(a) Preparation of judge's recommendations. A judge presiding at the individual evidentiary hearings or one who has read the record shall prepare written recommendations, including proposed findings of fact and conclusions of law, in regard to each individual claim and shall submit his recommendations and the record of the hearing to the commission for its consideration.
(b) Preparation of preliminary determination. After reviewing any judge's recommendations and the record of the hearings, the commission shall adopt a preliminary determination of all claims of water rights in the segment being adjudicated as required by Texas Water Code, §11.309.
(c) Distribution of preliminary determination. One copy of the preliminary determination shall be furnished and sent without charge by first-class mail to each person on the mailing list. Additional copies of the preliminary determination shall be made available for public inspection at convenient locations throughout the river basin as designated by the commission. Copies shall also be made available for other persons at a reasonable price based upon the cost of production.
(d) Public inspection of record. The record of the hearings shall be open to public inspection as required by the Public Information Act, and Texas Water Code, §11.310.
(e) Notice of preliminary determination. The commission shall publish notice of the preliminary determination.
  (1) Promptly after the preliminary determination is adopted, notice shall be published once a week for two consecutive weeks in one or more newspapers having general circulation in the river basin in which the segment that is the subject of the adjudication is located.
  (2) The commission shall also send the notice by first-class mail to each claimant of water rights within the river basin in which the stream or segment is located, to the extent that the claimants can be reasonably ascertained from the records of the commission, and to other persons on the mailing list.
  (3) Each notice shall state the following:
    (A) the place where the preliminary determination and record of the hearings will be open for public inspection;
    (B) the locations throughout the river basin where copies of the preliminary determination will be available for public inspection;
    (C) the method of ordering copies of the preliminary determination and the charge for copies; and
    (D) the date by which contests of the preliminary determination must be filed.

Source Note: The provisions of this §86.15 adopted to be effective June 6, 1996, 21 TexReg 4780.