Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB511 Compare Versions

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Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R971 DRS-F
2	2	By: Wu H.B. No. 511
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the confidentiality of residential eviction case
8	8	information.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Chapter 24, Property Code, is amended by adding
11	11	Section 24.012 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 24.012. CONFIDENTIAL RECORDS RELATED TO RESIDENTIAL
13	13	EVICTION CASE INFORMATION. (a) In this section:
14	14	(1) "Eviction case" means a lawsuit brought under this
15	15	chapter to recover possession of leased or rented residential real
16	16	property from a tenant, including a tenant at will or a tenant at
17	17	sufferance.
18	18	(2) "Eviction case information" means all records and
19	19	files related to a filing of an eviction case, including petitions
20	20	and their dispositions.
21	21	(3) "Landlord" means:
22	22	(A) an owner, lessor, or sublessor of a dwelling;
23	23	(B) a management company or managing agent for a
24	24	dwelling, including an on-site manager; or
25	25	(C) a rent collector for a dwelling.
26	26	(b) Concurrently with a judgment or order of dismissal in an
27	27	eviction case, a court shall enter an order making confidential the
28	28	eviction case information pertaining to a defendant if:
29	29	(1) a judgment is entered in favor of the defendant;
30	30	(2) the case is dismissed without any relief granted
31	31	to the plaintiff; or
32	32	(3) the defendant is a residential tenant not
33	33	otherwise in default and the eviction case is brought by the
34	34	successor in interest following foreclosure.
35	35	(c) On petition of a defendant in an eviction case after a
36	36	judgment or order of dismissal has been entered, a court shall enter
37	37	an order making confidential the eviction case information
38	38	pertaining to a defendant if:
39	39	(1) at least five years have elapsed from the date of
40	40	the final judgment in the eviction case;
41	41	(2) the defendant was a residential tenant not
42	42	otherwise in default and the eviction case was brought by the
43	43	successor in interest following foreclosure; or
44	44	(3) a confidentiality order was not issued and:
45	45	(A) a judgment was entered in favor of the
46	46	defendant; or
47	47	(B) the case was dismissed.
48	48	(d) Concurrently with a judgment or order of dismissal in an
49	49	eviction case or on petition of a defendant in an eviction case
50	50	after a judgment or dismissal in the case, a court may enter an
51	51	order making confidential the eviction case information pertaining
52	52	to the defendant if the court finds that:
53	53	(1) it is in the interest of justice; and
54	54	(2) the interest of justice is not outweighed by the
55	55	public's interest in knowing the eviction case information.
56	56	(e) If an order is entered making eviction case information
57	57	confidential under this section:
58	58	(1) a court or clerk may not intentionally disclose
59	59	the eviction case information, except:
60	60	(A) to any judge or court staff;
61	61	(B) to the parties to the suit or the parties'
62	62	counsel; or
63	63	(C) in a form that omits any personal identifying
64	64	information of the parties, to any other person, agency, or
65	65	institution approved by the court with a legitimate interest in the
66	66	work of the court; and
67	67	(2) except to the extent permitted by federal law, a
68	68	credit reporting agency, a person, other than a landlord, who
69	69	regularly collects and disseminates eviction case information, or a
70	70	person who sells eviction case information may not:
71	71	(A) disclose the existence of the eviction case;
72	72	or
73	73	(B) use the eviction case information as a factor
74	74	in determining a score or recommendation in a tenant screening
75	75	report regarding the defendant.
76	76	(f) A person who knowingly violates Subsection (e) is liable
77	77	to an injured party for:
78	78	(1) actual damages or, if unable to prove actual
79	79	damages, exemplary damages of not more than $1,000; and
80	80	(2) reasonable attorney's fees of not more than
81	81	$10,000 and court costs.
82	82	(g) Notwithstanding Section 41.004(a), Civil Practice and
83	83	Remedies Code, a court shall award exemplary damages under
84	84	Subsection (f)(1) to the injured party if the party is not awarded
85	85	actual damages.
86	86	(h) This section does not prohibit a party to an eviction
87	87	case from abstracting the judgment in the case.
88	88	(i) The supreme court shall adopt rules necessary to
89	89	implement this section.
90	90	SECTION 2. Not later than January 1, 2024, the Texas Supreme
91	91	Court shall adopt the rules necessary to implement Section 24.012,
92	92	Property Code, as added by this Act.
93	93	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect January 1, 2024.