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| SPONSOR: | Fidel | DATE TYPED: | 2-11-99 | HB | |||
| SHORT TITLE: | Vehicle Title Company Licensing | SB | 122 | ||||
| ANALYST: | Segura | ||||||
| Recurring
or Non-Rec |
Fund
Affected | ||||
| FY99 | FY2000 | FY99 | FY2000 | ||
| NFI | |||||
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
Taxation and Revenue Department (TRD)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
Senate Bill 122 requires motor vehicle title service companies to pay a $50 per year registration fee, be of good character, maintain adequate records prescribed by the department for three years, maintain an established place of business accessible by the public during reasonable business hours and post a surety bond in the amount of $50,000 or the amount of $12,500 if the title service concerns only motorcycles.
Significant Issues
The bill defines a title company to be any person who for consideration issues temporary registration plates or prepares and submits applications for the registration of or title to vehicles. This bill is intended to protect purchasers of motor vehicles relying on a motor vehicle service company from any loss or damage by the title service company due to fraud, misrepresentation or filing errors. The effective date is July 1,1999.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
This bill has no significant fiscal impact. Probably, there are fewer than 20 companies specializing solely in title services.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
This bill has no significant administrative impact. The registration fee of $50 balances the Taxation and Revenue Department's processing costs. Since the department already processes similar applications from wreckers, wholesalers, distributors, and dealers, there are no additional costs.
RMS/gm