| (4) Test results shall be kept in units of microcurie
or becquerel and maintained for inspection by the agency.
(5) The following shall be considered evidence that
a sealed source is leaking:
(A) the presence of 0.005 µCi (185 Bq) or more
of removable contamination on any test sample;
(B) leakage of 0.001 µCi (37 Bq) of radon-222
per 24 hours for brachytherapy sources manufactured to contain radium;
or
(C) the presence of removable contamination resulting
from the decay of 0.005 µCi (185 Bq) or more of radium.
(6) The licensee shall immediately withdraw a leaking
sealed source from use and shall take action to prevent the spread
of contamination. Within two years of the determination that a sealed
source is leaking, the leaking sealed source shall be repaired or
transferred for disposal in accordance with §289.202 of this
title. The licensee shall check the equipment associated with the
leaking source for radioactive contamination and, if contaminated,
have it decontaminated or disposed of in accordance with §289.202
of this title.
(7) Reports of test results for leaking or contaminated
sealed sources shall be made in accordance with §289.202(bbb)
of this title.
(h) Additional requirements. The agency may, by rule,
order, or condition of license or general license acknowledgment,
impose upon any licensee such requirements in addition to those established
in this chapter as it deems appropriate or necessary to minimize danger
to public health and safety or property or the environment.
(i) Violations. An injunction or other court order
may be obtained prohibiting any violation of any provision of the
Act or any rule or order issued thereunder. Any person who willfully
violates any provision of the Act or any rule or order issued thereunder
may be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction, may be punished
by fine or imprisonment or both, as provided by law.
(j) Impounding. Sources of radiation shall be subject
to impounding in accordance with §401.068 of the Act and §289.205
of this title (relating to Hearing and Enforcement Procedures).
(k) Communications.
(1) Except where otherwise specified, all communications
and reports concerning this chapter and applications filed under them
should be addressed to Radiation Control, Department of State Health
Services, P.O. Box 149347, Austin, Texas, 78714-9347. Communications,
reports, and applications may be delivered in person to the agency's
office located at 8407 Wall Street, Austin, Texas.
(2) Documents transmitted to the agency will be deemed
submitted on the date of the postmark, facsimile, or other electronic
media transmission.
(l) Interpretations. Except as specifically authorized
by the agency in writing, no interpretation of the meaning of this
chapter by any officer or employee of the agency other than a written
interpretation by the Office of General Counsel, Department of State
Health Services, will be considered binding upon the agency.
(m) Open records.
(1) Subject to the limitations provided in the Texas
Public Information Act, Government Code, Chapter 552, all information
and data collected, assembled, or maintained by the agency are public
records open to inspection and copying during regular office hours.
(2) Any person who submits written information or data
to the agency and requests that the information be considered confidential,
privileged, or otherwise not available to the public under the Texas
Public Information Act, shall justify such request in writing, including
statutes and cases where applicable, addressed to the agency.
(A) Documents containing information that is claimed
to fall within an exception to the Texas Public Information Act shall
be marked to indicate that fact. Markings shall be placed on the document
on origination or submission.
(i) The words "NOT AN OPEN RECORD" shall be placed
conspicuously at the top and bottom of each page containing information
claimed to fall within one of the exceptions.
(ii) The following wording shall be placed at the bottom
of the front cover and title page, or first page of text if there
is no front cover or title page:
Attached Graphic
(B) The agency requests, whenever possible, that all
information submitted under the claim of an exception to the Texas
Public Information Act be extracted from the main body of the application
and submitted as a separate annex or appendix to the application.
(C) Failure to comply with any of the procedures described
in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph may result in all information
in the agency file being disclosed upon an open records request.
(3) The agency will determine whether information falls
within one of the exceptions to the Texas Public Information Act.
The Office of General Counsel will be queried as to whether or not
there has been a previous determination that the information falls
within one of the exceptions to the Texas Public Information Act.
If there has been no previous determination and the agency believes
that the information falls within one of the exceptions, an opinion
of the Attorney General will be requested. If the agency agrees in
writing to the request, the information shall not be open for public
inspection unless the Attorney General's office subsequently determines
that it does not fall within an exception.
(4) Requests for information.
(A) All requests for open records information must
be in writing and refer to documents currently in possession of the
agency.
(B) The agency will ascertain whether the information
may be released or whether it falls within an exception to the Texas
Public Information Act.
(i) The agency may take a reasonable period of time
to determine whether information falls within one of the exceptions
to the Texas Public Information Act.
(ii) If the information is determined to be public,
it will be presented for inspection and/or copies of documents will
be furnished within a reasonable period of time. A fee will be charged
to recover agency costs for copies.
(C) Original copies of public records may not be removed
from the agency. Under no circumstances shall material be removed
from existing records.
(n) Mean quality factors and absorbed dose equivalencies.
(1) As used in this chapter, the quality factors for
converting absorbed dose to dose equivalent are shown in the following
table:
Attached Graphic
(2) If it is more convenient to measure the neutron
fluence rate than to determine the neutron dose equivalent rate in
sievert per hour or rem per hour, as provided in paragraph (1) of
this subsection, 1 rem (0.01 Sv) of neutron radiation of unknown energies
may, for purposes of this section, be assumed to result from a total
fluence of 25 million neutrons per square centimeter incident upon
the body. If sufficient information exists to estimate the approximate
energy distribution of the neutrons, the licensee may use the fluence
rate per unit dose equivalent or the appropriate Q value from the
following table to convert a measured tissue dose in rad (gray) to
dose equivalent in rem (Sv).
Attached Graphic
(o) Units of activity. For purposes of this chapter,
activity is expressed in the special unit of curie (Ci), (Bq), or
its multiples, or disintegrations or transformations per second (dps
or tps).
(1) 1 Ci = 3.7 x 1010 dps
or tps = 3.7 x 1010 Bq = 2.22 x 1012 disintegrations or transformations per minute
(dpm or tpm).
(2) 1 Bq = 1 dps or tps.
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §289.201 adopted to be effective October 1, 1995, 20 TexReg 6454; amended to be effective May 20, 1996, 21 TexReg 4051; amended to be effective March 1, 1998, 23 TexReg 1045; amended to be effective October 1, 2000, 25 TexReg 4825; amended to be effective April 29, 2003, 28 TexReg 3498; amended to be effective February 22, 2009, 34 TexReg 1065; amended to be effective February 18, 2010, 35 TexReg 1223; amended to be effective March 22, 2015, 40 TexReg 1386; amended to be effective March 1, 2016, 41 TexReg 1444 |
