Sec. 345.157.  DELINQUENCY CHARGE.  (a)  A retail charge agreement may provide for the payment of:
(1)  a delinquency charge on each installment that is in default for a period that is longer than 21 days;
(2)  an attorney's reasonable fee if the agreement is referred for collection to an attorney who is not a salaried employee of the holder; and
(3)  court costs and disbursements.
(b)  The amount of a delinquency charge may not exceed $15.
(c)  Only one delinquency charge may be collected on an installment regardless of the duration of the default.
(d)  The holder shall remit 50 cents of each delinquency charge in excess of $10 collected under this section to the comptroller, in the time and manner established by the comptroller, for deposit to the credit of an account in the general revenue fund. One-half of the money in the account may be appropriated only to finance research conducted by the commissioner under Section 11.305 and the other one-half of the money in the account may be appropriated only to finance educational activities and counseling services under Section 394.001.
(e)  A customer's monthly statement must contain the following notice printed or typed in at least 10-point type that is boldfaced, capitalized, underlined, or otherwise conspicuously set out from the surrounding written material:  "A DELINQUENCY CHARGE OF $15 MAY BE ASSESSED FOR A PAYMENT THAT IS IN DEFAULT FOR A PERIOD THAT IS LONGER THAN 21 DAYS."
(f)  If the commissioner determines that a retail seller or creditor that was operating under this subchapter on September 1, 1999, and that charges a delinquency charge in excess of $10, moved its credit operations out of this state after September 1, 1999, in a manner that results in the retail seller's or creditor's retail charge agreements not being subject to this subchapter, the commissioner shall collect from the retail seller or creditor an amount equal to 25 cents for each delinquency charge in excess of $10 collected during the 12-month period preceding the date of the move.
Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1008, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.  Amended by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1348, Sec. 4, eff. Sept. 1, 1999.
Amended by: 
Acts 2011, 82nd Leg., R.S., Ch. 1182 (H.B. 3453), Sec. 8, eff. September 1, 2011.
Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 767 (H.B. 1442), Sec. 27, eff. September 1, 2019.