SUBCHAPTER L. ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE FOR CHANGES IN MANUAL RULES, CLASSIFICATION PLANS, STATISTICAL PLANS, AND POLICY AND ENDORSEMENT FORMS AND FOR CERTAIN RATES AND RATING PLANS

Art. 5.96. PROMULGATED LINES. (a) The State Board of Insurance may prescribe, promulgate, adopt, approve, amend, or repeal standard and uniform manual rules, rating plans, classification plans, statistical plans, and policy and endorsement forms for motor vehicle insurance, fire and allied lines insurance, workers' compensation insurance, and multiperil insurance under the procedure specified in this article.

(a-1) This article does not apply to the setting of rates for personal automobile insurance under Article 5.101 of this code, rates for fire and allied lines insurance under Subchapter Q of this chapter or, on and after December 1, 2004, rates for personal automobile insurance and fire and allied lines insurance under Article 5.13-2 of this code.

(b) Any interested person may initiate proceedings before the board with respect to any matter specified in Section (a) of this article by filing a written petition with the chief clerk of the board that includes the following:

(1) specific identification of the matter that is proposed to be prescribed, promulgated, adopted, approved, amended, or repealed;

(2) the wording of the matter proposed to be prescribed, promulgated, adopted, approved, amended, or repealed; and

(3) justification for the proposed action in sufficient particularity to inform the board and any interested person of the petitioner's reasons and arguments.

(c) A copy of each petition initiating a proceeding shall be marked with the date it was received by the chief clerk of the board and shall be made available for public inspection at the office of the chief clerk of the board during the period the petition is pending. Except for emergency matters acted on under Section (i) of this article, the board may not act on a petition until it has been available for public inspection for at least 15 days after the date of filing and notice has been given in accordance with this section. Not later than the 30th day before the date the board takes action on any rule, rating plan, classification plan, statistical plan, or policy or endorsement form under this article, the board shall publish in the Texas Register a notice of the meeting or hearing at which the action will be taken. The notice must include a brief summary of the substance of the proposed rule, rating plan, classification plan, statistical plan, or policy or endorsement form, and a statement that the full text of the rule, rating plan, classification plan, statistical plan, or policy or endorsement form is available for review in the office of the chief clerk of the State Board of Insurance.

(d) Any interested person may request the board to hold a hearing before it acts on a pending petition. Except as provided by Article 5.96A of this code, the board has discretion whether or not to hold such a hearing.

(e) Within 60 days after the receipt of a petition, the board shall hold a hearing to consider the proposal or shall enter an order implementing or denying the proposal. If the board denies the proposal, it shall specify the reasons for the denial in its order.

(f) On its own motion, the board may initiate a proceeding with respect to any matter specified in Section (a) of this article.

(g) If a hearing is scheduled to consider a proposal, the board shall publish notice in the Texas Register not less than 10 days before the hearing and shall state the time, place, legal authority for the hearing, and the matters to be considered.

(h) After entering an order with respect to any matter specified in Section (a) of this article, the board shall file a notice of its action for publication in the adopted rule section of the Texas Register. In addition, before the effective date of the action, the board shall cause notice of the order to be mailed to the applicant, to all insurers writing the affected line of insurance in this state, and to all other persons who have made timely written request for notification. Failure to mail this notice does not invalidate any action taken.

(i) The board's action takes effect 15 days after notice of that action appears in the Texas Register or on a later specified date. If the board finds that an imminent peril to the public health, safety, or welfare, or a requirement of state or federal law requires its action to be effective before the end of the 15-day period, it may take emergency action to be effective at an earlier time. The board's action on an emergency matter may be effective for 120 days, and renewable one time for a period not exceeding 60 days immediately following the 120-day period. The permanent adoption of an identical change is not precluded.

(j) Any person aggrieved by an order of the board is entitled to redress as provided by Article 5.11, Article 5.39, or Article 5.65 of this code, whichever is applicable to the line of insurance covered by the order.

(k) The Administrative Procedure and Texas Register Act (Article 6252-13a, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), does not apply to board action taken under this article.

(l) The board or the office of public insurance counsel may require that a person who has filed a petition under Subsection (b) of this article or who has otherwise presented materials to the board in connection with a proceeding under this article provide additional information to the board or office, including any statistical, actuarial, or other information on which the petition or other materials were based.

Added by Acts 1983, 68th Leg., p. 1252, ch. 272, Sec. 1, eff. May 28, 1983. Sec. (d) amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., 1st C.S., ch. 1, Sec. 2.09, eff. Sept. 2, 1987; Secs. (a-1), (l) added by and Subsecs. (c), (i) amended by Acts 1991, 72nd Leg., ch. 242, Sec. 2.41, eff. Sept. 1, 1991; Subsec. (a-1) amended by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 984, Sec. 25, eff. Sept. 1, 1995; Subsec. (a-1) amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 206, Sec. 21.31, eff. June 11, 2003.