| (a) Board action. A copy of the final decision or order
shall be delivered or mailed to any party and to the attorney of record.
(b) Recorded. All final decisions and orders of the
Board shall be in writing and shall be signed by the president, vice-president,
or secretary and reported in the minutes of the meeting. A final order
shall include findings of fact and conclusions of law, separately
stated.
(c) Imminent peril. If the Board finds that imminent
peril to the public's health, safety, or welfare requires immediate
effect of a final decision or order in a contested case, it shall
recite the finding in the decision or order as well as the fact that
the decision or order is final and effective on the date rendered,
in which event the decision or order is final and appealable on the
date rendered and no motion for rehearing is required as a prerequisite
for appeal.
(d) Changes to findings of fact and conclusions of
law.
(1) Reasons to change findings of fact and conclusions
of law. The Board is charged by the legislature to protect the public
interest, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the
government of the State of Texas, and is the primary means of licensing,
regulating and disciplining veterinarians, licensed veterinary technicians,
and equine dental providers. Therefore, to ensure that sound veterinary
medical principles govern the decisions of the Board, it is the policy
of the Board to change a finding of fact or conclusion of law or to
vacate or modify any proposed order of an ALJ only when the Board
determines:
(A) that the ALJ did not properly apply or interpret
applicable law, Board rules, written policies, or prior administrative
decisions;
(B) that a prior administrative decision on which the
ALJ relied is incorrect or should be changed; or
(C) that a technical error in a finding of fact should
be changed.
(2) Recommendations regarding the appropriate sanction.
Section 801.456(a) of the Veterinary Licensing Act requires that,
after receiving the ALJ's findings of fact and conclusions of law,
the Board may determine that a violation occurred and impose an administrative
penalty. The Board interprets this requirement as imposing on the
Board the responsibility of assessing the proper sanction. While the
Board welcomes the recommendations of ALJs regarding the appropriate
sanction, the Board does not consider the findings of fact and conclusions
of law to be appropriate for stating such recommendations. Therefore,
sanction recommendations in the form of findings of fact and conclusions
of law are considered to be an improper application of applicable
law and these rules.
(3) Changes stated in final order. If the Board modifies,
amends, or changes the ALJ's proposed findings of fact or conclusions
of law, an order shall be prepared reflecting the specific reason
and legal basis for each change made.
(e) Administrative finality. A final order or Board
decision is administratively final:
(1) upon a finding of imminent peril to the public's
health, safety or welfare, as outlined in subsection (c) of this section;
(2) when no motion for rehearing has been filed within
20 days after the date the final order or Board decision is entered;
or
(3) when a timely motion for rehearing is filed and
the motion for rehearing is denied by Board order or operation of
law as outlined in §575.9 of this title (relating to Motions
for Rehearing).
|
| Source Note: The provisions of this §575.8 adopted to be effective July 13, 2008, 33 TexReg 5528; amended to be effective June 20, 2012, 37 TexReg 4425; amended to be effective May 4, 2014, 39 TexReg 3429 |
