SECTION 80.272. Motion for Rehearing

(a) Any decision in an administrative hearing before the commission that is subject to this section.

(b) Filing motion. A motion for rehearing is a prerequisite to appeal. The motion shall be filed with the chief clerk not later than 25 days after the date that the decision or order is signed, unless the time for filing the motion for rehearing has been extended under Texas Government Code, §2001.142, and §80.276 of this title (relating to Request for Extension to File Motion for Rehearing), by agreement under Texas Government Code, §2001.147, or by the commission's written order issued pursuant to Texas Government Code, §2001.146(e). On or before the date of filing of a motion for rehearing, a copy of the motion shall be mailed or delivered to all parties with certification of service furnished to the commission. Copies of the motion shall be sent to all other parties using the following notification procedures:

(1) personally;

(2) if agreed to by the party or attorney to be notified, by electronic means sent to the current email address or telecopier number of the party's attorney of record or of the party if the party is not represented by counsel; or

(3) by first class, certified, or registered mail sent to the last known address of the party's attorney of record or of the party if the party is not represented by counsel.

(c) The motion shall contain:

(1) the name and representative capacity of the person filing the motion;

(2) the style and official docket number assigned by SOAH, and official docket number assigned by the commission;

(3) the date of the decision or order;

(4) the findings of fact or conclusions of law, identified with particularity, that are the subject of the complaint and any evidentiary or legal ruling claimed to be erroneous; and

(5) a statement of the legal and factual basis for the claimed error.

(d) Reply to motion for rehearing. A reply to a motion for rehearing must be filed with the chief clerk not later than 40 days after the date that the decision or order is signed, or not later than 10 days after the date that a motion for rehearing is filed if the time for filing the motion for rehearing has been extended by an agreement under Texas Government Code, §2001.147 or by a written order issued by the commission pursuant to Texas Government Code, §2001.146(e). Copies of the reply shall be sent to all other parties using the following notification procedures:

(1) personally;

(2) if agreed to by the party or attorney to be notified, by electronic means sent to the current email address or telecopier number of the party's attorney of record or of the party if the party is not represented by counsel; or

(3) by first class, certified, or registered mail sent to the last known address of the party's attorney of record or of the party if the party is not represented by counsel.

(e) Ruling on motion for rehearing.

(1) Upon the request of the general counsel or a commissioner, the motion for rehearing will be scheduled for consideration during a commission meeting. Unless the commission extends time or rules on the motion for rehearing not later than 55 days after the date that the decision or order is signed, the motion is overruled by operation of law.

(2) A motion for rehearing may be granted in whole or in part. When a motion for rehearing is granted, the decision or order is nullified. The commission may reopen the hearing to the extent it deems necessary. Thereafter, the commission shall render a decision or order as required by this subchapter.

(f) Extension of time limits. With the agreement of the parties, on a motion of any party for cause shown, or on their own motion, the commission or the general counsel may, by written order, extend the period of time for filing motions for rehearing and replies and for taking action on the motions so long as the period for taking agency action provided that the agency extends the time or takes the action not later than the 10th day after the date that the period for filing a motion or reply or taking agency action expires. The commission may not extend the period for taking agency action beyond 100 days after the date that the decision or order is signed.

(g) Motion overruled. In the event of an extension, the motion for rehearing is overruled by operation of law on the date fixed by the order, or in the absence of a fixed date, 100 days after the date that the decision or order is signed.

(h) Subsequent motion for rehearing. A subsequent motion for rehearing is not required after the commission rules on a motion for rehearing unless the order disposing of the original motion for rehearing:

(1) modifies, corrects, or reforms in any respect the decision or order that is the subject of the complaint, other than a typographical, grammatical, or other clerical change identified as such by the agency in the order, including any modification, correction, or reformation that does not change the outcome of the contested case; or

(2) vacates the decision or order that is the subject of the motion and provides for a new decision or order.

(i) A subsequent motion for rehearing required by subsection (h) of this subsection must be filed not later than 20 days after the date the decision or order disposing of the original motion for rehearing is signed.

Source Note: The provisions of this §80.272 adopted to be effective September 23, 1999, 24 TexReg 8276; amended to be effective February 3, 2000, 25 TexReg 595; amended to be effective December 31, 2015, 40 TexReg 9680