Overall Vote Recommendation

Neutral

Principle Criteria

Free Enterprise

Property Rights

Personal Responsibility

Limited Government

Individual Liberty

In Layman's Terms

SB 140 expands Texas telemarketing laws to cover text messages and other electronic solicitations and strengthens penalties for deceptive marketing practices. The House version significantly broadens the bill by allowing violations to be enforced under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, giving both consumers and the Attorney General stronger legal remedies.

Digest

SB 140 expands and strengthens Texas law governing telephone solicitations, telemarketing, and certain electronic solicitation-related communications by broadening statutory definitions and enhancing enforcement mechanisms against deceptive practices. Specifically, the bill updates the definition of "telephone solicitation" to expressly include not only telephone calls but also text messages, graphic messages, images, and other electronic transmissions intended to induce a consumer to purchase, rent, claim, or receive an item. This modernizes existing law to better reflect the ways businesses and bad actors communicate with consumers in today's digital environment.

Beyond expanding the scope of covered communications, SB 140 strengthens consumer protections by expressly classifying violations of Texas telemarketing and solicitation laws as false, misleading, or deceptive acts under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA). By doing so, the bill allows both public enforcement by the Attorney General and private enforcement through the remedies already available under the DTPA. The legislation also provides that individuals who have previously recovered damages for violations of these statutes are not barred from pursuing future legal actions for subsequent violations, ensuring that repeat offenders remain subject to liability for each separate unlawful act rather than benefiting from prior judgments.

Overall, SB 140 represents an expansion of consumer protection laws by adapting existing solicitation statutes to modern communication technologies and increasing the legal consequences for deceptive telemarketing practices. The bill does not establish a new regulatory program or licensing requirement, but it broadens the scope of conduct subject to enforcement and enhances the ability of consumers and the state to pursue legal remedies against violators. These changes are prospective and apply only to conduct occurring on or after the bill's effective date.

The House Committee Substitute substantially expands the scope of the Senate Engrossed version of SB 140. As passed by the Senate, the bill was a narrow, technical measure that simply added a definition of "telephone call" to Chapter 302 of the Business & Commerce Code by cross-referencing the existing definition in Chapter 304. The engrossed version made no substantive changes to the regulation of telephone solicitations, enforcement mechanisms, or consumer remedies; its sole purpose was to clarify statutory terminology.

The House Committee Substitute retains that definitional change but significantly broadens the bill by modernizing the definition of "telephone solicitation." Rather than limiting the statute primarily to telephone calls, the substitute expands coverage to include text messages, graphic messages, images, and other electronic transmissions used to solicit consumers. This change updates Texas law to reflect modern communication methods and extends existing consumer protection statutes beyond traditional voice calls.

The substitute also adds several new enforcement provisions that were absent from the Senate version. It requires Chapters 302 and 304 of the Business & Commerce Code to be liberally construed to protect consumers and clarifies that a claimant's prior recovery under those chapters does not limit recovery for future violations. More significantly, it provides that violations of Chapters 304 and 305 constitute false, misleading, or deceptive acts under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), allowing both public and private remedies available under the DTPA to be used for enforcement. These additions substantially strengthen the legal consequences for unlawful solicitation practices and expand the avenues available to consumers and the Attorney General to pursue violators.

Overall, while the Senate Engrossed version was a concise technical clarification consisting of only two sections, the House Committee Substitute transforms SB 140 into a comprehensive consumer protection measure. The substitute expands the types of communications regulated under Texas solicitation laws, strengthens statutory construction in favor of consumer protection, enhances private rights of action, and integrates existing solicitation statutes with the Deceptive Trade Practices Act. As a result, the House version is significantly broader in both scope and legal effect than the version approved by the Senate.

Author (1)

Bob Hall

Co-Author (2)

Lois Kolkhorst

Royce West

Sponsor (3)

Rafael Anchia

David Spiller

Angie Chen Button

Contact the Author

Sen. Bob Hall

Capitol Phone:

(512) 463-0102

Capitol Office:

CAP 1E.15

E-Mail:

[email protected]

Visit Official Website

Fiscal Notes

According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), SB 140 is not expected to have a significant fiscal impact on the state. While the bill substantially expands the scope of Texas's solicitation laws by including text messages, graphic messages, and images within the definition of regulated communications and by making violations of certain telemarketing statutes actionable under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), the costs associated with implementing and enforcing these changes are expected to be absorbed using existing state resources.

The fiscal note does acknowledge that the bill could generate additional state revenue through civil penalties imposed for violations of the DTPA. However, because the number of future violations, enforcement actions, and resulting penalties cannot be predicted, the Legislative Budget Board concluded that any revenue impact is indeterminate. As a result, while the bill has the potential to increase collections from civil penalties, neither the amount nor the frequency of those revenues can be reliably estimated.

For local governments, the LBB similarly anticipates no significant fiscal implications. Although local entities may be affected by the bill's expanded consumer protection framework, any administrative or enforcement-related costs are not expected to be substantial. Overall, SB 140 is projected to have a negligible budgetary impact on state and local governments, with any potential increase in revenue from civil penalties remaining uncertain and dependent on future enforcement activity.

Vote Recommendation Notes

As originally filed and passed by the Senate, SB 140 was a limited, technical measure designed to harmonize statutory definitions governing telephone solicitations. At that stage, the bill merely aligned the definition of "telephone call" across related provisions of the Business & Commerce Code and did not materially alter existing regulatory authority or enforcement.

The House Committee Substitute, however, substantially expands the bill beyond its original purpose. In addition to modernizing the definition of "telephone solicitation" to expressly include text messages, graphic messages, images, and other electronic transmissions, the substitute establishes that violations of the Texas Telemarketing Disclosure and Privacy Act and related solicitation statutes constitute deceptive trade practices under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA). It further authorizes both public and private enforcement through existing DTPA remedies and clarifies that prior recoveries do not limit future actions arising from subsequent violations. These changes significantly strengthen the legal consequences associated with solicitation-related communications.

While protecting consumers from deceptive business practices is a legitimate governmental interest, the House substitute shifts the bill from a technical clarification to a meaningful expansion of statutory liability and enforcement authority. By broadening the scope of regulated communications and increasing both public and private avenues for litigation, the legislation expands the reach of existing consumer protection laws without clear evidence that existing remedies are inadequate. Although the bill does not create a new regulatory agency or impose significant fiscal costs, it increases potential legal exposure for businesses engaged in solicitation activities and broadens government-backed enforcement mechanisms.

On balance, the House Committee Substitute presents competing policy considerations. The modernization of solicitation laws provides greater consumer protection and reflects current communication technologies, but it also expands regulatory reach and litigation risk. Given those competing factors and the bill's evolution from a narrow technical correction into a broader enforcement measure, Texas Policy Research remains NEUTRAL as the legislation contains both defensible consumer protection objectives and meaningful expansions of regulatory and legal liability.

Free Enterprise

Although protecting consumers from fraud supports confidence in the marketplace, the House substitute expands the scope of regulated communications and significantly broadens potential legal liability by incorporating violations into the Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Businesses engaged in marketing and solicitation face increased compliance obligations and expanded exposure to both public enforcement and private litigation. While these burdens are directed at deceptive practices rather than legitimate commerce generally, they nonetheless represent an expansion of regulation affecting private enterprise.

Property Rights

The bill does not affect the ownership, use, transfer, or protection of private property. Its focus is limited to commercial communications and consumer protection enforcement, leaving private property rights unchanged.

Personal Responsibility

The bill reinforces personal responsibility by holding businesses accountable for deceptive solicitation practices and ensuring they bear the consequences of misleading consumers. It also empowers consumers to pursue legal remedies when they are harmed by unlawful conduct, reinforcing the expectation that individuals and businesses alike should be responsible for their actions in the marketplace.

Limited Government

The House Committee Substitute represents a notable expansion of existing statutory enforcement authority. Rather than merely clarifying definitions, it broadens the categories of regulated communications, designates additional violations as deceptive trade practices under the DTPA, and expands both public and private enforcement mechanisms. Although it does not create a new agency or require significant additional appropriations, it increases the scope of existing government authority and the legal mechanisms available to enforce these provisions.

Individual Liberty

The bill seeks to protect consumers from false, misleading, and deceptive solicitation practices by expanding existing statutes to cover modern forms of communication such as text messages, images, and graphic messages. While it increases legal remedies against deceptive conduct, it does not restrict lawful speech or prohibit legitimate commercial communications. Businesses remain free to solicit consumers provided they comply with existing consumer protection laws. Because the bill balances consumer protection with continued freedom to engage in lawful commerce, its impact on individual liberty is best characterized as neutral.

Committee Vote Information

Senate Committee on Business & Commerce: 11Y/0N
House Committee on Trade, Workforce & Economic Development: 9Y/0N (2 Absent)

Related Legislation

HB 4719 (Same As)

View Bill Text and Status