Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) Purpose.
Establish the Poison Control Coordinating Committee (Committee) created by
Health and Safety Code §
777.008. The
Committee shall coordinate the activities of the regional poison control
centers (RPCCs) and advise the Commission on State Emergency Communications
(Commission) on:
(1) promoting public safety
and injury prevention through well-coordinated poison control activities within
the state of Texas;
(2) providing
information and educational programs for communities and health care
professionals;
(3) providing poison
prevention education to the public, and informing and educating health
professionals on the management of poison and overdose victims;
(4) providing technical assistance to state
agencies requesting toxicology assistance; and
(5) providing consultation services
concerning medical toxicology.
(b) Tasks. The Committee is tasked with:
(1) advising the Commission on rules relating
to the poison control program;
(2)
advising the Commission regarding the requirements of Health and Safety Code,
Chapter 777, Regional Poison Control Centers;
(3) advising the Commission on the guidelines
for an RPCC to achieve and maintain accreditation through the American
Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC);
(4) coordinating with Commission staff the
poison control program's input into the Commission's Strategic Plan and
Legislative Appropriations Request; and
(5) coordinating, partnering, and evaluating
in accordance with the Commission's adopted Committee bylaws.
(c) Composition. The Committee is
composed of:
(1) one public member appointed
by the Commission;
(2) six members
who represent the six RPCCs, one member each appointed by the chief executive
officer of each RPCC or the functional equivalent;
(3) one member appointed by the commissioner
of the Department of State Health Services (DSHS); and
(4) one member who is a health care
professional designated as the poison control program coordinator appointed by
the Commission.
(d)
Bylaws. The Committee shall draft bylaws for approval by the
Commission.
(e) Terms of Office.
Each member shall be appointed for a term of six years.
(1) Member terms begin on September 1 of the
year of appointment.
(2) Members
shall continue to serve after the expiration of their term until a replacement
member is appointed.
(3) If a
vacancy occurs, a person shall be appointed to serve the unexpired portion of
that member's term.
(4) Members
serve staggered terms, with the terms of one-third of the members expiring
August 31 of each odd-numbered year. To implement staggered terms, the initial
terms of each member were as follows:
(A)
public member and two RPCC members--2011;
(B) DSHS member and two RPCC members--2013;
and
(C) Commission member and two
RPCC members--2015.
(f) Committee Meeting Attendance. Members
shall attend scheduled Committee meetings.
(1)
A member shall notify the presiding officer or Commission staff if the member
is unable to attend a scheduled meeting.
(2) It is grounds for removal, including by
the Commission, if a member cannot discharge the member's duties for a
substantial part of the member's appointed term because of illness or
disability, is absent from more than half of the Committee meetings during a
fiscal year, or is absent from at least three consecutive Committee meetings.
The validity of an action of the Committee is not affected by the fact that it
is taken when a ground for removal of a member exists.
(g) Statement by Members.
(1) The Commission and the Committee shall
not be bound in any way by any statement or action on the part of any Committee
member except when a statement or action is in pursuit of specific instructions
from the Commission or Committee.
(2) The Committee and its members may not
participate in legislative activity in the name of the Commission or the
Committee except with approval through the Commission's legislative process.
Committee members are not prohibited from representing themselves, their RPCC,
or other entities in the legislative process.
(h) Reimbursement for Expenses. In accordance
with the requirements set forth in Government Code, Chapter 2110, a Committee
member may only receive reimbursement for the member's expenses, including
travel expenses, incurred for each day the member engages in official Committee
business from appropriated funds if authorized by the General Appropriations
Act or budget execution process.
(1) No
compensatory per diem shall be paid to Committee members unless required by
law.
(2) A Committee member who is
an employee of a state agency, other than the Commission or DSHS, may not
receive reimbursement for expenses from the Commission.
(3) A nonmember of the Committee who is
appointed to serve on a subcommittee may not receive reimbursement for expenses
from appropriated funds unless authorized in accordance with subsection (h) of
this section and approved by the Commission's Executive Director.
(4) Each member who is to be reimbursed for
expenses shall submit to Commission staff the member's receipts for expenses
and any required official forms no later than 14 days after each Committee
meeting.
(5) Requests for
reimbursement of expenses shall be made on official state travel vouchers
prepared by Commission staff.
(i) Reporting to the Commission. The
Committee shall submit written reports to the Commission in accordance with
Committee bylaws; and additionally as follows:
(1) by September 1 of each year submit an
annual report to the Commission that includes, but is not limited to, the
following:
(A) an update on the Committee's
work, including:
(i) Committee meeting
dates;
(ii) member attendance
records;
(iii) description of
actions taken by the Committee;
(iv) description of how the Committee has
accomplished or addressed the tasks and issues assigned to the Committee by the
Commission;
(v) information on
available grants and any grant funding received by the RPCCs; and
(vi) anticipated future activities of the
Committee;
(B)
description of the usefulness of the Committee's work; and
(C) statement of costs related to the
Committee, including the cost of Commission staff time spent in support of the
Committee;
(2) by June 1
in even-numbered years, a report advising and making recommendations regarding
development of the Commission's biennial Strategic Plan and Legislative
Appropriations Request; and
(3) by
June 1 in odd-numbered years, a report on the distribution of appropriated
funding, the implementation of legislative requirements, and other information
as may be determined by the Commission.
(j) Commission Staff. Support for the
Committee shall be provided by Commission staff.
(k) Advisory Committee. The Committee is an
advisory committee in that it does not supervise or control public business or
policy. As an advisory committee, the Committee is not subject to the Open
Meetings Act (Texas Government Code, Chapter 551).
(l) Applicable law. The Committee is subject
to Government Code, Chapter 2110, concerning state agency advisory
committees.
(m) Commission
Evaluation. The Commission shall annually evaluate the Committee's work,
usefulness, and the costs related to the Committee, including the cost of
Commission staff time spent supporting the Committee's activities.
(n) Report to the Legislative Budget Board.
The Commission shall report to the Legislative Budget Board the information
developed in subsection (m) of this section on a biennial basis as part of the
Commission's Legislative Appropriations Request.
(o) Review and Duration. Before September 1,
2029, the Commission will initiate and complete a review of the Committee to
determine whether the Committee should be continued or abolished. If the
Committee is not continued, it shall be automatically abolished on September 1,
2029.
