While most laws passed in 2023 by the Texas Legislature have been in effect for a year, some will finally take effect on Jan. 1. Be sure to take note of the following changes:
The end of annual vehicle safety inspections
For years, the Transportation Code required annual safety inspections for non-commercial vehicles. However, House Bill 3297 repeals this section of the code.
Instead of a mandatory safety inspection, drivers will need to pay an inspection program replacement fee of $7.50 when registering or renewing the registration of a vehicle, trailer or mobile home. The first time a vehicle from the two previous model years is registered will incur a one-time fee of $16.75.
In some counties in the state (in which the North Central Texas Council of Governments says ozone pollutants are out of compliance with federal standards), vehicles are required to pass an emission test in order to get a vehicle registered. This means that drivers in Dallas, Collin, Denton, Tarrant, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker and Rockwall counties will still need to take their car to an inspection site annually.
State aid for school districts
Under the property tax relief legislation (Senate Bill 2), if school districts aren’t “fully compensated” through state funds, they’ll be entitled to additional state aid to make up for lost property tax revenue. The Texas Education Agency is also now required to post on its website each school district’s maximum compressed rate for the current and preceding tax years.
Personal data processing opt-out
A consumer data protection law found in a section of House Bill 4 enables consumers to designate an authorized agent to opt out of having their personal data sold or used in targeted advertising.
Consumers can do this through an online link, an Internet browser setting or extension, or settings on an electronic device to indicate their intent to opt out. As long as the authorized agent can verify “with commercially reasonable effort” the consumer’s identity and authorized agent’s authority to act on the consumer’s behalf, whoever is processing the personal data must comply with the request.
New district court in Denton County
Included in the judicial package of House Bill 3474 is a provision that creates the 477th Judicial District in Denton County. The county has 11 other district courts with jurisdiction in cases regarding felonies, divorce, land titles, elections and civil matters seeking damages or money of a $200 minimum.
Criminal code revisions
House Bill 4504 brings the “non-substantive revision of the Code of Criminal Procedures” which includes minor changes to “laws governing general powers and duties of peace officers, law enforcement interactions with public, venue, change of venue, justice and municipal courts, and expunction of criminal records.”