The bill died in the Calendars Committee.

This bill proposed allowing the owner of a vehicle to transfer a license plate from one

vehicle to another if owned by the same person or remove the plates and surrender them

to TxDOT

After months of negotiations and stakeholders meetings dealing with temporary tags and

the future of transferring plates, it became apparent that plates staying with the owners

was in the near future of the industry. The TIADA Legislative Committee felt this bill

would not have a significant negative impact on our industry. TIADA monitored this bill

throughout the session to ensure there wouldn’t be any unforeseen negative impact.

The bill goes into effect January 1, 2008. (For more information on this bill and how it

will effect you as a dealer, please see the June 2007 issue of the Texas Dealer magazine,

Legal Corner, pg. 26.)

This bill proposed requiring any person selling used motor vehicles to complete a

detailed statement of the vehicle's condition. The statement would include a list of any

known problems or defects affecting the vehicle's mechanical system, tires, brakes, and

any other defect that substantially affects the vehicle's use, value, or safety. Furthermore,

the seller would have to allow the purchaser to arrange for inspection of the vehicle,

including an inspection to be conducted away from the premises where the vehicle is

offered for sale.

TIADA set up a meeting between the author of the bill and a TIADA dealer so we could

explain our concern that requiring dealers to make such statements on pre-owned vehicles

would open our dealers up to numerous lawsuits defending what someone didn’t know.

We also shared our concern about arranging an inspection away from the place of

business. TIADA filed in opposition to this bill in the Licensing and Administration

Procedures Committee and had a number of dealers come to the Capitol to inform

committee members of our position.

This bill died in the Calendars Committee.

This piece of legislation proposed creating an alternative to a written notice of transfer.

TxDOT would establish procedures that would permit the transferor of a motor vehicle to

electronically submit a notice of transfer to the department through the department's

Internet website.

TIADA monitored this bill through the session to make sure this procedure was an option

for dealers, but not required.

The bill goes into effect January 1, 2008. (Please watch the Texas Dealer magazine for

more information on this bill and how it will effect you as a dealer.)

This bill proposed allowing a municipality to deny registration of a motor vehicle if the

owner of the vehicle has an unpaid fine for a parking violation of a vehicle.

TIADA informed the author of the bill that as written it would create a problem for a

dealer once they received a vehicle and later found that they couldn’t register that vehicle

due to debts owed by the previous owner. TIADA offered language to the author that

would exclude auto dealers. Once the author accepted the language TIADA dropped our

opposition to this bill.

The bill died on a point of order on the floor of the House.

This bill proposed that dealers be required to notify TxDOT of the discharge of a lien.

TIADA informed the author of the bill that we were concerned about the process that

would need to be put in place to allow an individual to notify the department to release a

lien. We raised a number of security issues and told the author that this could eventually

result in two titles being issued. We also testified in front of the House Transportation

Committee and voiced our concerns. We built some allies with other associations as the

bill continued to move through the House and eventually into the Senate. We sent an

email alert to TIADA members who lived in the areas represented by the Senators on the

Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee. We encouraged our members

to write letters and make phone calls expressing their concern about the bill and asking

the Senators not to support this piece of legislation.

The bill died in the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee.

This bill proposed allowing a dealer to sell or offer to sell a motor vehicle online through

an advertisement on the Internet to a buyer who never personally appears at the dealer's

established and permanent place of business.

After visiting with E-bay motors about the intent of the bill and offering a few

suggestions that would insure this would not allow “tent sales”, TIADA took no official

position on this bill.

This bill goes into effect immediately.

This bill is very broad. It proposed cleaning up a lot of old language in the Finance Code

as well as providing some new definitions for “Holder” of a retail installment contract. It

goes on to say that full payment of the outstanding balance of the debt on a vehicle traded

in must be made within 20 days.

TIADA had some concerns about this bill when it was introduced. We worked with the

author on a number of occasions to help define the term “Holder” and insert language

that would be more attractive to our dealers that enter into retail installment contracts.

TIADA supported the idea requiring full payoff of the debt within 20 days on a vehicle

that had been traded in.

The bill died in the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee.

This piece of legislation would keep a motor vehicle accident report or information in a

motor vehicle accident report confidential during a 30-day period immediately after the

date the report is filed with the agency that holds the accident report or the information.

TIADA introduced language to the authors that would exclude lien holders from this bill

and essentially allow lien holders access to the information in an accident report without

the 30 day waiting period. The authors accepted the modified language.

The bill died in the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee.

This was a comprehensive overhaul bill that attempted to move regulation of both the

vehicle storage facility and tow truck industries from TxDOT to the Texas Department of

Licensing and Regulation. Additionally, the bill would create drug testing policies,

criminal background checks and a new licensing requirement for all tow truck operators.

TIADA had a number of meetings with the tow truck industry as well as the authors of

both these bills. We eventually came up with some compromise language that would

exclude tow truck owners from many of the regulations. We also built a great working

relationship with the tow truck industry and will continue to build on that relationship as

we move forward.

The bill died in the House Calendar Committee.

This TIADA Related Finance Company bill proposed allowing auto dealers to sell a

purchaser's account to an entity which has at least 80 percent common ownership with

the dealership or grant a security interest in a purchaser's account but retains custody and

control of the account and the right to receive payments in the absence of a default under

the security agreement.

TIADA visited with the Comptroller’s office to get a better understanding of the office’s

position and identified an author for our bill on the House and Senate side.

Representative Paxton and Senator Harris agreed to carry the bill. The bill was written to

allow dealers to have a related finance company to take advantage of the federal income

tax savings as well as defer the payment of sales tax. On two occasions TIADA organized

a group of dealers to come to Austin and walk the Capitol halls knocking on doors and

visiting with various legislative offices to insure our position was known. We also had

number of dealers sign cards in the Senate Transportation Committee public hearing and

the House Ways and Means Committee public hearing. TIADA members and legal

counsel publicly testified in favor of the bill in the respective committees and lastly,

TIADA organized a number of letter writing campaigns as the bill moved through both

chambers. Representative Harless and Orr signed on as authors and co-authors of the bill.

Before final passage we included language that would negate any fiscal note detrimental

to the bill. The result was a fee of no more than $1,500 that related finance companies

will pay annually.

The bill goes into effect July 1, 2007. (For more information on related finance

companies, please see pg. 10 of the June 07 issue of Texas Dealer magazine. The

complete story of how TIADA was able to pass this legislation will be featured in the

July 07 issue.)

This bill came directly from the TIADA Legislative Agenda. It was the result of many

hours of hard work and a great deal of input from TIADA leaders. The bill proposed

requiring independent dealers to complete a basic dealer education course before

receiving a general distinguishing number.

As soon as the session got underway TIADA had meetings with Representative Rose and

Senator Harris who both agreed to author our bill. TIADA organized meetings and phone

calls with key legislators and other associations that helped us refine the language and

garner support for the bill. Our legislation moved quickly through the Senate

Transportation and Homeland Security Committee where our State President testified in

favor of the bill. This was after he and a number of TIADA dealers spent the day walking

the halls of the Capitol visiting the offices of committee members. Within a week and a

half our bill was unanimously voted out of the full Senate and sent to the House

Transportation Committee. TIADA members worked the House version of the bill just

one week after testifying on the Senate side. After a day visiting legislators and staff

members, TIADA leaders testified in favor of our bill in front of the House

Transportation Committee. TxDOT also testified that night as a resource witness and

raised some concerns they had with the bill. TIADA continued to work the House

Transportation Committee to address any new found concerns. We also met with the

TxDOT Motor Vehicle Division to see if we could iron out any misunderstanding and

better explain our position on dealer education. TIADA and Representative Rose’s office

continued to work the House Transportation Committee to gain support for our bill.

TIADA also launched a letter writing and phone campaign from dealers who lived in

areas of the state represented by key legislators. After a very informative conversation

with Representative Rose’s office it became apparent that we did not have enough

support within the House Transportation Committee to move our legislation out. Then

TIADA started the long process of looking for a piece of legislation that was moving

through the legislature that we could amend and attach our dealer education legislation to.

Unfortunately, the session ended before any such opportunity presented itself.

The bill died in the House Transportation Committee.

This bill would allow the Texas Attorney General to perfect a “child support” lien against

a motor vehicle owned by an individual who is behind on their child support payment.

TIADA met with Senator Harris’s office to explain our reservation with creating a

“hidden lien”. Senator Harris’s office asked us to meet with the Attorney General to see if

we could come up with a compromise. After a number of meetings and phone calls where

the AG’s office discussed their intent of the bill and TIADA explained the title process

and our concern over hidden liens, Senator Harris asked the Senate Transportation and

Homeland Security Committee not to move the bill.

The bill died in the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee.

This bill proposed changing the process used to print and place temporary tags on motor

vehicles. This was a rewrite of the current process that includes many changes for auto

dealers.

Many stakeholders have been working on this issue for some time. TIADA has been very

involved for the past couple of years working with legislators as well as various

stakeholders. We worked diligently with Senator Carona’s office giving

recommendations and input throughout the process. As Carona’s office spearheaded this

effort, they made sure the auto dealer community had a voice through their respective

associations – and TIADA took full advantage of the opportunity given. TIADA publicly

filled in favor of the bill in the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee.

(For more information on this bill and how it will effect you as a dealer, please see the

June 2007 issue of the Texas Dealer magazine, Legal Corner, pg. 26.)

For the complete language of the bills described above, go to

http://www.house.state.tx.us