|