Sunset Commission Proposal that DPS be Directed to Work with TDLR to

This is the ninth part in an ongoing series reviewing proposed changes to the Department of Public Safety (DPS) rules and law by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission (Sunset Commission). As we discussed previously, DPS is being reviewed by the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission, which has prepared its report for the Texas Legislature in the 2019 legislative session.

In this post, we look at the proposal that DPS be directed to work with TDLR to develop regulatory processes and rules. As addressed elsewhere in this series, the Sunset Commission believes DPS “lacks a balanced approach to overseeing the regulation of professions, industries, and activities under its jurisdiction” due to its criminalistic approach to regulating licenses. Conversely, the Sunset Commission states that DPS “would benefit from using TDLR’s expertise in refocusing the department’s rules, procedures, and processes used by the regulatory services division.”

In our experience, TDLR’s staff has the ability to be flexible with regards to reviewing rule violations and criminal background, and we agree that a similar approach would be helpful for both DPS and DPS’s licensees. We will follow the legislative session closely to see how this proposed change is received by the Legislature and what changes are made. If you would like to read about the Sunset process, you can do so at the Sunset website.