SB2167

The new-location license requirement already applied to massage establishments; SB2167 extends it to massage schools. A school or establishment cannot simply move its existing license to another location. Final law, section 1; Prior establishment-only rule.

The Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation or the department’s executive director may postpone deciding an establishment or school application while the applicant is subject to a qualifying emergency order under the existing human-trafficking provision. If the applicant is an entity, an order against any owner or operator counts. This delay lasts for the period the emergency order remains in effect; it is not the separate 90-day provision. The existing emergency-order procedure includes a hearing process when an order is issued without a hearing. Final law, section 2, subsection (d); Qualifying emergency-order grounds; Emergency-order procedure.

A separate delay of up to 90 days after a complete application is received is allowed when there is reasonable cause to believe a Penal Code Chapter 20A trafficking offense is occurring or likely at the proposed location, or occurred at an establishment or school owned or operated by the applicant. For an entity applicant, the past-location provision also covers a location operated by any owner or operator of that applicant. The clock includes receipt of additional requested application materials; it does not necessarily start with the first incomplete filing. Final law, section 2, subsections (e)–(f).

Civil penalties recovered under Occupations Code 455.351 in actions by district or county attorneys go to the general fund of the county where the court sits; recoveries in municipal-attorney actions go to the municipality’s general fund. Those funds may be used only to combat human trafficking. This is a rule for those civil-penalty recoveries, not all criminal fines or every kind of recovered expense. The existing rule directing attorney-general or department civil-penalty recoveries to the state treasury is unchanged. Final law, section 3; Existing civil-penalty framework.

Changes during passage: The Senate substitute clarified “massage school” in the emergency-order delay provision. The Senate-passed and House committee texts matched. Thompson’s sole indexed House amendment, adopted May 27 on third reading, added the local civil-penalty dedication; the Senate concurred May 30 and that language appears in the final law. The commission must adopt implementing rules as soon as practicable after the effective date. Introduced; Senate substitute; Senate-passed; House committee; House amendment; Disposition index; Version index; Final law, sections 3–4.

Compare the published text versions in the official text index. A change is not attributed to a specific amendment here without a verified record.

Regulators gain time to consider the specified risks before issuing a license, and local civil-penalty recoveries are reserved for anti-trafficking work. Applicants may face delays and relocating schools must obtain a new license. The act does not establish that any particular business committed an offense, guarantee recoveries, or measure how much trafficking will be prevented. Final law.

The May 28 final-stage fiscal note anticipates no significant state fiscal impact, assumes implementation within existing resources and anticipates no local-government fiscal impact. The earlier April 9 and April 15 notes reach the same budget conclusions. These estimates do not eliminate private relocation or delay costs; the act makes no appropriation. Final-stage fiscal note; Introduced note; Substitute note.