HBA-DMH H.B. 1214 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1214 By: Pitts Licensing & Administrative Procedures 3/1/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Currently, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) ensures public safety and welfare by regulating many diverse occupations. The duties of TDLR include issuing licenses, conducting inspections, investigating complaints, issuing penalties, setting rules and standards, and holding hearings. The Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation (commission) is required to appoint six commissioners including one who serves as executive director of TDLR. The term commissioner causes confusion, because it is used to refer to all six commissioners, including the one commissioner that serves a one-year term as executive director. The commission does not have the authority to replace the commissioner prior to the annual review regardless of quality of performance. House Bill 1214 modifies language to clarify the role of the commissioners and the executive director of TDLR, and repeals provisions relating to term of the commissioner to authorize the commission to replace an executive director at any time. The bill creates uniformity in the licensing renewal process, increases the administrative penalty, and modifies administrative hearing requirements. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation in SECTION 19 (Section 51.201, Occupations Code) and transferred from the commissioner of licensing and regulation to the executive director of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation throughout the bill. ANALYSIS House Bill 1214 amends the Occupations Code to redesignate the commissioner of licensing and regulation (commissioner), who serves as the executive director of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), as the executive director of TDLR (executive director) and provides that the executive director serves at the will of the Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation (commission) (Sec. 51.101). The bill modifies in the Occupations, Health and Safety, and Labor codes references to the commissioner, as applicable, in the provisions regulating TDLR to reflect this redesignation. The bill modifies provisions in the Occupations Code relating to the powers and duties of the executive director (Secs. 51.103, 51.104, 51.202, 51.252, 51.309, 51.353, and 51.354). The bill provides that TDLR is governed by the commission, rather than the commission and the commissioner, and requires the commission to adopt rules as necessary to implement provisions relating to TDLR (Secs. 51.051 and 51.201). The bill modifies the eligibility requirements for appointment to and grounds for removal from the commission, and provides voting guidelines for the presiding officer of the commission (Secs. 51.053, 51.056, and 51.057). The bill modifies provisions relating to license expiration and renewal to assign such duties to the executive director, rather than the commission, and provide that licenses expire annually, instead of on various dates during the year (Sec. 51.205). The bill authorizes the executive director or commission, rather than the commission, to impose an administrative penalty against a person who commits specified violations, and if the relevant law establishing a program regulated by TDLR does not state the maximum amount of the penalty, the bill requires the executive director or commission to assess a penalty in an amount that does not exceed $5,000, rather than $1,000, for each violation (Secs. 51.301 and 51.302). The bill sets forth provisions for the imposition of sanctions and penalties and modifies provisions relating to injunctive relief and civil penalties and the notice of a violation and its administrative penalty. The bill removes the provision that prohibits a civil penalty from exceeding $1,000 for each violation or $250,000 in the aggregate (Secs. 51.3025, 51.303, and 51.352). The bill removes the provision that prohibits the career ladder program from penalizing or otherwise adversely affecting an employee who chooses not to move from one office location to another, removes the provision that permits delegation of the development of the program or system of performance evaluation, and provides that the system must require evaluations to be conducted at least annually, rather than annually (Sec. 51.107). The bill repeals law relating to membership and employee restrictions, the commissioner's term and vacancy, qualifications and standards of conduct, and the annual report (Secs. 51.054, 51.102, 51.106, and 51.206). The bill deletes provisions permitting the delegation of the preparation or maintenance of a written policy regarding equal opportunity employment and a requirement that the governor deliver a biennial report (Sec. 51.108). The bill deletes references to registrations, certificates, titles, and permits throughout. The bill deletes provisions relating to imposition of an administrative penalty and fees paid by the owner of a building (Secs. 5 and 6, Article 9102, V.T.C.S.). EFFECTIVE DATE On passage, or if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2001.