SB 2221

S.B. No. 2221
  AN ACT
  relating to the filing of a fraudulent financing statement in
  relation to certain secured transactions; authorizing the
  imposition of a fee.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 9.5185, Business & Commerce Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 9.5185.  FRAUDULENT FILING.  (a)  A person may not
  intentionally or knowingly present for filing or cause to be
  presented for filing a financing statement that the person knows:
               (1)  is forged;
               (2)  contains a material false statement; or
               (3)  is groundless.
         (b)  A person who violates Subsection (a) is liable to a
  person injured by the violation [the owner of property covered by
  the financing statement] for:
               (1)  the greater of $10,000 [$5,000] or the [owner's]
  actual damages caused by the violation;
               (2)  court costs; and
               (3)  reasonable attorney's fees.
         (c)  A person who violates Subsection (a) also may be
  prosecuted under Section 37.101, Penal Code.
         (d)  An owner of property covered by a fraudulent financing
  statement described in Subsection (a) also may file suit in a court
  of suitable jurisdiction requesting specific relief, including,
  but not limited to, release of the fraudulent financing statement.
  A successful plaintiff is entitled to reasonable attorney's fees
  and costs of court assessed against the person who filed the
  fraudulent financing statement.  If the person who filed the
  fraudulent financing statement cannot be located or is a fictitious
  person, the owner of the property may serve the known or unknown
  defendant through publication in a newspaper of general circulation
  in the county in which the suit is brought.
         (e)  A person identified as a debtor in a financing statement
  that the person believes was not permitted to be filed under Section
  9.509, 9.708, or 9.808, or was otherwise filed in violation of
  Subsection (a), may, under penalty of perjury, file an affidavit
  stating the impermissibility of the statement with the filing
  office in which the statement was filed.  The secretary of state
  shall make available a form affidavit for use when filing an
  affidavit with the secretary of state under this subsection.  The
  affiant shall file the affidavit together with proof of notice
  required by Subsection (f).  The filing office shall reject an
  affidavit filed under this subsection if:
               (1)  the affidavit is incomplete; or
               (2)  the affiant did not file the affidavit together
  with proof of notice required by Subsection (f).
         (f)  A person who files an affidavit under Subsection (e)
  shall send each secured party of record a written notice of the
  person's intention to file the affidavit, together with a copy of
  the financing statement.  The notice must contain the following
  language at the beginning of the notice in at least 14-point
  boldfaced type: "An affidavit will be filed under penalty of
  perjury that the financing statement enclosed with this notice was
  impermissible under Texas law.  Once the affidavit is accepted, a
  termination statement will be filed with respect to the financing
  statement.  The termination statement will be effective as of the
  30th day after the date it is filed. If you were a regulated lending
  institution, as defined by Section 9.5185(r), Business & Commerce
  Code, on the date the financing statement was filed, you must notify
  the filing office in which the financing statement was filed that
  you qualify as a regulated lending institution not later than the
  90th day after the date the termination statement is filed.  If you
  believe that the financing statement was permitted to be filed
  under Texas law, you must bring an action against the affiant not
  later than the 90th day after the date on which the termination
  statement is filed.  The action must be brought in the district
  court in the county where the filing office in which the financing
  statement was filed is located."  The notice must be sent to the
  mailing address provided for each secured party of record in the
  financing statement to which the affidavit relates by certified
  mail, return receipt requested, not earlier than the 30th day
  before and not later than the 5th day before the date the affidavit
  is filed.
         (g)  On acceptance of an affidavit properly filed under
  Subsection (e), the filing office shall promptly file a termination
  statement with respect to the financing statement identified in the
  affidavit.  The termination statement must indicate that the
  statement was filed under this section.  Except as provided by
  Subsections (i) and (k), a termination statement filed under this
  subsection shall be effective as of the 30th day after the date the
  termination statement is filed.
         (h)  A secured party of record identified in a financing
  statement for which a termination statement has been filed under
  Subsection (g) may bring an action against the person who filed the
  affidavit under Subsection (e) seeking a determination of whether
  the person who filed the financing statement was entitled to file
  the financing statement.  An action under this subsection shall
  have priority on the court's calendar and shall proceed by
  expedited hearing.  The action must be brought in the district court
  in the county where the filing office in which the financing
  statement was filed is located.  An action under this subsection
  must be brought not later than the 90th day after the date on which
  the termination statement is filed.
         (i)  In an action brought under Subsection (h), a court may
  order, in appropriate circumstances, preliminary relief, including
  an order suspending the effectiveness of the termination statement
  from taking effect or directing a party to take action to prevent
  the termination statement from taking effect.  If the court issues
  an order under this subsection, and the filing office receives a
  certified copy of the order:
               (1)  the effectiveness of the termination statement is
  immediately suspended as of the date the order is filed with the
  filing office; and
               (2)  the filing office shall promptly file an amendment
  to the financing statement indicating that an order has suspended
  the effectiveness of the termination statement.
         (j)  If an order issued under Subsection (i) to suspend the
  effectiveness of the termination statement ceases to be effective
  due to a subsequent order or final judgment of a court, and the
  filing office receives a certified copy of the subsequent order or
  final judgment:
               (1)  the termination statement shall immediately
  become effective as of the date the order or judgment is filed with
  the filing office; and
               (2)  the filing office shall promptly file an amendment
  to the financing statement indicating that the termination
  statement is effective.
         (k)  If a court determines in an action brought under
  Subsection (h) that the financing statement was filed by a person
  entitled to file the statement, and the filing office receives a
  certified copy of the court's final judgment or order:
               (1)  the termination statement shall immediately
  become ineffective as of the date the order or judgment is filed
  with the filing office; and
               (2)  the filing office shall promptly file an amendment
  to the financing statement indicating that the financing statement
  has been reinstated.
         (l)  A financing statement reinstated under Subsection (k)
  or (q) is effective from the initial filing date and is considered
  to have never been ineffective against all persons and for all
  purposes except against a purchaser of the collateral described in
  the financing statement who gave value in reliance on the
  termination statement.
         (m)  If the period of effectiveness of a financing statement
  reinstated under Subsection (k) or (q) would have lapsed during the
  period of termination, a secured party of record may file a
  continuation statement not later than the 30th day after the
  financing statement is reinstated, and the continuation statement
  shall have the same effect as if it had been filed during the
  six-month period prescribed by Section 9.515(d).
         (n)  The filing office shall collect a fee for the filing of
  an affidavit under Subsection (e) in an amount sufficient to
  recover the cost of administering this section.  The filing office
  may not return a fee paid for filing a financing statement
  identified in the affidavit, even if the financing statement is
  subsequently reinstated.
         (o)  The filing office or an employee of the filing office
  may not be subject to liability for the termination or amendment of
  a financing statement in the lawful performance of the duties of the
  filing office under this section.
         (p)  An affidavit filed under Subsection (e) is not effective
  with respect to a financing statement filed by or on behalf of a
  regulated lending institution.
         (q)  A regulated lending institution must notify the filing
  office that it qualifies as a regulated lending institution under
  Subsection (p) not later than the 90th day after the filing of the
  termination statement under Subsection (g).  The secretary of state
  may prescribe a form for use when notifying the secretary of state
  under this subsection.  On timely receipt of a notice under this
  subsection, the termination statement shall immediately become
  ineffective, and the filing office shall promptly file an amendment
  to the financing statement indicating that the financing statement
  has been reinstated.
         (r)  For purposes of this section, "regulated lending
  institution" means an entity in the business of extending credit or
  acquiring, purchasing, selling, brokering, or servicing loans or
  other extensions of credit including a bank, savings bank, savings
  association, trust company, building and loan association, savings
  and loan association, credit union, consumer finance company,
  industrial bank, industrial loan company, insurance company,
  investment company, investment fund, installment seller, mortgage
  company, sales finance company, or leasing company that:
               (1)  is subject to licensure, regulatory oversight, or
  examination by a state or federal agency; and
               (2)  is operating as a regulated lending institution as
  of the date on which a financing statement is filed.
         SECTION 2.  Section 9.510(c), Business & Commerce Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (c)  Except as otherwise provided by Section 9.5185(m), a [A]
  continuation statement that is not filed within the six-month
  period prescribed by Section 9.515(d) is ineffective.
         SECTION 3.  Section 9.515(d), Business & Commerce Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (d)  Except as otherwise provided by Section 9.5185(m), a [A]
  continuation statement may be filed only within six months before
  the expiration of the five-year period specified in Subsection (a)
  or the 30-year period specified in Subsection (b), whichever is
  applicable.
         SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
  ______________________________
  ______________________________
     President of the Senate
  Speaker of the House     
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2221 passed the Senate on
  May 8, 2025, by the following vote:  Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that the
  Senate concurred in House amendment on May 30, 2025, by the
  following vote:  Yeas 31, Nays 0.
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate    
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2221 passed the House, with
  amendment, on May 28, 2025, by the following vote:  Yeas 129,
  Nays 5, one present not voting.
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
  Approved:
  ______________________________ 
              Date
  ______________________________ 
            Governor