HBA-SEP H.B. 3179 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 3179
By: Solis, Jim
Judicial Affairs
3/20/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Current law provides that the rules applicable to court reporters apply to
court reporting firms and requires all court reporting firms in Texas to
register with the Court Reporters Certification Board (board). However, the
board has no regulatory authority over firms that fail to comply with the
rules.  House Bill 3179 requires a court reporting firm to register with
the board, establishes rules of unprofessional conduct, and extends the
board's regulatory authority to court reporting firms.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the Supreme Court of Texas in SECTION 3
(Section 52.002, Government Code) of this bill.  

ANALYSIS

House Bill 3179 amends the Government Code to authorize the Supreme Court
of Texas to adopt rules governing the registration and conduct of court
reporting and shorthand reporting firms (Sec. 52.002).  The bill adds to
the Court Reporters Certification Board (board) two unrelated noncertified
shorthand reporter owned firm representatives and one certified shorthand
owned firm representative whose firms have operated as shorthand reporting
firms in the state for more than three years immediately preceding their
appointment to the board (Sec. 52.011).  The board is required to
administer and enforce provisions regarding court reporters, to issue a
registration to each court reporting firm or affiliate office that
registers with the board, and to maintain a record of each registration
issued, renewed, or revoked (Secs. 52.013 and 52.026).  The board is
authorized to reinstate a registration that has been expired for more than
120 days if the board finds that the registrant has corrected all
deficiencies and has paid all fees and fines (Sec. 52.027).   

To file a complaint against a certified shorthand reporter or a shorthand
reporting firm or affiliated office a person must have personal knowledge
of the alleged violation (Sec. 52.028).  The bill increases, from $25 to
$50, the value of a nominal item a court reporter is authorized to accept
without engaging in unprofessional conduct and increases the aggregate
value, from $50 to $100, in items a court reporter is authorized to accept
for each year without engaging in unprofessional conduct (Sec.52.030).  The
bill sets forth provisions regarding disciplinary actions against firms and
sets forth the procedures for such an action (Sec. 52.031).  An aggrieved
person or shorthand reporting firm is authorized to appeal a disciplinary
action and the board is authorized to enforce the certification of
reporters in Travis County in addition to certain other counties
(Sec.52.031).  The Court Reporters Certification Board is required to issue
a registration to each court reporting firm or affiliate that registered
with the board before September 1, 2001 (SECTION  15). 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.