Section 141.3 - Board Administration(a) The transaction of business before the Board requires a quorum of the Board and decisions require a majority of the quorum. Four members of the Board constitute a quorum.(b) The Board shall: (1) adopt rules which govern the decision-making processes of the Board and parole panels;(2) prepare information of public interest describing the functions of the Board and make the information available to the public and appropriate state agencies;(3) comply with federal and state laws related to program and facility accessibility;(4) prepare annually a complete and detailed written report that meets the reporting requirements applicable to financial reporting provided in the General Appropriations Act and accounts for all funds received and disbursed by the Board during the preceding fiscal year;(5) develop for Board Members and Parole Commissioners a comprehensive training and education program on the criminal justice system, with special emphasis on the parole process;(6) develop and implement a training program that each newly hired employee of the Board designated to conduct hearings under Section 508.281, Government Code, must complete before conducting a hearing without the assistance of a Board Member or experienced Parole Commissioner or designee;(7) develop and implement a training program to provide an annual update to designees of the Board on issues and procedures relating to the revocation process;(8) prepare and biennially update a procedural manual to be used by designees of the Board. The Board shall include in the manual:(A) descriptions of decisions in previous hearings determined by the Board to have value as precedents for decisions in subsequent hearings;(B) laws and court decisions relevant to decision making in hearings; and(C) case studies useful in decision making in hearings;(9) prepare and update as necessary a handbook to be made available to participants in hearings under Texas Government Code, Section 508.281, such as defense attorneys, persons released on parole or mandatory supervision, and witnesses. The handbook must describe in plain language the procedures used in a hearing under Texas Government Code, Section 508.281;(10) develop and implement a policy that clearly defines circumstances under which a Board Member or Parole Commissioner should disqualify himself or herself from voting on: (A) a parole decision; or(B) a decision to revoke parole or mandatory supervision;(11) after consultation with the Governor and the Texas Board of Criminal Justice, adopt a mission statement that reflects the responsibilities for the operation of the parole process that are assigned to the Board, the Division, the Department, or the Texas Board of Criminal Justice;(12) include in the mission statement a description of specific locations at which the Board intends to conduct business related to the operation of the parole process;(13) adopt rules relating to: (A) the submission and presentation of information and arguments to the Board, a parole panel, and the Department for and in behalf of an inmate; and(B) the time, place, and manner of contact between a person representing an inmate and:(i) a member of the Board or a Parole Commissioner;(ii) an employee of the Board; or(iii) an employee of the Department;(14) develop according to an acceptable research method the parole guidelines that are the basic criteria on which a parole decision is made; and(15) adopt a policy establishing the date on which the Board may reconsider for release an inmate who has previously been denied release.37 Tex. Admin. Code § 141.3
The provisions of this §141.3 adopted to be effective July 1, 1994, 19 TexReg 4750; amended to be effective June 30, 1998, 23 TexReg 6721; amended to be effective June 11, 2002, 27 TexReg 4990; amended to be effective February 5, 2004, 29 TexReg 1206; amended to be effective November 30, 2011, 36 TexReg 8041; amended to be effective August 10, 2014, 39 TexReg 5962; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 42, Number 31, August 4, 2017, TexReg 3879, eff. 8/13/2017; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 47, Number 35, September 2, 2022, TexReg 5340, eff. 9/8/2022