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Texas Register Preamble


The Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board proposes amendments to §157.15, §157.18 and new rules §157.16, Exceptions and Replies and §157.17, Final Decisions and Orders. The new rules and amendments are being made so that the board's rules relating to the contested case hearing process will conform to the recent legislative changes made in contested case hearing procedure and process under SB 914 which amended Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1103. The thrust of those legislative amendments was to require contested case hearings to be held before the State Office of Administrative Hearings instead of following the prior practice of utilizing an in-house administrative law judge. Thus, the new rules and amendments incorporate the legislatively mandated changes. The new rules and amendments have been adopted on an emergency basis and become effective on September 1, 2007 due to legislative changes made by SB 914. They appear simultaneously in this issue of the Texas Register.

Troy Beaulieu, attorney for the Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board, has determined that for each year of the first five-year period the sections are in effect there will be no fiscal implications for state or local government as a result of enforcing or administering the rules.

Mr. Beaulieu also has determined that for each year of the first-five year period the new rules and amendments are in effect, the anticipated public benefit as a result of this amendment is that contested case hearings will now be heard by an administrative law judge with the State Office of Administrative Hearings instead of an in house administrative law judge. This will provide additional assurance to the public that important factual determinations in contested case hearings is made by a totally independent, outside arbiter. There will be no effect on small businesses. There is no anticipated cost to persons who are required to comply with the section as proposed.

Comments on the proposed new rules and amendments may be submitted to Troy Beaulieu, attorney for the Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board, P.O. Box 12188, Austin, Texas 78711-2188.

The new rules and amendments are proposed under the Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Act, Subchapter D, Board Powers and Duties (Occupations Code, Chapter 1103), which provides the board with authority to adopt rules under §1103.151, Rules Relating to Certification and Licenses, §1103.154, Rules Relating to Professional Conduct and §1103.508, Subchapter K, Contested Hearings.

No other code, article, or statute is affected by this proposal.



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