PURPOSE
To inform you of the provisions of Senate Bill 1507 (copy attached), which were enacted by the 78^th Legislative Session. This legislation becomes effective on September 1, 2003.

DETAILS
Senate Bill 1507 amends the Transportation Code, by adding §501.076, which provides specific use of powers of attorney (POAs) for the sale of vehicles purchased with "balloon-note due" contracts. The specifics of the POA are as follows:

• May be executed on the date that the owners sign the "balloon-note due" contract or at any time after that;
• Is not required to include odometer disclosure statements from the owners;
• Limits the person appointed and may not include the transferee or an employee of the transferee; and
• May include an odometer disclosure statement if executed within 120 days before the date of the transfer and accompanied by specific written notification.

Note: A separate odometer disclosure by the owner is not required to accompany the title transaction. It may remain with the transferee, and the POA shall disclose the odometer certification provided by the owner.

COUNTY ACTION
Under this legislation, County Tax Assessor-Collectors should accept title transfers with the limited POA as an approved form for transfer of ownership.

There are several things the county tax offices will need to be aware of with the introduction of this legislation.

• The limited POA can be dated and signed at the time the "balloon-note due" contract is signed by the purchaser, or at any time after that.
• There is the possibility that the limited POA could be multiple years old at the time of transfer of ownership.
• Since the department will not prescribe the limited POA, there could be several versions and all versions would be acceptable.
• The holder of the contract must include a statement confirming that the vehicle was returned at the election of the owners and not as a result of remedies for default.

DEPARTMENT ACTION
The Motor Vehicle Title Manual will be revised to include this legislative amendment and title transaction procedure.

VTR CONTACT PERSON(S)
If you have any questions regarding this bulletin, please contact your local Vehicle Titles and Registration Division Regional Office. Thank you very much for your continued support.

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