| (a) Filing of request.
(1) Any person who believes they have been aggrieved
in connection with an action of the Corporation may file a request
for administrative review by the Department under §80.011 of
the Code.
(2) A request must be made in writing and received
by the Department within 90 days of the alleged action which is the
subject of the complaint. Formal requests must comply with the following
requirements, and shall be resolved in accordance with the procedures
set forth below. Copies of the request and any supporting documentation
must be mailed or delivered by the requesting party to the Department
and the Corporation.
(b) Contents of request. A request filed under this
section must be sworn and contain:
(1) a specific identification of the statutory or regulatory
provision(s) that the action complained of is alleged to have violated;
(2) a specific description of each act alleged to have
violated the statutory or regulatory provision(s) identified in paragraph
(1) of this subsection, including an identification of the issue or
issues to be resolved;
(3) a precise statement of the relevant facts;
(4) argument and authorities in support of the allegations
made;
(5) any supporting documentation available; and
(6) a statement that a copy of the request has been
mailed or delivered to the Corporation.
(c) Informal Review.
(1) Once a request is received by the Department, it
shall be forwarded to the Department's Office of General Counsel for
review.
(2) The General Counsel, or his or her designee, shall
have the authority, prior to appeal to the Commissioner or designee,
to settle and resolve the complaint that is the subject of the request,
and may solicit additional information regarding the matters alleged
in the request for review from the requester, the Corporation, or
any other relevant party. Copies of any additional information received
shall be provided to both the requester and the Corporation.
(3) If the issues raised in the request are not resolved
by mutual agreement, the General Counsel will issue a written determination
on the request for review as follows.
(A) If the General Counsel determines that no violation
of rules or statutes has occurred, he or she shall so inform the requesting
party and the Corporation by letter, setting forth the reasons for
the determination.
(B) If the General Counsel determines that a violation
of the rules or statutes has occurred, he or she shall so inform the
requesting party and the Corporation by letter, setting forth the
reasons for the determination and the appropriate remedial action.
(4) If the General Counsel's determination is not appealed
within 15 business days, that determination shall serve as the final
agency determination on the complaint.
(d) Appeal to Commissioner.
(1) The General Counsel's determination may be appealed
to the Commissioner by the requester or the Corporation. An appeal
of the General Counsel's determination must be in writing and must
be received by the Department no later than 15 business days after
the date of the General Counsel's determination. The appeal shall
include specific reasons why the requester or the Corporation disagrees
with the determination. Copies of the appeal must be mailed or delivered
by the party appealing to the other party.
(2) The Commissioner, or his or her designee, shall
review the request for appeal and any supporting documentation submitted
with the appeal. The Commissioner shall be limited to review of the
original request for administrative appeal and supporting documentation
submitted with that request, and the General Counsel's determination.
(3) The Commissioner's determination of the appeal
shall be the final administrative action of the agency and is subject
to judicial review under Chapter 2001, Government Code.
(e) Actions Subject to Review.
(1) Request for review filed under §80.011 shall
be based on actions taken by the Corporation under Chapter 80 of the
Code.
(2) Actions subject to review under §80.001 do
not include:
(A) alleged violations that may be prosecuted administratively
by the Department under the §12.020 and/or §76.1555 of the
Code;
(B) bid protests and other disputes arising from a
bid made or a contract entered into with the Corporation under its
procurement manual, and covered by the Corporation's procurement dispute
resolution procedure; or
(C) disputes that have been resolved through a civil
or criminal action brought in a court of law.
(f) Appropriate remedial actions. If the Department,
or the Commissioner on appeal, determines that the Corporation acted
in a manner that warrants action by the Department, the Department
may prescribe corrective action to be carried out by the Corporation,
or refer its determination to the appropriate entity in accordance
with the §80.027 of the Code. The Department is not authorized
to award monetary damages to a person filing a request under this
section.
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