HBA-DMD, RAR C.S.H.B. 571 76(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisC.S.H.B. 571 By: Hupp Public Safety 4/9/1999 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, driver's licenses issued by the state contain certain information about the driver's license holder in electronically readable form. Applicants for a driver's license are also required to provide fingerprints. C.S.H.B. 571 prohibits the Department of Public Safety from including any information on a driver's license, commercial driver's license, or identification certificate in electronically readable form other than the specified information. This bill requires the department to take necessary steps to ensure that the information is used only for law enforcement or governmental purposes. It establishes that the unauthorized use of the information is a Class A misdemeanor. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter F, Chapter 521, Transportation Code, by adding Section 521.126, as follows: Sec. 521.126. ELECTRONICALLY READABLE INFORMATION. Prohibits the Department of Public Safety of the State of Texas (department) from including any information on a driver's license, commercial driver's license, or identification certificate in an electronically readable form other than the information printed on the license and a physical description of the licensee. Requires the department to take necessary steps to ensure that the information is used only for law enforcement or governmental purposes. Sets forth that the unauthorized use of the information is a Class A misdemeanor. SECTION 2. Makes application of this Act prospective. SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 4. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE C.S.H.B. 571 differs from the original bill in SECTION 1 (Section 521.126, Transportation Code) by providing that no information other than that printed on the license and a physical description of the licensee may be included in an electronically readable form on a driver's license, commercial driver's license, or an identification certificate. this section of the original bill prohibited the Department of Public Safety from including any information on a driver's license in an electronically readable form. This substitute deletes SECTION 2 (Sections 521.142(b) and (e), Transportation Code) from the original bill, which prohibit the department from requiring an applicant for a driver's license to provide the applicant's thumbprint or fingerprint. This substitute redesignates the prospective clause, effective date, and emergency clause from SECTIONS 3, 4, and 5 of the original to SECTIONS 2, 3, and 4, of the substitute respectively.