- (a) The licenses issued by the department create positions of trust. License holder services involve access to confidential information; conveyance, titling, and registration of private property; possession of monies belonging to or owed to private individuals, creditors, and governmental entities; and compliance with federal and state environmental and safety regulations. License holders are provided with opportunities to engage in fraud, theft, money laundering, and related crimes, and to endanger the public through violations of environmental and safety regulations. Many license holders provide services directly to the public, so licensure provides persons predisposed to commit assaultive or sexual crimes with greater opportunities to engage in such conduct. To protect the public from these harms, the department shall review the criminal history of license applicants before issuing a new or renewal license and may take action on a license holder who commits an offense during the license period based on the guidelines in this chapter.
(b) When used in this chapter, the following words and terms have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
- (1) "Department" means the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles.
(2) "License" means any license issued by the department under:
- (A) Transportation Code, Chapter 503;
- (B) Occupations Code, Chapter 2301; or
- (C) Occupations Code, Chapter 2302.
- (3) "Retail license types" means those license types which require holders to interact directly with the public, but does not include other license types that do not generally interact directly with the public, including manufacturers, distributors, and general distinguishing number holders for the following vehicle categories: ambulance, axle, bus, engine, fire truck/fire fighting vehicle, heavy duty truck, transmission, wholesale motor vehicle dealer, and wholesale motor vehicle auction.
Source Note:The provisions of this §211.1 adopted to be effective October 31, 2020, 45 TexReg 7435; amended to be effective November 1, 2025, 50 TexReg 6501.