Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) Committee
appointments. Appointments to standing committees and ad hoc committees shall
be considered annually by the board's presiding officer to assist in carrying
out the functions of the board under the provisions of the Act. Committee
appointments shall be made by the presiding officer for a term of two years but
may be terminated at any point by the presiding officer. Committee members may
be re-appointed at the discretion of the presiding officer. The board's
presiding officer shall be an ex officio member of each standing committee and
ad hoc committee and chair of the executive committee.
(c) Committee meetings. Committee meetings
shall be held at the call of the committee chair, and a report to the board at
its next regularly scheduled meeting shall be made by such chair or, in the
absence of the chair, by another board member serving on the
committee.
(d) Vacancies. If for
any reason a vacancy occurs on a committee, the board's presiding officer may
appoint a replacement in accordance with subsection (a) of this
section.
(e) Standing committee
structure and charge to committees. The standing committees shall consist of
policy-making committees and working committees comprised of the following
individuals and shall be charged with the following responsibilities.
(1) The executive committee shall be a
policy-making committee comprised of the board's presiding officer, assistant
presiding officer, secretary, treasurer, immediate past presiding officer of
the board if still serving on the board, and at least one other officer elected
by the board. The executive committee shall also be the board's audit
committee. The executive committee may act on behalf of the full board in
matters of urgency, or when a meeting of the full board is not feasible; the
executive committee's actions are subject to full board ratification at its
next regularly scheduled meeting. The functions of the executive committee
shall be to advise, consult with, and make recommendations to the board
concerning matters requested by the board's presiding officer, including:
(A) the board's budget and
finances;
(B) litigation;
(C) emergency suspensions pursuant to §
519.12 of this title (relating to
Emergency Suspension);
(D)
emergency rulemaking pursuant to §2001.034 of the Administrative Procedure
Act;
(E) amendments to the
Act;
(F) responses/positions
relating to papers, reports, and other submissions from national or
international associations or boards;
(G) legislative oversight, including, but not
limited to, budget, performance measures, proposed changes in legislation
affecting the board, and computer utilization; and
(H) special issues.
(2) The CPE committee shall be a working
committee comprised of at least two board members, one of whom shall serve as
chair, assisted by at least two non-board members who shall serve in an
advisory capacity. The committee shall make recommendations to the board
regarding:
(A) the mandatory CPE program in
accordance with Chapter 523 of this title (relating to Continuing Professional
Education);
(B) investigations of
sponsor compliance with the terms of the sponsor agreements, including the
related recordkeeping requirements;
(C) the results of monitoring CPE courses for
the purpose of evaluating the facilities, course content as presented, and the
adequacy of the course presenter(s);
(D) any significant deficiencies observed in
carrying out subparagraphs (B) and (C) of this paragraph; and
(E) make recommendations to the board's
policy-making committees (the executive committee and the rules committee)
concerning proposed changes in board rules, opinions, and policies related to
the mandatory CPE program as it relates to licensees and to relations with
sponsors of CPE.
(3) The
qualifications committee shall be a working committee comprised of at least two
board members, one of whom shall serve as chair, assisted by at least two
non-board members who shall serve in an advisory capacity. The committee shall
make recommendations to the board regarding:
(A) the educational qualifications of an
applicant for the UCPAE in accordance with Chapter 511, Subchapter C of this
title (relating to Educational Requirements) and courses that may be used to
meet the education requirements to take the examination;
(B) the administration, security, discipline,
and other aspects of the conduct of the UCPAE in Texas;
(C) the work experience qualifications of an
applicant for the CPA certificate in accordance with §§
511.121-
511.124 of this title (relating to
Experience Requirements); and
(D)
recommendations to the board's policy-making committees (the executive
committee and the rules committee) concerning proposed changes in board rules,
opinions, and policies relating to the qualifications process.
(4) The licensing committee shall
be a working committee comprised of at least two board members, one of whom
shall serve as chair, assisted by at least two non-board members who shall
serve in an advisory capacity. The committee shall make recommendations to the
board regarding:
(A) applications for
certification, registration, and licensure;
(B) where applicable, the equivalency
examination measuring the professional competency of an applicant for a CPA
certificate by reciprocity; and
(C)
recommendations to the board's policy-making committees (the executive
committee and the rules committee) concerning proposed changes in board rules,
opinions, and policies as they relate to the licensing process.
(5) The behavioral enforcement
committee shall be a working committee comprised of at least two board members,
one of whom shall serve as chair, assisted by at least two non-board members
who shall serve in an advisory capacity. The committee shall:
(A) review requests or applications for
reinstatement of any certificate, registration, or license which the committee
recommended and the board revoked, suspended, or refused to renew;
(B) investigate complaints involving alleged
violations of the Act and the board's rules, primarily concerning behavioral
issues, and based upon its findings, make recommendations to the board or
authorize the staff to offer an agreed consent order, or in the alternative, to
litigate the findings of Act or rule violations;
(C) follow up on board orders to insure that
licensees and certificate holders and others adhere to sanctions prescribed by
or agreements with the board; and
(D) make recommendations to the board's
policy-making committees (the executive committee and the rules committee)
concerning proposed changes in board rules, opinions, and policies related to
the behavioral restraints of the rules and the Act.
(6) The technical standards review committee
shall be a working committee comprised of at least two board members, one of
whom shall serve as chair, assisted by at least three non-board members who
shall serve in an advisory capacity. The committee shall:
(A) review requests or applications for
reinstatement of any certificate, registration, or license which the committee
recommended and the board revoked, suspended, or refused to renew;
(B) investigate complaints from any source
involving alleged violations of the Act and the board's rules, primarily
concerning technical issues and based upon its findings, make recommendations
to the board or authorize the staff to offer an agreed consent order, or in the
alternative, to litigate the findings of Act or rule violations;
(C) follow up on board orders to insure that
licensees or certificate holders and others adhere to sanctions prescribed by
or agreements with the board; and
(D) make recommendations to the board's
policy-making committees (the executive committee and the rules committee)
concerning proposed changes in board rules, opinions, and policies related to
enforcement of technical standards.
(7) The peer review committee shall be a
working committee comprised of at least two board members, one of whom shall
serve as chair, assisted by at least two non-board members who shall serve in
an advisory capacity. The committee shall:
(A)
conduct a periodic review of firms in accordance with Chapter 527 of this title
(relating to Peer Review);
(B)
refer to the technical standards review committee firms with deficient reviews
for which educational rehabilitation has not been effective; and
(C) make recommendations to the board's
policy-making committees (the executive committee and the rules committee)
concerning proposed changes in board rules, opinions, and policies relating to
the peer review program.
(8) The board rules committee shall be a
policy-making committee comprised of at least three board members, one of whom
shall serve as chair. The committee shall make recommendations to the board
concerning the board's rules, opinions and policies. All working committees
shall refer proposed changes to the board's rules, opinions and policies to the
rules committee for consideration for recommendation to the board.
(9) The peer assistance oversight committee
shall be a working committee comprised of at least two board members, one of
whom shall serve as chair, assisted by at least two non-board members who shall
serve in an advisory capacity. The committee shall oversee the peer assistance
program administered by the TXCPA as required under the Texas Health and Safety
Code, §
467.001(1)(B),
and insure that the minimum criteria as set out by the Department of State
Health Services are met. It shall make recommendations to the board and the
TXCPA regarding modifications to the program and, if warranted, refer cases to
other board committees for consideration of disciplinary or remedial action by
the board. The committee shall report to the board on a semi-annual basis, by
case number, on the status of the program.
(10) The constructive enforcement committee
shall be a working committee comprised of at least two board members, one of
whom shall serve as chair, assisted by non-board CPA members. At least one
Committee member shall be a public member of the board. The committee shall
approve the constructive enforcement program, coordinate its activities with
board committees and staff, and supervise the training of constructive
enforcement advisory committee members. A staff attorney of the board shall
supervise the day to day administration of the constructive enforcement program
and activities of the committee's non-board members on behalf of the committee
chairman. The committee shall:
(A) investigate
matters forwarded to the committee from any other board committee or board
staff in accordance with board instruction and policy;
(B) prepare, as appropriate, investigative
reports regarding each referred matter;
(C) inform referring board committees or
board staff of the results of its investigations;
(D) inform the appropriate committee when
possible violations of board rules and the Act are observed; and
(E) make recommendations to the board's
policy-making committees (the executive committee and the rules committee)
concerning proposed changes in board rules, opinions, and policies relating to
the constructive enforcement program.
(g) Policy guidelines. All advisory committee
members performing any duties utilizing board facilities and/or who have access
to board records, shall conform and adhere to the standards, board rules, and
personnel policies of the board as described in its personnel manual and to the
laws of the State of Texas governing state employees.
(h) Conflicts of interest. To avoid a
conflict of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest, no committee
member may provide a report or expert testimony for or otherwise advocate on
behalf of a complainant or a respondent in a disciplinary matter pending before
the board while serving on a standing committee of the board.