BILL ANALYSIS
S.B. 929
By: Barientos (Combs)
May 2, 1995
Committee Report (Amended)
BACKGROUND
The Texas State Board of Podiatry Examiners, in a proactive effort
to operate with greater efficiency and fiscal responsibility, needs
to do the following: 1) remove or update antiquated and limiting
language in its statute and, 2) bring its statutory language in
line with that now in common usage by other medical regulatory
boards in Texas and with podiatric medical regulatory and licensing
agencies around the United States.
PURPOSE
S.B. 929 would allow the Texas State Board of Podiatry Examiners
to: 1) move the time frame in which it collects its licensing fees
to conform with the state's fiscal year, 2) update statutory
definitions and its agency name to conform with common usage, and
3) remove or update language contained in its statute that is
antiquated or so limiting as to negatively affect the agency's
daily operations and its efficiency.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly
grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer,
institution, department, or agency.
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. Amends Article 4567(b)(1), Revised Statutes, and adds
Subdivisions (3) and (4), as follows:
(1) Renames Texas State Board of Podiatry Examiners to Texas
State Board of Podiatric Medical Examiners (the Board).
(3) Defines "podiatrist."
(4) Defines "podiatry."
SECTION 2. Amends 4567b, Revised Statutes, to reflect the Board's
name change.
SECTION 3. Amends Article 4568, Revised Statutes, as follows:
(a) Amends language to reflect name change of the Board.
(g) Reflects name change of Board, requires the Board to elect
officers biennially at its first regular scheduled meeting
instead of in January and deletes the requirement that a bond
be filed with the Secretary of State.
(h) Makes conforming change to reflect Board's new name.
(j) Replaces a reference to the Administrative Procedure and
Texas Register Act with a reference to the Government Code;
gives only the Board, and not individual members or
committees, the authority to request or compel by subpoena the
production of any evidence relevant to the investigation of an
alleged violation of this chapter. Adds a provision
authorizing the Board, if a person fails to comply with the
subpoena, to file suit to enforce the subpoena in court. The
added language also requires the court to order compliance
with the subpoena, if it determines that good cause exists,
and it makes failure to obey the order punishable as contempt.
Makes conforming and nonsubstantive wording changes.
SECTION 4. Amends Article 4568b, Revised Statutes, to reflect the
Board's name change.
SECTION 5. Amends Article 4569, Revised Statutes, as follows:
(a) Makes conforming name change.
(c) Removes the statement that examination be in the English
language, and adds the stipulation that all applicants who
possess the qualifications required for an examination shall
be issued a license by the Board to practice podiatry in
Texas. Changes the passing score to one determined by the
Board using accepted criterion-referenced methods instead of
levels prescribed by the chapter.
(d) Adds "pharmacology" and deletes "materia medica" from the
subjects required for examination, and stipulates that an
applicant will be examined on the subjects "as related" to
ailments of the human foot instead of subjects "limited in
their scope" to ailments of the human foot.
(f) Requires all applicants to pay the examination fee to the
Board, rather than to the secretary-treasurer of the Board.
(i) Requires the Board, rather than the secretary-treasurer
of the Board, to notify each examinee of the results of the
examination.
SECTION 6. Amends Subsection (b), Article 4569a, Revised Statutes,
to make conforming name changes.
SECTION 7. Amends Subsections (a), (c), (d) and (e), Article 4570,
Revised Statutes, as follows:
(a), (c) and (d) Amended to make conforming name changes.
(e) Grants any applicant who is refused admittance to
examination the right to try the issue in the District Court
in Travis County, instead of the county in which the applicant
resides or in which any Board member resides.
SECTION 8. Amends Sections 1(a) and (b), Article 4571, Revised
Statutes, as follows:
(a) Makes conforming name change.
(b) Makes conforming name change and requires the Board, on
or before October 1, rather than August 1, to notify all Texas
licensed podiatrists that the annual license renewal fee is
due on the following November 1, rather than September 1.
SECTION 9. Amends Sections 4 and 5, Article 4571, Revised
Statutes, to make conforming changes by deleting reference to the
secretary-treasurer of the Board and changing the name of the
Board.
SECTION 10. Amends Section 6(a), Article 4571, Revised Statutes,
to delete active duty with the United States Maritime Service of
the State Militia from the circumstances under which a lapsed
license can be renewed without fee or examination.
SECTION 11. Amends Article 4573, Revised Statutes, by amending
Subsections (g) and (h) and adding Subsections (j)-(n), as follows:
(g) Makes conforming name change.
(h) and (i) Re-letter existing Subsections.
(j) Makes privileged, confidential, and not subject to any
legal method of compelling release, investigative information
that is possessed, received or gathered by the Board that
relates to a license holder or application, or a criminal
investigation or proceeding.
(k) Sets forth guidelines for the Board to provide a license
holder, who is a subject of a formal complaint, or the license
holders' attorney, with access to information in the Board's
possession, and outlines limitations on release of
information.
(l) Authorizes investigative information possessed by the
Board that relates to a disciplinary action regarding a
license holder to be disclosed to a licensing agency or peer
review committee under certain circumstances.
(m) Requires the Board to report to the appropriate law
enforcement agency any information obtained during an
investigation which is indicative of a possible crime, and to
cooperate and assist the agency by providing relevant
information, which is to be kept confidential.
(n) Requires the Board to provide information to a health
care entity, upon request, concerning a complaint filed
against a license holder that was resolved and the basis of or
status of an ongoing investigation.
SECTION 12. Amends Sections 1(a) and (c), Article 4573b, Revised
Statutes, to make conforming name changes.
SECTION 13. Amends Sections 2-5, Article 4573b, Revised Statutes,
to make conforming name changes.
SECTION 14. Amends Section 4, Article 4573f, Revised Statutes, to
make conforming name changes.
SECTION 15. Amends Section 5(b), Article 4573f, Revised Statutes,
to make conforming name changes.
SECTION 16. Amends Sections 7(a) and (c), Article 4573f, Revised
Statutes, to make conforming name changes.
SECTION 17. Amends Section 8, Article 4573f, Revised Statutes, to
make conforming name changes.
SECTION 18. Amends Section 6, Chapter 96, Acts of the 60th
Legislature, Regular Session, 1967 (Article 4575a, V.T.C.S.), to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 19. Amends Article 60.061(a), Code of Criminal Procedure,
to make conforming changes.
SECTION 20. Amends Section 241.003(10), Health and Safety Code, to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 21. Amends Section 401.064(f), Health and Safety Code, to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 22. Amends Section 481.076(a), Health and Safety Code, to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 23. Amends Section 483.001(12), Health and Safety Code, to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 24. Amends Section 2(B), Chapter 397, Acts of the 54th
Legislature, Regular Session, 1955 (Article 3.70-2, Vernon's Texas
Insurance Code), to make conforming changes.
SECTION 25. Amends Article 21.52A, Insurance Code, to make
conforming changes.
SECTION 26. Amends Section 19(a)(1), Chapter 836, Acts of the 62nd
Legislature, Regular Session, 1971 (Article 4512e, V.T.C.S.), to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 27. Amends Section 2.08(a), Medical Radiologic
Technologist Certification Act (Article 4512m, V.T.C.S.), to make
conforming changes.
SECTION 28. Amends Section 1(b), Article 4512p, Revised Statutes,
to make conforming changes.
SECTION 29. Amends Section 5, Article 4518, Revised Statutes, to
make conforming changes.
SECTION 30. Amends Section 3, Healing Art Identification Act
(Article 4590e, V.T.C.S.), to make conforming changes.
SECTION 31. Repeals Section 1, Chapter 96, Acts of the 60th
Legislature, Regular Session, 1967 (Article 4567a, V.T.C.S.), which
defines podiatry and related terms.
SECTION 32. Effective date: September 1, 1995. States that
provisions of Subjection (j), Article 4568, Revised Statutes, as
amended by this Act, and Subsections (j)-(n), Article 4573, Revised
Statutes, as added by this Act, apply only to a proceeding
commenced by the Texas State Board of Podiatric Medical Examiners
on or after the effective date of this Act. A proceeding commenced
before the effective date is governed by law in effect at the time,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 33. Emergency clause.
EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENT
Committee Amendment #1 withdraws language proposed in the engrossed
bill which stipulates that the term "podiatrist," as defined in
this Act, includes a "podiatric physician." The amendment also
removes the addition of the title "podiatric physician" as one of
the identifications a person licensed by the Texas State Board of
Podiatric Medical Examiners shall use, as proposed in the bill as
engrossed.
SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION
S.B. 929 was considered by the Public Health Committee in a public
hearing on May 2, 1995.
The committee considered one amendment to the bill. The amendment
was adopted without objection. The bill was reported favorably as
amended, with the recommendation that it do pass and be printed, by
a record vote of 6 ayes, 0 nays, 0 PNV, and 3 absent.