April 17, 2013

TLTA Affirmative Agenda Makes Its Way Through the Legislative Process

Correction Instrument Legislation Heads to Consent Calendars in Both Chambers
TLTA-sponsored legislation to clarify that the date of a correction instrument relates back to the original filing date was voted favorably out of House and Senate Committees and is on track to be voted on by both chambers. This legislation, HB 1940, along with its companion legislation in the Senate, SB 887, would also provide the clear ability to treat an inadvertently omitted attachment as a nonmaterial correction.

TLTA Testifies on Deceased Borrower Streamlining, Penalties and Interest on Omitted Properties
TLTA Legislative Committee Chair Roland Love testified earlier this week in favor of legislation that would provide for a more efficient procedure to address a default by a deceased borrower and would help lessen title risk exposure. The legislation, HB 2795, is now pending in a subcommittee of the House Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence Committee, and we are hopeful it will be voted out favorably by the full committee soon.

Love also testified on behalf of TLTA earlier this week on legislation to provide for the ability of tax assessor collectors to waive interest and penalties on omitted properties. The legislation, HB 1913, is now pending in the House Ways & Means Committee.

The TLTA lobby team is continuing to work extensively with stakeholders on all of the legislation in our affirmative agenda to incorporate all of the feedback we have received.

Track the Progress of Legislation and Stay Informed
Stay tuned to this newsletter and the Legislative page on our website for updates on the progress of our affirmative agenda, as well as other legislation we're tracking that could impact the industry.

Trade Groups Urge CFPB to Extend Compliance Deadlines

Provide Clarity on Mortgage Rules
Credit News | April 12, 2013
In a letter to the CFPB, the Consumer Bankers Association, American Bankers Association, Financial Services Roundtable and Housing Policy Council urged the watchdog to extend compliance deadlines and provide clarification on its mortgage rules.

"The most important concerns that have been consistently and repeatedly stressed throughout is the need for clear rules and more than 12 months to comply," the associations said. "The new [mortgage] rules will significantly reshape the housing finance market, which comprises a substantial proportion of the GDP of the U.S. and touches the lives of nearly every American household. We want to work with the CFPB to get this right, for the sake of our customers, to avoid consumer confusion and to promote the nascent recovery of the housing market." Read More »

House to Feds: Pressure Mexico to Release Water

The Texas Tribune | April 11, 2013
The Texas House on Thursday unanimously passed a resolution that urges the U.S. State Department to pressure the Mexican government to release water owed to Texas under the terms of a 70-year-old treaty. House Concurrent Resolution 55 by state Rep. Eddie Lucio III, D-Brownsville, addresses the Treaty of Feb. 3, 1944 — also called the "Treaty of the Utilization of Waters of the Colorado and Tijuana Rivers and of the Rio Grande." Under its terms, Mexico is to deliver water to the U.S. from tributaries that feed into the Rio Grande, in exchange for water from the Colorado River. Read More »

Updates Expected Soon to the Basic Manual

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On May 1, a new rate chart will be incorporated into the Basic Manual, and in just a few months, the Texas Department of Insurance will publish a Rule Order addressing 72 agenda items that will significantly change the Basic Manual. 

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