Laws to help consumers going into effect Tuesday

By DAVE LIEBER - Star-Telegram staff writer - Dec. 28, 2007
Throughout the year, The Watchdog has focused on situations in which state and federal laws weren't tough enough when it came to protecting consumers. So imagine my surprise when I began to look at a batch of new state laws going into effect next week, and found that each seems designed to protect Texans in ways we weren't protected before.

For example, as of Jan. 1, your home and your pocketbook will get some added protections, whether you rent an apartment, buy homeowners' insurance, pay property taxes, build a house or buy manufactured housing.

Let's take a peek:

Homeowners' insurance premiums

If you've filed only one claim on your insurance in the past three years, you won't face a surcharge penalty when you renew the policy. However, the new law allows a surcharge for two or more claims.

Appraisal Review Board hearings

If you want to protest your property tax appraisal, and you haven't had a chance to appoint a tax representative before your scheduled hearing before the Appraisal Review Board, your right to one 30-day postponement cannot be denied. Postponement requests can be made by letter, telephone, fax or e-mail.

Tax breaks for low-income housing

Starting next week, property tax breaks will increase from 50 percent to 100 percent for owners of newly constructed low-income housing in Tarrant County and other counties with more than 1.4 million residents.

The tax break applies only to housing created for sale. Rental owners will continue to get the 50 percent break.

State Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, an advocate of quality affordable housing, told me that he is thrilled about the new law.

"I'm always going to be for anything that would help build quality affordable housing," he says. "Hopefully, we can see a real increase in quality structures, and not just apartments. Hopefully, we can see some single-family structures go up, too ... which is better for home prices and property values and really gives low-income families a chance to build themselves up."

Texas real estate licensees

Real estate brokers, inspectors, salespeople and right-of-way agents will now be required to undergo criminal background checks when they obtain or renew a license from the Texas Real Estate Commission.

Fingerprints must be submitted, and anyone who fails to comply will not get a license.

Anyone with an outstanding judgment will not be granted a license until the amount is paid.

Landlord-tenant relations

Changes put restrictions on when and how landlords can lock out tenants, evict them or charge them late fees, and spell out requirements on handling background checks and staffing 24-hour emergency lines.

"It's good for everybody," says John Mitchell, executive director of the Apartment Association of Tarrant County. "It's important that laws be fair. Unfortunately, there are some landlords and property owners that don't always follow the law. We think it's in the best interests of everybody to protect their [tenant] rights."

Among the provisions: A landlord can no longer change the locks on an apartment when the tenant is inside. A landlord may not lock out a tenant for failure to pay rent unless that provision is written into the tenant's lease. A landlord may not charge a tenant a late fee for failing to pay rent unless notice of the fee is included in the written lease and the rent remains unpaid on the second day after the rental due date. Then a landlord may charge a late fee plus a daily fee for each day the rent continues to be late.

A landlord that has an on-site management or superintendent's office must provide tenants a telephone number that will be answered 24 hours a day to report emergencies that affect "the physical health or safety of an ordinary tenant." The landlord must post the phone number outside the office.

When an applicant is given a rental application, the landlord or his or her representative must give the applicant a printed notice of the landlord's tenant selection criteria and the grounds on which the applicant may be denied.

"It's an important law and it's embraced by both sides," Mitchell said. "That's important, actually. It's not one side against the other."

Mobile-home owners

If you buy a manufactured home in 2008, you have better protection under a new law. Licensing standards for dealers are more strict. Consumers can back out of predatory sales contracts. And mobile-home park tenants have more protections, too.

Buyers can change their minds and ask that their deposit money be returned up until the 15th day after a sales agreement. No penalties can be deducted. And this must be stated in large type in the printed agreement.

Installers may not place manufactured homes on sites with heavy water runoff unless the conditions are disclosed to the owner, who then signs a form accepting that risk.

Requirements to make repairs under warranty are tightened.

Sales of mobile homes that have been salvaged but haven't been repaired will be considered a Class B misdemeanor.

Owners are entitled to homestead tax exemptions, regardless of whether an owner lists the home as real property or personal property.

And at mobile-home parks, rules for terminating leases have been tightened to favor residents.

Smoke detectors

Any one-family or two-family residence built after Jan. 1 must have smoke detectors installed by licensed residential fire alarm technicians.

Owners who want to renovate older residential structures will be forced to comply with smoke detector regulations in the political subdivision where the structure is.

Although the other laws will benefit consumers, this one should save lives. It certainly is a wonderful way to start the new year.
Read more in the Fort Worth Star Telegram

Several law changes take effect with new year

By JIM VERTUNO - The Associated Press - Sat, Dec. 29, 2007
AUSTIN -- From Texas classrooms to investment in Sudan, the new year means that new state laws and programs are going into effect.

After Tuesday, Texas teachers will be required to start submitting fingerprints for criminal background checks. Two state pension funds will be required to divest from companies doing business with the Sudanese government, and law enforcement will soon have a new tool to catch uninsured motorists.

Teacher fingerprints

In the classroom, the Texas Education Agency will begin selecting school districts at random and giving educators 80 days to be fingerprinted for criminal background checks.

Texas began requiring national criminal background checks for all teaching candidates in 2003, but that law did not apply to teachers who were already certified. Since those checks began, almost 200 candidates have been found to have serious offenses on their records.

The new law requires all certified teachers to be fingerprinted by Sept. 1, 2011. Other school employees, such as janitors and cafeteria workers, will be required to complete the process at the time of their hire.

Pension divestments

State lawmakers ordered the pension funds for retired teachers and retired state employees to divest from certain international companies doing business with Sudan.

The United States has declared the killings of more of 200,000 people in the African nation since 2003 to be genocide and has largely blamed Sudan and government-backed militias.

Supporters of the effort have said it could result in a $500 million divestment by the two funds, which are worth more than $120 billion combined.

Uninsured motorists

The Texas Department of Public Safety and state insurance officials are working on a database that will allow officers to know immediately whether a driver who's been pulled over has insurance.

Insurance companies are required to submit lists of Texas customers, with weekly updates. An estimated 15 percent to 20 percent of drivers in Texas don't have valid insurance, and drivers can be ticketed $175 to $350 the first time they're caught without a policy.

The launch of the Texas Financial Responsibility Verification program may be pushed back to February.
Read more in the Fort Worth Star Telegram