The Texas State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) was created in 1991 by the
72nd Texas Legislature as an independent agency to manage and conduct hearings in contested cases for most licensing and other state agencies. SOAH provides a forum for administrative hearings for agencies without staff to conduct hearings.
SOAH derives its authority from
Texas Government Code
The law of Texas is derived from the ''Constitution of Texas'' and consists of several levels, including constitutional, statutory, and regulatory law, as well as case law and local laws and regulations.
Sources
The Constitution of Texas is t ...
Chapters 2001 and 2003. The Texas legislature empowered
administrative law judges (ALJs) employed by SOAH to administer oaths, take testimony, rule on questions of evidence, issue orders relating to discovery and other hearing or pre-hearing matters, and issue proposals for decision including
findings of fact In law, a question of law, also known as a point of law, is a question that must be answered by applying relevant legal principles to interpretation of the law. Such a question is distinct from a question of fact, which must be answered by reference ...
and
conclusions of law In law, a question of law, also known as a point of law, is a question that must be answered by applying relevant legal principles to interpretation of the law. Such a question is distinct from a question of fact, which must be answered by referenc ...
.
By statute, SOAH is a
state agency
A government or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government
The machinery of government (sometimes abbreviated as MoG) is the interconnected structures and proc ...
; it has statewide jurisdiction, makes its own rules, and determines contested cases.
The Texas Legislature clarified SOAH was not an Article 5, Section 1 court, but instead was "created to serve as an independent forum for the conduct of adjudicative hearings in the executive branch of state government."
The purpose of SOAH is "to separate the adjudicative function from the investigative, prosecutorial, and policymaking functions in the executive branch in relation to the hearings that the office is authorized to conduct."
[Tex. Govt. Code ยง2003.021(a).]
SOAH currently conducts hearings for approximately 60 state agencies, including the
Public Utility Commission
In the United States, it is a governing body of a utility. In Canada, it is a utility, not a regulatory body.
Canada
In Canada, a public utilities commission (PUC) is a public utility owned and operated by a municipal or local government under t ...
,
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality,
Texas Department of Insurance
The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) regulates insurers and other companies that conduct insurance business in Texas, and assists Texas-based insurance consumers. TDI was founded in 1876 as the Department of Insurance, Statistics and History.
...
,
Employees Retirement System,
Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission,
Texas Medical Board The Texas Medical Board (TMB) is the state agency mandated to regulate the practice of medicine by Doctors of Medicine (MDs) and Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (DOs) in Texas. The Board consists of 12 physician members and seven public members ap ...
,
Texas Department of Agriculture
The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) is a state agency within the state of Texas, which is responsible for matters pertaining to agriculture, rural community affairs, and related matters. It is currently headed by Agriculture Commissioner S ...
,
Texas Commission on Law Enforcement,
Texas Board of Chiropractic Examiners, Texas Board of Dental Examiners, and other licensing and regulatory agencies.
References
External links
*
{{authority control
Administrative
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, administ ...
State administrative law in the United States