Licensing Agencies' Authority

Unilateral, voluntary surrender of license - A court would likely determine that the Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists has implied authority under Occupations Code chapter 1002 or any other law to accept the unilateral, voluntary surrender of a license|Texas Board of Professional Geoscientist - A court would likely determine that the Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists has implied authority under Occupations Code chapter 1002 or any other law to accept the unilateral, voluntary surrender of a license|Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists - A court would likely determine that the Texas Board of Professional Geoscientists has implied authority under Occupations Code chapter 1002 or any other law to accept the unilateral, voluntary surrender of a license

Sales agent license - language in Occupations Code section 53.021 does not authorize Lottery Commission to deny, suspend, or revoke a sales agent license due to deferred adjudication for offense of gambling|Deferred adjudication on a gambling-related offense - Lottery Commission may comply with applicable statutes and consider deferred adjudication on a gambling-related offense to be a conviction if circumstances meet requirements of 53.021(d), Occupations Code, thereby authorizing it to deny, suspend, or revoke license|Applicant character and fitness - Whether Lottery Commission may consider presence of illegal gambling activity at applicant's retail location in examining applicant's character and fitness under 466.151(e), Lottery Act, depends on facts|illegal gambling activity - court would likely conclude that Lottery Commission's express authority to make findings under 466.151(e), State Lottery Act, implies authority to determine whether particular activity constitutes illegal gambling, or if particular item constitutes an illegal gambling machine under Penal Code|"Professional gambler" - Court would likely conclude that rule broadening scope of the term "professional gambler" to include person who conducts or allows illegal gambling activity at proposed or existing lottery retail location would exceed authority Legislature granted to Lottery Commission|A court is not likely to infer authority from sections 466.351 and 466.355, Lottery Act, for the Lottery Commission to consider the presence of illegal activity at a retail location in deciding whether to deny, suspend, or revoke a sales agent license

Felony conviction, licensing agency's authority to deny or revoke professional license upon|Revoke professional license upon licensee's felony conviction, circumstances in which a licensing agency must|Privacy, double jeopardy, and self-incrimination, licensing agency's requirement that applicants and licensees provide agency with criminal history information does not violate constitutional guarantees regarding|Halfway house is not imprisonment for purposes of professional license revocation statutes|Criminal history information, Board's authority to require applicants and registrants to provide and to deny or revoke registration upon applicants or registrant's felony conviction|Imprisonment

Certified Public Accountant, individual whose license has been expired for two years or more must obtain a new license but not a new certificate|Public Accountancy, Board of, individual whose license to practice accounting has been expired for two years or more must obtain a new license but not a new certificate

Renewal of licenses, bail bond board does not have authority to temporarily extend bail bond surety license expiration dates by rule|Rule to temporarily extend the expiration date of bail bond surety licenses, a bail bond board does not have authority to promulgate or implement

Business licensing statute that closely tracked Arizona Legal Workers Act would be upheld if Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals adopted reasoning of Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals

Real Estate Commission has no authority to take disciplinary action against an inspector who has not accepted employment to perform an inspection for a buyer or seller|Defining the term "buyer" and "seller" is necessary to determine whether a person constitutes a buyer or seller of real property for which a real estate inspector has accepted employment and is for the Real Estate Commission to define in the first instance|Commission has no authority to take disciplinary action against an inspector who has not accepted employment to perform an inspection for a buyer or seller|Real Estate Commission has no authority to take disciplinary action against an inspector who has not accepted employment to perform an inspection for a buyer or seller\r\n

Lottery Commission - authority to deny or revoke an entity\\'s bingo-related license solely on the basis that an officer, director, or shareholder has been convicted or constructively convicted of certain offenses|Bingo-related licenses - authority to deny or revoke an entity\\'s bingo-related license solely on the basis that an officer, director, or shareholder has been convicted or constructively convicted of certain offenses

Overweight vehicles, Department of Transportation may issue permits for | Department of Transportation may issue permits for overweight vehicles

Disciplinary proceedings against licensee indicted but not convicted of felony, Board may not bring|Rules prohibiting specific criminal conduct, Board may (after notice and hearing) revoke or suspend license, registration, or commission on proof of licensee's violation of|Disciplinary proceedings against licensee indicted but not convicted of felony, a state board may not bring|Licensee who is indicted but not convicted of felony, state board may not bring disciplinary proceedings against

Suspend temporarily license of vehicle emissions inspection station or inspector without a hearing, quality assurance officer may without violating due process rights|Due process clause, quality assurance officer's power to temporarily suspend license of vehicle emissions inspection station or inspector without a hearing does not violate|Vehicle emissions inspection station or inspector, quality assurance officer may temporarily suspend license of without a hearing in accordance with federal law|Suspend license temporarily without a hearing, due process requirements|Vehicle emissions inspection station or inspector, quality assurance officer may temporarily suspend license of without a hearing|Emissions inspection station or inspector, quality assurance officer who temporarily suspends license of without a hearing does not violate due process rights|Vehicle emissions inspection station or inspector, quality assurance officer who temporarily suspends license of without a hearing does not violate due process rights

Hepatitis|Viral hepatitis|Hepatitis, commission may determine by rule what strains of hepatitis license applicant must be tested for, but commission may not refuse to license applicant with hepatitis if applicant is otherwise qualified|Hepatitis, Cosmetology Commission may not refuse to license person with hepatitis if person is otherwise qualified|Cosmetology license, Cosmetology Commission may determine by rule what strains of hepatitis physician must test applicant for|Americans with Disabilities Act, Cosmetology Commission may not, consistent with the act, refuse to license person with hepatitis if otherwise qualified|Hepatitis, Cosmetology Commission may not, consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act, refuse to license person with hepatitis if otherwise qualified|Hepatitis, Cosmetology Commission may determine by rule what strains of hepatitis physician must test license applicant for, but commission may not refuse to license applicant with hepatitis if applicant is otherwise qualified|Cosmetology license, Cosmetology Commission may determine by rule what strains of hepatitis applicant must be tested for, but commission may not refuse to license applicant with hepatitis if applicant is otherwise qualified

Social workers, person originally licensed without examination whose license has expired for more than year applying for new license not subject to examination|Social Worker Examiners, Board of, may not require person originally licensed without examination whose license has expired for more than a year applying for new license to take examination not required by statutory provision|Relicensing, may not require person originally licensed without examination whose license has expired for more than a year applying for new license to take examination|Reexamination

Examinations administered by Board, duty to accommodate disabilities under Federal Americans with Disabilities Act|Examinations for professional licensing, state examiner's duty to accommodate disabilities under Federal Americans with Disabilities Act|Americans with Disabilities Act, state examiner's duty to accommodate disabilities in professional licensing examinations

North American Free Trade Agreement, professional licenses|Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, professional license\r\n|Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, whether Board of Professional Engineers must verify immigration status of persons seeking licensure under NAFTA pursuant to|Board of Professional Engineers, whether required by Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to determine if persons seeking licensure under NAFTA are United States citizens or permanent residents|Engineers, Canadian or Mexican nationals seeking license may not be denied license solely because not United States citizens or permanent residents|Licensing, applicants under NAFTA, whether Board required by Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 to determine if United States citizens or permanent residents|Qualified alien|Nonimmigrant|State or local public benefit

Filed|Renew license to conduct bingo games or to sell lottery tickets, commission may not if application not timely submitted|License to sell lottery tickets, Lottery Commission may not renew unless application timely filed|License to conduct games, Lottery Commission may not renew unless application timely filed|Lottery Commission may not renew license to conduct bingo games or license to sell lottery tickets if application not timely submitted

Certification, continuing education, and career development courses, State Board for Educator Certification may not use its Internet website to serve as a portal for distance-learning developed and offered by other entities|Internet website, Board may not use its website to serve as a portal for distance-learning courses developed and offered by other entities|Internet website, State Board for Educator Certification may not use its website to serve as a portal for distance-learning courses developed and offered by other entities

Service contracts governed by article 9034, Revised Civil Statutes, persons offering must be registered with the Department|Residential service contracts governed by article 6573b, Revised Civil Statutes, person offering must be licensed with the Commission|Residential service contracts|Service contracts|Service contracts governed by article 9034, Revised Civil Statutes, persons offering must be registered with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation|Residential service contracts governed by article 6573b, Revised Civil Statutes, persons offering must be licensed with the Texas Real Estate Commission

Federal contractors, Texas Board of Professional Engineers' authority to license and register engineers preempted by federal procurement laws and regulations under which the federal government assesses engineers' qualifications|Licensing and registration requirements of Texas Engineering Practice Act preempted by federal procurement laws and regulations under which the federal government assesses engineers' qualifications

Dirt bikes, Department does not have authority to "establish and administer" operator training and safety programs for off-road dirt bikes|Dirt bike under chapter 662 of the Transportation Code, an off-road "dirt bike" is a self-propelled "motor vehicle" but cannot be classified as a motorcycle|Dirt bikes, Department of Public Safety does not have authority to "establish and administer" operator training and safety programs for off-road dirt bikes

Immigration status does not exempt person from generally applicable state licensing scheme|Foreign-certified educators, State Board for Educator Certification has authority to require "Letter of Good Standing" from foreign jurisdiction for, but should accept alternative documentation in the event such a letter cannot for good cause be produced|Foreign-certified educators, Board has authority to require "Letter of Good Standing" from foreign jurisdiction for, but should accept alternative documentation in the event such a letter cannot for good cause be produced

Audits of continuing education courses, Commission may adopt rule permitting it to conduct unannounced|Audits of continuing education courses, Real Estate Commission may adopt rule permitting it to conduct unannounced

Installers of on-site sewage disposal systems must register with Department of Health or with local government entity acting as an authorized agent of the state|On-site sewage disposal systems, registration of installers of by Department and authorized agents of the state|Registration of installers of on-site sewage disposal systems, a municipality may adopt by order or resolution more stringent standard than prescribed by state for|On-site sewage disposal systems, a municipality may adopt by order or resolution more stringent standard than prescribed by state for

A rule exempting an appraiser licensed under Occupations Code chapter 1103 from complying with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice when performing an evaluation as allowed under the federal Interagency Appraisal and Evaluation Guidelines would conflict with section 1103.405.

The Legislature authorized the Behavioral Health Executive Council to take disciplinary action against social workers who refuse to perform an act or service within the scope of their licenses solely because of the recipient’s age, sex, race, religion, national origin, color, or political affiliation.  The Council adopted a rule changing the word “sex” to “gender” and authorizing disciplinary action for refusal of service based on disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity and expression.  In doing so, the Council exceeded the authority granted to it by the Legislature by rewriting the language chosen by the Legislature and imposing additional restrictions in excess of the relevant statutory provisions.  A court would likely conclude that the rule is invalid to the extent that it is inconsistent with and exceeds the Council’s statutory authority.

No Texas statute prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity or expression, and the U.S. Supreme Court has emphasized that religious and philosophical objections to categories of sexual orientation are protected views and in some instances protected forms of expression under the First Amendment.  If the Legislature intends otherwise, it may expressly amend the statute to so provide. A Council rule prohibiting that expression conflicts with the longstanding constitutional protection for an individual’s free exercise of religion. 

While a social worker may not discriminate based on disability in contravention of state and federal law, the Council lacks statutory authority to discipline a licensee for discrimination based on disability.