Effective September 1, 2025, Texas Senate Bill 140 (SB 140) expands the state’s “telephone solicitation” laws to explicitly include SMS, MMS, image, and graphic messages, significantly increasing regulatory and legal requirements for businesses that send marketing texts to Texas residents—or operate out of Texas themselves.
The new law applies regardless of your location—if you send marketing messages to Texas residents, SB 140 applies. Depending on your circumstances, you may need to register, post a bond, and adhere to quiet-hour and disclosure rules.
Exemptions are narrowly tailored and include:
Current or former customers (if under the same business name for at least 2 years)
Brick-and-mortar retailers (same name for 2+ years; majority of sales in person)
Certain publicly traded companies and their subsidiaries
Financial institutions, educational institutions, 501(c)(3) nonprofits, and businesses selling food
If the law applies to your business, you must:
Register with the Texas Secretary of State using Form 3401
Pay a $200 annual fee
Post a $10,000 security deposit (e.g., bond, certificate of deposit, or letter of credit)
Renew annually
Send marketing texts only between 9 a.m.–9 p.m. (Mon–Sat) and 12 p.m.–9 p.m. (Sun), based on the recipient's local time
Ensure proper consent is obtained and that opt-out instructions are clearly included in every message, and immediately honored
Maintain detailed audit logs and consent records
SB 140 introduces powerful enforcement mechanisms, including:
Penalties up to $5,000 per violation
Private lawsuits under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), with no cap on repeat recovery even if a violation was previously litigated
We've built dedicated tools and workflows to help your business stay compliant with SB 140 right out of the box:
Flexible "Texas Compliance" Mode
Blocks or flags marketing texts to Texas residents unless registration and consent are verified
Manual changes to account needed by the client to update lead nurtures as well as add filters for texas customers.
Quiet Hours Enforcement
Ensures messages adhere to state-defined sending windows based on recipient time zones
This can be manually set in wait steps in your lead nurtures or at the workflow level to only run during business approved hours.
Consent & Opt-Out Automation
Captures and stores consent timestamps and sources.
Enables you as the customer to add opt out information to all templates.
Location-Aware Safeguards
Identifies Texas contacts (without relying solely on area codes) for tailored compliance handling
Audit Logs & Documentation Storage
Logs messaging activity, registration status, consents, and opt-outs
Allows uploading justification files for exemption status (e.g., business records stating same-name operation duration)
Note: Aesthetix CRM does not set this up for customers. Customers must make these updates to the system for compliance.
1 | Review your contacts—identify which reside in Texas |
2 | Evaluate exemptions—are you exempt under SB 140 exceptions? Document your rationale |
3 | If not exempt, register—file Form 3401, pay the fee, post the $10,000 bond deposit |
4 | Enable compliance tools—activate “Texas Compliance” mode, quiet hours, opt-out handling. Note this is all done manually by updating workflows, templates, etc. |
5 | Capture all consents—ensure timestamped, auditable records of user consent |
6 | Test opt-outs—make sure opt-out requests are honored immediately |
7 | Store documentation—keep proof of registration, consent, and operations history |
8 | Consider legal guidance—especially if claiming an exemption or unsure of your obligations |
This document is intended for educational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. For guidance tailored to your specific circumstances, please consult a qualified attorney.
Effective Date: September 1, 2025
Covered Communications: SMS, MMS, text, image, graphic messages
Key Requirements (if not exempt): Registration, bond, quiet hours, consent, opt-out, recordkeeping
Penalties: Up to $5,000 per violation and private lawsuits under DTPA
Aesthetix CRM Features: Texas compliance mode, quiet hours, consents, audit logs, exemption tracking
