The Texas Appraiser Licensing and Certification Board (TALCB) adopts amendments to §153.5, Fees, without changes to the proposed text as published in the September 11, 2009, issue of the Texas Register (34 TexReg 6251), which will not be republished. The amendments create a fee of $30 for prospective applicants for a license or certification who request an evaluation of their criminal history pursuant to House Bill 963 (81st Legislature), which created a process by which applicants for occupational licenses may seek a determination regarding their criminal history prior to filing an application for licensure. The amendments also increase licensing fees by $50/year, as follows: the fee to apply for or renew a (two-year) general certification will increase from $260 to $360, the fee to apply for or renew a (two-year) residential certification will increase from $210 to $310, the fee to apply for or renew a (two-year) license (including provisional licenses) will increase from $185 to $285, and the fee to apply for or renew a (one-year) appraiser trainee approval will increase from $105 to $155.

The reasoned justification for the amendments is that the agency will raise sufficient revenue to fund the items granted under Senate Bill 1, 81st Legislature, Regular Session, 2009.

The Board received 20 substantially similar comments during the notice and comment period regarding adoption of the amendments. These commenters, including the Foundation Appraisers Coalition of Texas (FACT) and some of its members, wrote in opposition to the fee increase, noting that fees were increased in 2007 to fund additional enforcement staff, requesting more time to allow the additional staff to have an impact on the complaint backlog, and expressing concern that the increase is unduly burdensome to appraisers in light of the percentage increase and current economic climate.

The Board respectfully disagrees that these are reasons not to adopt the increased fees. The Board operates under the oversight of the federal Appraisal Subcommittee (ASC), which requires that complaint cases be resolved within 12 months absent special documented circumstances. Continued failure to comply with ASC requirements can result in decertification of the TALCB, which would render Texas appraisers unable to perform appraisals for federally-related transactions (the vast majority of real estate transactions). For the last several years, the TALCB has experienced increasing complaint numbers, resulting in a significant backlog and an inability to close all cases within 12 months. Additional staff resulting from 2008-2009 appropriations have increased the Board's ability to resolve complaints, but current staffing levels have proven insufficient to keep pace with a 60% increase in complaints since FY 2007 and the needs of state and federal law enforcement agencies that frequently call on TALCB staff to assist in criminal actions involving mortgage fraud, as required by the 2007 Legislature in House Bill 716. Furthermore, while the increase is notable when expressed as a percentage of current licensing fees, Texas's appraiser licensing fees after the increase will remain comparable to the fees of many other states. At the October 16, 2009 meeting of the TALCB, FACT withdrew its opposition to the amendments.

The amendments are adopted under the Texas Occupations Code, §1103.156, Fees.

The statute affected by this adoption is Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 1103. No other statute, code, or article is affected by the amendments.