By: Rosson S.B. No. 1001
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
1-1 relating to the powers and authority of the State Office of
1-2 Administrative Hearings.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 2, Chapter 591, Acts of the 72nd
1-5 Legislature, Regular Session, 1991 (Article 6252-13f, Vernon's
1-6 Texas Civil Statutes), is amended to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 2. State office of administrative hearings; chief
1-8 administrative law judge. (a) The State Office of Administrative
1-9 Hearings is a state agency under the direction of a chief
1-10 administrative law judge appointed by the governor for a two-year
1-11 term. To be eligible for appointment as chief administrative law
1-12 judge, a person must be licensed to practice law in this state,
1-13 must be board-certified in administrative law, and must have at
1-14 least five years' experience in conducting administrative hearings
1-15 under the Administrative Procedure and Texas Register Act (Article
1-16 6252-13a, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes).
1-17 (b) The office shall conduct all administrative hearings in
1-18 contested cases under the Administrative Procedure and Texas
1-19 Register Act (Article 6252-13a, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes)
1-20 <that are before an agency that does not employ a person whose only
1-21 duty is to preside as a hearings officer over matters related to
1-22 contested cases before the agency>.
1-23 (c) Hearings shall be conducted at a site to be designated
2-1 by the office, except when the site is specified by law or rule.
2-2 (d) The office may promulgate procedural rules to govern
2-3 hearings conducted by the office.
2-4 (e) The office may conduct hearings not governed by the
2-5 Administrative Procedure and Texas Register Act (Article 6252-13a,
2-6 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) at the request of other agencies.
2-7 (f) The office may provide nonbinding alternative means to
2-8 resolve disputes that are before it for administrative
2-9 adjudication.
2-10 (g) The office may contract to provide other agencies
2-11 training relating to the conduct of administrative hearings.
2-12 (h) The office may not conduct hearings in cases coming
2-13 before the Central Education Agency, the Comptroller of Public
2-14 Accounts, the Department of Agriculture, the General Land Office,
2-15 the Railroad Commission of Texas, the School Land Board, the Texas
2-16 Lottery Commission, and the Texas Youth Commission, except by
2-17 interagency contract.
2-18 SECTION 2. (a) By September 1, 1995, all personnel,
2-19 including hearings examiners and administrative law judges,
2-20 equipment, data, facilities, and other items of the hearings
2-21 divisions of other state agencies, except the Central Education
2-22 Agency, the Comptroller of Public Accounts, the Department of
2-23 Agriculture, the General Land Office, the Railroad Commission of
2-24 Texas, the School Land Board, the Texas Lottery Commission, and the
2-25 Texas Youth Commission, other than the personnel, equipment, data,
3-1 facilities, and other items of an agency's central records office,
3-2 shall have been transferred to the State Office of Administrative
3-3 Hearings. Until one year after the date of his or her transfer, an
3-4 employee transferred to the State Office of Administrative Hearings
3-5 may be terminated or subject to salary reduction only for cause and
3-6 only in relation to poor performance or unacceptable conduct.
3-7 (b) A hearings examiner or administrative law judge
3-8 transferred from a state agency to the State Office of
3-9 Administrative Hearings shall continue to hear any case assigned to
3-10 the person as if the transfer had not occurred.
3-11 (c) This Act takes effect September 1, 1993, and all
3-12 administrative hearings in contested cases conducted under the
3-13 Administrative Procedure and Texas Register Act (Article 6252-13a,
3-14 Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes) before other state agencies, except
3-15 the Central Education Agency, the Comptroller of Public Accounts,
3-16 the Department of Agriculture, the General Land Office, the
3-17 Railroad Commission of Texas, the School Land Board, the Texas
3-18 Lottery Commission, and the Texas Youth Commission, shall be
3-19 transferred to the State Office of Administrative Hearings by
3-20 September 1, 1995.
3-21 (d) Prior to September 1, 1995, the State Office of
3-22 Administrative Hearings may by interagency contract arrange to
3-23 conduct hearings on contested cases for any other state agency that
3-24 requests the office to conduct its hearings.
3-25 (e) Nothing in this Act shall be construed to impede the
4-1 transfer of any federal funds to a state agency. A state agency
4-2 that administers federally funded programs retains the
4-3 administration of those programs but, with the exception of any
4-4 agency named in Subsection (c) of this section, shall arrange by
4-5 interagency contract to have the State Office of Administrative
4-6 Hearings conduct hearings on contested cases that come before the
4-7 state agency.
4-8 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
4-9 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
4-10 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
4-11 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
4-12 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.