The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, have
the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Advisory Board--A board, committee, council, or
other entity with multiple members that has as its primary function
advising the commission or the department.
(2) ALJ--Administrative law judge employed by the State
Office of Administrative Hearings.
(3) Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Administrator--The
trained coordinator designated by the commission to coordinate and
oversee the negotiated rulemaking and ADR procedures used by the department;
to serve as a resource for any training needed to implement the negotiated
rulemaking and ADR procedures; and to collect data concerning the
effectiveness of the negotiated rulemaking and ADR procedures. The
ADR Administrator also may conduct ADR proceedings, serve as a mediator,
or appoint other persons to serve as mediators. The department's general
counsel or the general counsel's designee is designated by the commission
to serve as the ADR Administrator.
(4) Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Procedures
or Process--The umbrella term that includes different types of alternative
processes to judicial forums or administrative agency contested case
proceedings for the voluntary settlement of contested matters through
the facilitation of an impartial third-party. Mediation is one type
of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process.
(5) APA--The Administrative Procedure Act, Texas Government
Code, Chapter 2001.
(6) Applicant--Any person seeking a license from the
department.
(7) Commission--Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation.
(8) Complainant--Any person who has filed a complaint
with the department against any person whose activities are subject
to the jurisdiction of the commission and the department.
(9) Contested case --A proceeding, including a licensing
proceeding, in which the legal rights, duties, or privileges of a
party are to be determined by the commission or the executive director
after an opportunity for adjudicative hearing.
(10) Department--Texas Department of Licensing and
Regulation.
(11) Director of Enforcement--The person who directs
and oversees investigations, prosecutions, and other activities of
the enforcement division of the department.
(12) Emergency--Any of the following events that prevent
a person from taking a scheduled examination:
(A) death of a spouse or family member within the second
degree of consanguinity;
(B) personal medical necessity;
(C) medical necessity of a spouse or dependent; or
(D) severe weather or act of God that prevents the
person from reaching the examination site.
(13) Executive Director--The head administrative official
of the department.
(14) License--A license, certificate, registration,
title, commission, or permit issued by the department.
(15) License holder--A person who holds a license issued
by the department.
(16) Mediation--A confidential, informal dispute resolution
process in which an impartial person, the mediator, facilitates communication
between or among the parties to promote reconciliation, settlement,
or understanding among them. Mediation is one type of alternative
dispute resolution (ADR) process.
(17) Mediator--The impartial person who presides over
a mediation. The mediator may be a department employee, an employee
from another Texas state agency, or a person in the mediation profession
who is not a Texas state employee.
(18) Negotiated Rulemaking--A consensus-based process
prescribed under Texas Government Code, Chapter 2008, in which the
department develops a proposed rule by using a neutral facilitator
and a balanced negotiating committee composed of representatives of
all interests that the rule will affect including those interests
represented by the department itself.
(19) Party--A person or state agency named or admitted
as a party to participate in a contested case.
(20) Penalty or Administrative Penalty--A monetary
fine imposed by the commission or the executive director on a license
holder or other person who has violated this chapter or a statute
or rule governing a program regulated by the department.
(21) Person--Any individual, partnership, corporation,
organization, association, or other legal entity, including a state
agency or governmental subdivision.
(22) Presiding Officer--The commission member designated
by the Governor to serve as the lead commission official as defined
under Texas Occupations Code §51.056.
(23) Respondent--Any person, regardless of whether
the person is licensed or unlicensed, who is charged with violating
a law establishing a regulatory program administered by the department
or a rule adopted by or an order issued by the commission or the executive
director.
(24) Rule--Any commission statement of general applicability
that implements, interprets, or prescribes law or policy, or describes
the procedure or practice requirements of the commission or the department.
(25) Sanction--An action by the commission or executive
director against a license holder or another person, including the
denial, suspension, or revocation of a license, the reprimand of a
license holder, the placement of a license holder on probation, or
refusal to renew.
(26) SOAH--State Office of Administrative Hearings.
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