SECTION 217.164. Limited Service Deputies

(a) A county tax assessor-collector, with the approval of the commissioners court of the county, may deputize a person to act as a limited service deputy. A limited service deputy may only process registration renewals, except as limited by this section, and may not prepare or accept an application for title transfer or initial registration.

(b) A limited service deputy offering registration renewal services to the general public must accept and process any proper application for registration renewal that the county tax assessor-collector would accept and process.

(c) The county tax assessor-collector may impose reasonable obligations or requirements upon a limited service deputy in addition to those set forth in this section. The county tax assessor-collector may, at the time of deputation or upon renewal of deputation, impose specified restrictions or limitations on a limited service deputy's authority to provide registration renewal services.

(d) A limited service deputy may be authorized by the county tax assessor-collector to provide registration renewal services only for the members, officers, employees, affiliates and customers of the deputy, and not to the public generally. If a limited service deputy does not provide services to the general public, the scope of the deputy's authority to provide registration renewal services to itself and its members, officers, employees, affiliates, and customers must be defined by the county tax assessor-collector as part of the authorization to act as a limited service deputy.

(e) To be eligible to serve as a limited service deputy, a person must be trained to accept and process registration renewals, as approved by the county tax assessor-collector, or otherwise be deemed competent by the county tax assessor-collector to perform such services.

(f) To be eligible to serve as a limited service deputy, a person must post a bond payable to the county tax assessor-collector consistent with §217.167 of this title (relating to Bonding Requirements) with the bond conditioned on the person's proper accounting and remittance of the fees the person collects.

(g) A person applying to be a limited service deputy must complete the application process as specified by the county tax assessor-collector. The application process may include satisfaction of any bonding requirements and completion of any additional required documentation or training of the deputy before the processing of any registration renewals may occur.

(h) If a limited service deputy offers services to the general public, the deputy must provide the physical address at which services will be offered, the mailing address, the phone number, and the hours of service. This information may be published on the department's website and may be published by the county if the county publishes a list of deputy locations.

(i) A limited service deputy shall keep a separate accounting of the fees collected and remitted to the county, and a record of daily receipts.

(j) A limited service deputy may retain fees consistent with the provisions of §217.168 of this title (relating to Deputy Fee Amounts).

Source Note: The provisions of this §217.164 adopted to be effective August 8, 2016, 41 TexReg 5787