JOHN L.HILL AttorneyGeneral 

# The Attorney General ofTexas

November 17, 1977

HonorableMargaret L. Rowland, Opinion No. H-1093 R.N. Executive Secretary Re:' Whether the Board of Board of Nurse Examiners Nurse Examiners may prom7600 Chevy ~ChaseDrive ulgate rules.limitinguse Austin, Texas 78762 of the abbreviationR.N. and, prohibiting others practices which suggesta person is a licensedregDear Ms. Rowland: istered nurse. You have requestedour opinion as to whether the Board of Nurse Examinersmay promulgate rules regarding the use of titles indicatingthat a person is a licensed registered nurse. Section 3 of article 4527aprovides:

No person, unless he is licensed under this chapter,Mayouse in connection with his name the abbreviation "R.N.' 'orany designation tending to imply that he is a licensed registered nurse. . The Board proposes to promulgate rules, regulations, and guidelines which implementthis provision. The Board of Nurse Examiners is empowered by article 4514, V.T.C.S., to

make suchby-laws and rules as may be necessary . . . to carry into effect the purpose of this law.
In our opinion, the clear purpose of section 3 of article 4527a is to prohibit unlicensedpersons from using any designation tending to imply that the individual is a licensed registerednurse. We believe that the Board is authorized by article 4514 to enact regulations indicating those designationswhich it deems to be misleading. Since the Board is directed in article 4525(d) to "oause.the prosecution of all persons violating any provisions of

p. 4409Honorable Margaret L. Rowland,R.N. - Page 2 (E-1093)

this chapter," such regulationswould have the effect of apprising potential violators of those designationswhose use the Board intends to prosecute. Of course, any regulationswould not have the force of law, **since** a prosecutionwould have to be based on a violation of the statuterather than a violation of the r,ule. Although an administrativeagency "has only such powers as are expressly granted to it by statute togetherwith thosenecessarily implied from the authority conferred or duties imposed," Staufferv. City of SanAntonio, 344 S.W.2d 158, 160 (Tex.1961), we believe that the Board's authoritv to enact such reaulations is a necessaryderivative **of** its express authority und& the statute. See Texas State Board of Examiners in Optometryv. Carp, 412 m.2d 307 (Tex.1967)

. Of course, the use of certain termsmay confer a reasonabledoubt or ambiguity as to whether a violation of article 4527bhas occurred. Opinion M-1217 (1972). See Attorney General In addition, the statute exemptsparticular persons from its operation. See Attorney General Opinions H-395 (1974);O-4044 (1941). With these limitations,however, it is our opinion that the Board of Nurse Examiners may promulgate rules regarding the use of titles indicating that a person is a licensed registerednurse. SUMMARY The Board of Nurse Examiners is authorized to promulgate rules regarding the use of titles indicating that a person is a licensed registerednurse. Any prosecution must be based on a violation of the statute rather than a rule.

JOHN L. HILL Attorney General of Texas

DAVID IQ KENDALL., FirstAssistant

C. ROBERT HEATE, Cha'irman Opinion Committee jst

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