MARK WHITE Attorney General 

# The Attorney General of Texas September 22, 1981

HonorableWoodrow W. Mix, P.E. ExecutiveDirector Texas State Board of Registration for ProfessionalEngineers P.O. Drawer 18329 Austin, Texas 78760 Opinion NO. MW-368
Re: License renewal provisionsof Texas EngineeringPracticeAct

Dear Mr. Mize:
You have requested our opinion regarding recently enacted licensing renewal provisions of article 3271a, V.T.C.S., the Texas EngineeringPracticeAct. Prior to its recent amendment, §16 of article 3271a provided that:
It shall be the duty of the Board to notify

everyperson registeredunder thisAct of the date of the expiration of his certificate and the amount of the fee that shall be required for its renewal for one year; such notice shall be mailed at least one month in advance of the date of the expiration of said certificate. Renewal may be effected by payment of a renewal fee set by the Board not to exceed Forty-five Dollars ($45.00). The Board is hereby given authority and duty to determine the amount of such renewal fee required to effectively carry out the administration and enforcement of all the provisions of this Act. Failure on the part of any registered engineer to renew his certificate annually shall not deprive such person of the right of renewal, but the fee to be paid for the renewal of a certificatewhen the renewal is past due shall be increased ten percent (10%) for each month or fraction of a month that renewal payment is delayed; provided, however, that the maximum fee for delayed renewal shallnot exceed twice thenormal renewal fee.
Senate Bill No. 402. Acts 1981, 67th Leg., ch. -, *t -, amended section 16 to read, in its entirety:,WoodrowW. Mize - Page 2 (MW-368)

"Section 16. EXPIRATIONS AND RENEWALS. (5) It shall be the duty of the Board to notify every person registered under this Act of the date of the expiration of his certificate and the amount of the~fee that shallbe required for its renewal for oneyear; suchnotice shallbe mailed at least onemonth in advanceof thedate of the expiration of said certificate. (b)A person may renew an unexpired license by paying to the Board before the expirationdate of the license the requiredrenewal fee. (c) I'fa person's license has been expired for not longer than 90 days, theperson may renew the license by paying to,the Board the required renewal 'fee and a fee that is one-half of the applicationfee for the license. (d) If a person's license has been expired for longer than 90 days but less than two years, the person oay renew the licenseby paying to the Board all unpaid renewal fees and a fee that is equal to the applicationfee for the license. (e) If a person's license has been expired for twoyears or longer, the personmay not renew the license. The person may obtain a new license by submitting to an examination to be determined by the Board and complyingwith the requirements andprocedures for obtainingan original license.
The amended version of section 16 became effective on September 1. 1981. You ask: Y

1. Do the penalty provisions of Section ~16. subsections (c)and (d)apply to all licenses renewed after September 1, 1981, regardless of thedate the licenseexpired?
2. Can a license that has been expired for two years on September 1. 1981,be renewed?
In effect,you ask whether Senate Bill No. 402 provides a grace for persons whose licenses have expired prior to September 1, 1981, the effectivedatebf the amendment.
A literal reading of Senate Bill No. 402 indicates that its provisionsare applicable to every licenseewho occupies a particular statuson September 1, 1981. Under such a construction,an individual whose licensehad expiredon July 1, 1979,would not, under subsection

p. 1232. . Vrwdrow W. Mize - Page 3 (MW-368)

(e), he permitted to obtain a renewal, but would be required to fulfill the requirementsforobtainingan original license.
In our opinion, the amendment to section 16 is clear and unambiguous. A plain and unambiguous statute should be construed accordingly to its literalmeaning. BrazesRiverAuthorityv. City of Graham, 354 S.W.2d 99, 109 (Tex. 1961). Furthermore, it is well establishedthat exceptions to statutesmay not ordinarilybe i~mplied. Spearsv. City of San Antonio, 223 S.W. 166, 169 (Tex. 1920); Stubbs v. Lowrey's Heirs, 253 S.W.2d 312, 313 (Tex. Civ. App. - Eastland 1952,writ ref'dn.r.e.);Nailv. McCue, 55 S.W.2d 211, 213 (Tex.Civ. APP. - El Paso 1932,no writ). Where the legislaturehas intended to except certain classes of persons from the requirements of licensing statutes,or to provide a period of grace, ithas done so in explicit terms. See, e.g.,Acts 1975, 64th Leg., ch. 709, 53, at 2253 (persons engaged in business of structural pest control for a period of two years granted two-year grace period before having to comply with examinationrequirements);V.T.C.S.art. 6243-101 §lO (personsholding existing plumbing licenses from a city are exempt from examination requirements for state li~censing as plumber if they apply within 120 days from effective date of statute); V.T.C.S. art. 4413(29aa) §6(a) (personswho were peace officers prior to effective date of statute need not meet certain requirements in order to continue employment as peace officers). We conclude that the penalty provisions of section 16 apply to all licenses renewed after September 1. 1981, regardless of the date the license expired. In addition, a license.thatexpired more than twoyears prior to September 1, 1981,may not be renewed.
SUMMARY The penalty provisions of the amendments to section 16 of article 3271a, all engineering licenses V.Trznfw.,d apply to after September 1, 1981, regardless of the date the license expired. A license that has been expired for more than two years prior to September 1, 1981, may not be renewed under the terms of the amendment. 3=-&g

MARK WHITE Attorney General of Texas
JOHN W. FAINTER,JR. FirstAssistantAttorney General
RICHARDE. GRAY III ExecutiveAssistantAttorney General

P. 1233Preparedby Rick Gilpin

AssistantAttorneyGeneral
~APPROVED: OPINION COMMITTEE
SusanL. Garrison.Chairman Jon Bible RobertW. Gauss Rick Gilpin JimMoellinger

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