2023 Texas Statutes › Finance Code › Title 3 - Financial Institutions and Businesses › Subtitle A - Banks › Chapter 31 - General Provisions › Subchapter B. Regulation of Banking by Banking Commissioner › Section 31.105. Examination Required

Sec. 31.105.  EXAMINATION REQUIRED.  (a)  The banking commissioner shall examine each state bank annually, or on another periodic basis as may be required by rule or policy, or as the commissioner considers necessary to:
(1)  safeguard the interests of depositors, creditors, and shareholders; and
(2)  efficiently enforce applicable law.
(b)  The banking commissioner may:
(1)  accept an examination of a state bank by a federal or other governmental agency instead of an examination under this section; or
(2)  conduct an examination of a state bank jointly with a federal or other governmental agency.
(c)  The banking commissioner may:
(1)  administer oaths and examine persons under oath on any subject that the commissioner considers pertinent to the financial condition or the safety and soundness of the activities of a state bank; and
(2)  subpoena witnesses and require and compel by subpoena the production of documents not voluntarily produced.
(c-1)  If a person refuses to obey a subpoena, a district court of Travis County, on application by the commissioner, may issue an order requiring the person to appear before the commissioner and produce documents or give evidence regarding the matter under examination or investigation.
(c-2)  If a person currently serving as an officer, director, employee, controlling shareholder, or other position participating in the affairs of a state bank refuses to comply with a subpoena, the banking commissioner may issue an order on an emergency basis removing the person from the person's position and prohibiting the person from participating in the affairs of the state bank or any other entity chartered, registered, permitted, or licensed by the banking commissioner until the person complies with the subpoena.
(d)  Disclosure of information to the banking commissioner pursuant to an examination request or a subpoena issued under this section does not constitute a waiver of or otherwise affect or diminish an evidentiary privilege to which the information is otherwise subject.  A report of an examination under this section is confidential and may be disclosed only under the circumstances provided by this subtitle.
(e)  A subpoena issued to a financial institution under this section is not subject to Section 59.006.
(f)  Except to the extent disclosure is necessary to locate and produce responsive records or obtain legal representation and subject to Subsection (g), a subpoena issued under this section may provide that the person to whom the subpoena is directed or any person who comes into receipt of the subpoena may not:
(1)  disclose that the subpoena has been issued;
(2)  disclose or describe any records requested in the subpoena;
(3)  disclose whether records have been furnished in response to the subpoena; or
(4)  if the subpoena requires a person to be examined under oath, disclose or describe the examination, including the questions asked, the testimony given, or the transcript produced.
(g)  A subpoena issued under this section may prohibit the disclosure of information described by Subsection (f) only if the banking commissioner finds, and the subpoena states, that:
(1)  the subpoena, the examination, or the records relate to an ongoing investigation; and
(2)  the disclosure could significantly impede or jeopardize the investigation.
Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1008, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1997.  Amended by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 412, Sec. 2.03, eff. Sept. 1, 2001.
Amended by:
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 110 (H.B. 2007), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2007.
Acts 2007, 80th Leg., R.S., Ch. 237 (H.B. 1962), Sec. 5, eff. September 1, 2007.
Reenacted by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 87 (S.B. 1969), Sec. 10.002, eff. September 1, 2009.
Amended by:
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 940 (H.B. 1664), Sec. 3, eff. June 14, 2013.
Acts 2019, 86th Leg., R.S., Ch. 652 (S.B. 1823), Sec. 2, eff. September 1, 2019.
Acts 2023, 88th Leg., R.S., Ch. 989 (H.B. 3574), Sec. 3, eff. June 18, 2023.