| (a) Establishment of certification program.
(1) The Commission shall determine through the program
established by this subchapter appropriate facilities to house state-associated
held-in-trust collections generated or purchased by the Commission,
generated through antiquities permits issued under the authority of
the Commission as provided by the Texas Natural Resources Code, Chapter
191, donated to the Commission, or placed with the Commission through
the order of a court.
(2) The certification process shall consider the management
and care of all state-associated collections at the curatorial facility.
(3) The requirements of this subchapter related to
the placement of state-associated collections in certified curatorial
facilities shall apply to the following:
(A) All collections placed in curatorial facilities
by the Commission after December 31, 2005; and,
(B) All collections generated under antiquities permits
on public lands after December 31, 2005.
(4) Except as provided in paragraph (9) of this subsection,
no collection or any component of a collection as described under
the jurisdiction of this subchapter may be placed in a curatorial
facility that is not certified through the process established by
this section.
(5) This section does not apply to the placement of
collections in curatorial facilities prior to the effective date of
this requirement as specified in subsection (a)(3), above. It does
apply to any subsequent transfer of collections or a component of
a collection taking place after the effective date of this requirement
as specified in subsection (a)(3)(A) - (B), above.
(6) This section does not apply to the loan of a collection
or a component of a collection to a facility not certified by the
Commission.
(7) Certification shall be effective for a period of
ten years, after which time, the curatorial facility must apply for
renewal. Renewal will be based upon a review of the standing of the
facility in regards to disabling or deficiency factors assigned during
the initial certification and the standards for certification in place
at the time renewal is requested.
(8) The certification process shall be implemented
upon the effective date of these rules, and the staff of the Commission
shall develop procedures to begin the review of applicants at the
earliest possible date. The requirement that all new collections shall
be placed only in certified curatorial facilities shall be effective
as specified in subsection (a)(3)(A) - (B), above.
(9) A curatorial facility that has submitted the application
for certification provided by subsection (b)(1) of this section by
the date provided in subsection (a)(3) of this section may continue
to accept held-in-trust collections after that date so long as its
application is pending and the application process has not been terminated
or its application rejected by the commission.
(b) Procedures for Certification.
(1) Application. A curatorial facility seeking certification
from the Commission shall apply to the Commission on a form provided
by the Commission.
(A) The form shall require the applicant to provide
essential information and documentation to allow the Commission to
determine whether the facility is a curatorial facility within the
definition of that term.
(B) Staff of the Commission shall evaluate the application
and make a recommendation to the executive director on whether the
facility should be allowed to proceed with the certification process.
(C) The executive director may determine that the certification
review should be terminated at this point in the process. Such termination
would be due to a clear failure of the curatorial facility to meet
the criteria for certification developed under this subchapter.
(2) Submission of written materials for certification.
(A) The form shall require the applicant to provide
essential information and documentation to allow the Commission to
determine whether the facility is a curatorial facility within the
definition of that term.
(B) The self-evaluation and other materials must be
submitted to the Commission within six months after the certification
review packet is mailed. A one time extension not to exceed six months
may be granted by the Commission staff upon request.
(C) The completed documentation shall be reviewed by
the Commission. If clarification or additional information is requested
by the Commission, the facility shall have 30 days to furnish the
information required.
(D) Failure to provide the requested information or
inadequacy of the materials provided may lead to the termination of
the review process.
(E) Staff of the Commission shall review the self-evaluation
and other written materials provided and make a recommendation to
the executive director on whether the facility should be allowed to
proceed with the certification process.
(F) The executive director may determine that the review
should be terminated at this point in the process.
(3) Field review.
(A) A curatorial facility that has submitted its self-evaluation
and other written materials and approved to proceed with the certification
process shall be contacted to arrange for a field review.
(B) At a time to be agreed upon by the Commission staff
and the facility, an on-site evaluation of the facility shall be conducted
by the Commission.
(C) Field review of the curatorial facility will be
conducted by qualified staff of the Commission. Confidentiality will
be maintained within the limits of the Public Information Act.
(D) An applicant for certification must make their
facilities and records freely available to the field reviewers of
the Commission in order to be considered for certification.
(E) Upon completion of the on-site evaluation, the
persons performing the evaluation shall complete a written report
of the on-site evaluation.
(F) The written report and recommendation shall be
submitted to the executive director for his review. The executive
director may approve, disapprove, or amend the recommendation.
(G) The applicant shall be provided not less than 30
days notice of the Commission meeting when its application will be
considered and provided a copy of the executive director's recommendation,
the report of the on-site evaluation, and any other relevant documents.
(H) The applicant shall have the opportunity to present
written and oral information in support of its application to the
staff and the Commission or committees thereof.
(4) Consideration by the Commission.
(A) The Commission may direct that this matter be considered
in a committee of the Commission prior to consideration by the full
Commission.
(B) The Commission shall consider the recommendations
of the staff and/or executive director and all other matters submitted
or prepared in connection with the application and shall make a decision
on the certification of the curatorial facility. The decision of the
Commission shall be provided in writing to the curatorial facility.
If certification is denied, the Commission shall provide reasons for
the denial to the curatorial facility.
(C) The decision of the Commission shall be based on
the matters properly submitted in the certification process, and the
decision shall measure the qualifications, stated objectives, and
resources of the curatorial facility against the standards for certification
established by the Commission.
(i) The Commission shall consider the evaluation of
the curatorial facility and determine which, if any, disabling and
deficiency factors may be present in the curatorial facility.
(ii) The Commission shall grant certification of the
curatorial facility based on the disabling and deficiency factors
by the following standards:
(I) Four or more disabling factors, certification denied;
(II) Three or fewer disabling factors and no more than
four deficiency factors, certification granted;
(III) Three or fewer disabling factors and five or
six deficiency factors, provisional status granted; or
(IV) Three or fewer disabling factors and seven or
more deficiency factors, certification denied.
(D) If a curatorial facility is certified with existing
disabling factors or deficiencies, these factors must be addressed
before subsequent certification can take place. The curatorial facility
must submit a plan and schedule for correcting the factors to the
Commission within 90 days of the notice of certification. The Commission
shall consider the plan and schedule and either approve it or return
it to the curatorial facility with suggested revisions. The curatorial
facility shall resubmit the plan and schedule until approved by the
Commission. If these factors have not been addressed by the end of
its certification period, then the curatorial facility will be decertified
at the end of the certification period. The curatorial facility must
wait two years before reapplying for certification, at which time
it will be certified only if it has addressed all prior deficiency
and disabling factors.
(E) Provisional status.
(i) If the Commission determines that the curatorial
facility does not meet all of the qualifications for certification,
but should be granted provisional status, the curatorial facility
must submit a plan and schedule for correcting the factors to the
Commission within 90 days of the approval of provisional status. The
Commission shall consider the plan and schedule and either approve
it or return it to the curatorial facility with suggested revisions.
The curatorial facility shall resubmit the plan and schedule until
approved by the Commission. If such factors are addressed and appropriate
evidence of such measures is presented to the Commission, the Commission
may grant certification to the curatorial facility at the next succeeding
quarterly meeting of the Commission.
(ii) A curatorial facility that is granted provisional
status shall be considered as a certified curatorial facility unless
it subsequently fails to address the disabling and deficiency factors
within the time allotted, at which time the Commission may vote to
deny certification.
(iii) Provisional status shall initially be granted
for a period of three years. The period may be extended for up to
three one-year increments by the Commission if the curatorial facility
is determined to be making progress in remedying the disabling and
deficiency factors. Provisional status may not be extended beyond
the six-year limit. Each extension will require justification and
a vote of the Commission.
(F) Except as provided by this subchapter, a curatorial
facility that is denied certification by the Commission may not reapply
for certification within one year of the denial of its application.
(c) Appeal.
(1) If the executive director has determined that the
review of an application for certification of a curatorial facility
should be terminated prior to field review, the curatorial facility
may appeal that decision to the Commission by requesting in writing
a review of the decision at the next succeeding quarterly Commission
meeting, provided that such request must be received not less than
30 days prior to the meeting. The curatorial facility and the executive
director may submit arguments in writing to the Commission concerning
the appeal.
(2) If the executive director and/or staff recommend
against certification of a curatorial facility, the facility may respond
in writing to such recommendation. If the curatorial facility determines
that it needs additional time to respond to the staff and/or executive
director's recommendation, it may request that the consideration of
the certification be delayed until the next succeeding quarterly meeting,
and shall submit its response not less than 30 days prior to the next
succeeding quarterly meeting. Only one such delay in the consideration
of certification shall be granted, except on vote of the Commission.
(3) The staff or the executive director may comment
on any response of the curatorial facility.
(4) Except as may otherwise be provided by law, the
decision of the Commission on certification of a curatorial facility
is final.
(d) Criteria for Certification. Each applicant for
certification must meet the following criteria to be certified.
(1) The Commission shall develop and adopt objective
criteria for the evaluation of curatorial facilities.
(2) The criteria shall be in writing and shall be made
available to any person requesting them.
(3) The evaluation shall focus on the care and management
of all state-associated held-in-trust collections present at the facility.
(4) The following certification criteria will be used
to evaluate curatorial facilities:
(A) Governance.
(i) specific mission statement;
(ii) institutional organization document; and
(iii) evidence of not-for-profit status.
(B) Clear Fiscal Plan.
(C) Policy. Written, integrated collections management
policy addressing:
(i) acquisitions;
(ii) scope of collections;
(iii) legal title;
(iv) held-in-trust agreements;
(v) contract of gift;
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