Title LA, Labor Code

Sec. 404.005. ACCESS TO PROGRAMS AND FACILITIES. (a) The office shall prepare and maintain a written plan that describes how a person who does not speak English can be provided reasonable access to the office's programs. (b) The office shall comply with federal and state laws for…

Sec. 404.006. RULEMAKING. (a) The public counsel shall adopt rules as necessary to implement this chapter. (b) Rulemaking under this section is subject to Chapter 2001, Government Code. Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 265 (H.B. 7), Sec. 3.016, eff. September 1, 2005.

Sec. 404.007. NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING; ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION. (a) The office shall develop and implement a policy to encourage the use of: (1) negotiated rulemaking procedures under Chapter 2008, Government Code, for the adoption of office rules; and (2) appropriate altern…

Sec. 404.008. COMPLAINTS. (a) The office shall maintain a system to promptly and efficiently act on complaints filed with the office. The office shall maintain information about parties to the complaint, the subject matter of the complaint, a summary of the results of the review …

Sec. 404.051. APPOINTMENT; TERM. (a) The governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, shall appoint the injured employee public counsel. The public counsel serves a two-year term that expires on February 1 of each odd-numbered year. (b) The governor shall appoint the publ…

Sec. 404.052. QUALIFICATIONS. To be eligible to serve as public counsel, a person must: (1) be a resident of Texas; (2) be licensed to practice law in this state; (3) have demonstrated a strong commitment to and involvement in efforts to safeguard the rights of the working public…

Sec. 404.053. BUSINESS INTEREST; SERVICE AS PUBLIC COUNSEL. A person is not eligible for appointment as public counsel if the person or the person's spouse: (1) is employed by or participates in the management of a business entity or other organization that holds a license, certi…

Sec. 404.054. LOBBYING ACTIVITIES. A person may not serve as public counsel if the person is required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305, Government Code, because of the person's activities for compensation related to the operation of the department, the division, or the…

Sec. 404.055. GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL. (a) It is a ground for removal from office that the public counsel: (1) does not have at the time of appointment or maintain during service as public counsel the qualifications required by Section 404.052; (2) violates a prohibition established …

Sec. 404.056. PROHIBITED REPRESENTATION OR EMPLOYMENT. (a) A former public counsel may not make any communication to or appearance before the division, the department, the commissioner, the commissioner of insurance, or an employee of the division or the department before the sec…

Sec. 404.057. TRADE ASSOCIATIONS. (a) In this section, "trade association" means a nonprofit, cooperative, and voluntarily joined association of business or professional competitors designed to assist its members and its industry or profession in dealing with mutual business or p…

Sec. 404.101. GENERAL DUTIES. (a) The office shall, as provided by this subtitle: (1) provide assistance to workers' compensation claimants; (2) advocate on behalf of injured employees as a class regarding rulemaking by the commissioner and commissioner of insurance relating to w…

Sec. 404.1015. REFUSAL TO PROVIDE OR TERMINATION OF SERVICES. (a) The public counsel may refuse to provide or may terminate the services of the office to any claimant who: (1) is abusive or violent to or who threatens any employee of the office; (2) requests assistance in claimin…

Sec. 404.102. GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES OF PUBLIC COUNSEL. The public counsel shall administer and enforce this chapter, including preparing and submitting to the legislature a budget for the office and approving expenditures for professional services, travel, per diem, and other…

Sec. 404.103. OPERATION OF OMBUDSMAN PROGRAM. (a) The office shall operate the ombudsman program under Subchapter D. (b) The public counsel shall assign staff attorneys, as the public counsel considers appropriate, to supervise the work of the ombudsman program and advise ombudsm…

Sec. 404.104. AUTHORITY TO APPEAR OR INTERVENE. The public counsel: (1) may appear or intervene, as a party or otherwise, as a matter of right before the commissioner, commissioner of insurance, division, or department on behalf of injured employees as a class in matters involvin…

Sec. 404.105. AUTHORITY TO ASSIST INDIVIDUAL INJURED EMPLOYEES IN ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES. (a) The office, through the ombudsman program, may appear before the commissioner, division, or State Office of Administrative Hearings to provide assistance to an individual injured empl…

Sec. 404.106. LEGISLATIVE REPORT. (a) The office shall report to the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and the chairs of the legislative committees with appropriate jurisdiction not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year. The report m…

Sec. 404.107. ACCESS TO INFORMATION BY PUBLIC COUNSEL. The public counsel: (1) is entitled to the same access as a party, other than division staff or department staff, to division or department records available in a proceeding before the commissioner, commissioner of insurance,…

Sec. 404.108. LEGISLATIVE RECOMMENDATIONS. The public counsel may recommend proposed legislation to the legislature that the public counsel determines would positively affect the interests of injured employees as a class. Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., Ch. 265 (H.B. 7), Sec. 3.01…

Sec. 404.109. INJURED EMPLOYEE RIGHTS; NOTICE. The public counsel shall adopt, in the form and manner prescribed by the public counsel and after consultation with the commissioner of workers' compensation, a notice of injured employee rights and responsibilities to be distributed…

Sec. 404.110. APPLICABILITY TO PUBLIC COUNSEL OF CONFIDENTIALITY REQUIREMENTS. (a) Confidentiality requirements applicable to examination reports and to the commissioner of insurance under Sections 401.058, 401.105, 401.106, 441.201, and 501.158, Insurance Code, as applicable, an…

Sec. 404.111. ACCESS TO INFORMATION. (a) When assisting an injured employee, the office is entitled to the same access to information related to the employee's injury and workers' compensation claim as the employee or any other party to the claim. (b) The office may not access in…

Sec. 404.151. OMBUDSMAN PROGRAM. (a) The office shall maintain an ombudsman program as provided by this subchapter to assist injured employees and persons claiming death benefits in obtaining benefits under this subtitle. (b) An ombudsman shall: (1) meet with or otherwise provide…

Sec. 404.152. DESIGNATION AS OMBUDSMAN; ELIGIBILITY AND TRAINING REQUIREMENTS; CONTINUING EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS. (a) At least one specially qualified employee in each division office shall be an ombudsman designated by the office of injured employee counsel, who shall perform th…

Sec. 404.1525. FIRST RESPONDER LIAISON. (a) In this section, "first responder" has the meaning assigned by Section 504.055. (b) The public counsel shall designate an employee of the office to act as first responder liaison. (c) The first responder liaison shall assist an injured …

Sec. 404.153. EMPLOYER NOTIFICATION; ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATION. (a) Each employer shall notify its employees of the ombudsman program in the manner prescribed by the office. (a-1) An employer that employs first responders or supervises volunteer first responders shall notify the f…

Sec. 404.154. PUBLIC INFORMATION. The office shall widely disseminate information about the ombudsman program. Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 269, Sec. 1, eff. Sept. 1, 1993. Renumbered from Labor Code Sec. 409.042 by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 980, Sec. 1.31, eff. Sept. 1, 1995. Redes…

Sec. 404.155. COST FOR CERTAIN COPIES OF MEDICAL RECORDS; ADMINISTRATIVE VIOLATION. (a) At the written request of an ombudsman designated under this subchapter who is assisting a specific injured employee, a health care provider shall provide copies of the injured employee's medi…