(a) Filing deadline. The commission shall set a date for filing contests to the preliminary determination, which shall be not less than 90 days from the date of the notice of the preliminary determination.
(b) Filing of contest. Any water right claimant affected by the preliminary determination, including any claimant to water rights within the river basin, but outside the segment under adjudication, who disputes the preliminary determination may, within the time for filing contests prescribed by the commission in the notice, including any extensions of time, file a written contest with the commission.
(c) Copy of contest to claimant. If the contest is directed against the preliminary determination of the water rights of other claimants, a copy shall be sent by the contestant to each of these claimants or his representative by certified mail, and proof of service shall be filed with the commission.
(d) Extension of time for filing contests. The commission may accept contests filed after the deadline but before the issuance of the notice of hearings on the contests.
(e) Contents of contests. Each contest shall do the following:
  (1) state the name of the claimant, nature of the claim, and the page number in the preliminary determination to which the contest is directed;
  (2) describe the specific parts of the preliminary determination to which objection is made, pointing out the specific findings of fact, conclusions of law, or other matters objected to, or specifying the findings of fact, conclusions of law, or other matters alleged to have been erroneously omitted from the preliminary determination; and
  (3) describe the facts relied upon to support the grounds of the contest and be verified by an affidavit of the contestant or his representative.
(f) Amendments to contests. Amendments to contests may be authorized at any time, provided that the commission finds that the amendment will not result in undue surprise to any party and will not significantly change the grounds of the contest as described in the commission's notice of the contest hearings.
(g) Notice of hearing on contests. After the time for filing contests has expired, the commission shall prepare a notice setting forth the parts of the preliminary determination to which each contest is directed and the date, time, and place of the hearing on each contest. The notice shall be sent by certified mail to each contestant and by first-class mail to each claimant of water rights within the river basin within which the segment is located and to all other persons on the mailing list. The notice shall set a specific date, time, and place for each contestant to appear.

Source Note: The provisions of this §86.16 adopted to be effective June 6, 1996, 21 TexReg 4780.