88R971 DRS-F
By: Wu H.B. No. 511
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the confidentiality of residential eviction case
information.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 24, Property Code, is amended by adding
Section 24.012 to read as follows:
Sec. 24.012. CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS RELATED TO RESIDENTIAL
EVICTION CASE INFORMATION. (a) In this section:
(1) "Eviction case" means a lawsuit brought under this
chapter to recover possession of leased or rented residential real
property from a tenant, including a tenant at will or a tenant at
sufferance.
(2) "Eviction case information" means all records and
files related to a filing of an eviction case, including petitions
and their dispositions.
(3) "Landlord" means:
(A) an owner, lessor, or sublessor of a dwelling;
(B) a management company or managing agent for a
dwelling, including an on-site manager; or
(C) a rent collector for a dwelling.
(b) Concurrently with a judgment or order of dismissal in an
eviction case, a court shall enter an order making confidential the
eviction case information pertaining to a defendant if:
(1) a judgment is entered in favor of the defendant;
(2) the case is dismissed without any relief granted
to the plaintiff; or
(3) the defendant is a residential tenant not
otherwise in default and the eviction case is brought by the
successor in interest following foreclosure.
(c) On petition of a defendant in an eviction case after a
judgment or order of dismissal has been entered, a court shall enter
an order making confidential the eviction case information
pertaining to a defendant if:
(1) at least five years have elapsed from the date of
the final judgment in the eviction case;
(2) the defendant was a residential tenant not
otherwise in default and the eviction case was brought by the
successor in interest following foreclosure; or
(3) a confidentiality order was not issued and:
(A) a judgment was entered in favor of the
defendant; or
(B) the case was dismissed.
(d) Concurrently with a judgment or order of dismissal in an
eviction case or on petition of a defendant in an eviction case
after a judgment or dismissal in the case, a court may enter an
order making confidential the eviction case information pertaining
to the defendant if the court finds that:
(1) it is in the interest of justice; and
(2) the interest of justice is not outweighed by the
public's interest in knowing the eviction case information.
(e) If an order is entered making eviction case information
confidential under this section:
(1) a court or clerk may not intentionally disclose
the eviction case information, except:
(A) to any judge or court staff;
(B) to the parties to the suit or the parties'
counsel; or
(C) in a form that omits any personal identifying
information of the parties, to any other person, agency, or
institution approved by the court with a legitimate interest in the
work of the court; and
(2) except to the extent permitted by federal law, a
credit reporting agency, a person, other than a landlord, who
regularly collects and disseminates eviction case information, or a
person who sells eviction case information may not:
(A) disclose the existence of the eviction case;
or
(B) use the eviction case information as a factor
in determining a score or recommendation in a tenant screening
report regarding the defendant.
(f) A person who knowingly violates Subsection (e) is liable
to an injured party for:
(1) actual damages or, if unable to prove actual
damages, exemplary damages of not more than $1,000; and
(2) reasonable attorney's fees of not more than
$10,000 and court costs.
(g) Notwithstanding Section 41.004(a), Civil Practice and
Remedies Code, a court shall award exemplary damages under
Subsection (f)(1) to the injured party if the party is not awarded
actual damages.
(h) This section does not prohibit a party to an eviction
case from abstracting the judgment in the case.
(i) The supreme court shall adopt rules necessary to
implement this section.
SECTION 2. Not later than January 1, 2024, the Texas Supreme
Court shall adopt the rules necessary to implement Section 24.012,
Property Code, as added by this Act.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2024.